An elephant seal visits Bastion Point in December 2011 - Photo Richard Du Heaume

In June this year, Hyder Consultants were engaged by the inter-departmental Bastion Point Project Control Board (the Board) to undertake a detailed assessment of the alternative option at the current site, in order to  produce a report using specific criteria that compares the alternative with Option 3b.

Work commissioned by the consultants has just been completed, and the Board expects to present this material to the East Gippsland Shire Council (EGSC) early in the new year. We understand that EGSC wish to engage with the community prior to its views being finalised. Once the EGSC has provided its input, the Board will be in a position to finalise a recommendation for the Government.

In October 2010, FoM, a key body in the Save Bastion Point Campaign, went to VCAT to obtain documents relating to Bastion Point from the Minister for Planning and the Department of Planning and Community Development (DPCD). We argued that they had failed to conduct adequate searches in response to requests made under the Freedom of Information Act 1982. We also argued that it was in the public interest to release some documents that had been withheld.

Initially Minister Madden said only one document fell within the scope of the FOI request. Remarkably by the end of the hearing, a further 1,508 pages had been uncovered!

In October this year, the Judge handed down her verdict: she said that a failure by agencies to do a thorough and diligent search thwarted the purpose of the FOI Act, and ordered that the Department and Minister pay the legal costs of FoM. However, she considered that the four documents in contention should be withheld, as it was not in the public interest to release them.

From the documents made available, it appeared that Minister Madden was ready to release an assessment of the Inquiry Panel report within 2 months of receiving it. We believe that this assessment (not released) accepted the Inquiry Panel recommendations of a low key upgrade to the existing ramp at Bastion Point.

However, some undocumented change caused a planned media release announcing his assessment to be cancelled, and the following 6 months saw the progression of Madden’s office directing the DPCD and Marine Safety Victoria to prepare the Minister’s assessment that rejected the Panel findings.

This was despite the efforts of the Executive Director of Planning Policy at the DPCD, who wrote to Madden’s office in relation to a lower impact proposal that had already been suggested by SBPC:

“I suspect that their proposition would support a sensible upgrade of existing launch site – which is what I think most people in Mallacoota thought they were supporting many moons ago when asked if they supported an upgraded facility.

There is a practical solution here where probably $1m – $2m could be allocated to enhance the boat ramp, fix the car parking, … without taking on the huge recurrent costs and impacts that are likely with any other option.. Win Win.”

It is to be hoped that the current government will apply the practical solution suggested by DPCD.

June Drake, James Thyer, Jenny Mason, Bob Semmens, Maryanne Crocker and Michael Drake with their finalists awards at the MCG

The Keep Australia Beautiful Awards celebrate and recognise the wonderful effort communities put into sustaining their local environments and making them better places to live in. This year KABV received 45 individual entries, consisting of 126 initiatives, from all levels of community such as Councils, local community groups, schools and individuals.

Friends of Mallacoota were finalists in Community Action (Save Bastion Point Campaign), Protection of the Environment (Restoration Works and Bird Conservation), Cultural Heritage (Request for Significant Landscape Classification for the Mallacoota Foreshore), and Community Leadership.  See Media Release for more information.

The full results and other information about the awards can be found at Sustainability Victoria Keep Australia Beautiful Victoria.

The Buchan report has already undergone two revisions, with one revision fixing a mathematical mistake that saw the report (as used in funding applications to the previous government) overstating benefits by $2.8 million per annum, or $56 million over a 20 year period. See Council Admits Economics Flawed.

Earlier this year, SBPC sent 14 questions to Council regarding the November 2010 revision of the bungled report. We believe that the latest Council debate may have been initiated as a result of Buchan Consultant’s responses to these questions and others questions raised by Mallacoota residents.

Council CEO Steve Kozlowski briefed Councillors on the Buchan issue on 7 June 2011. We have yet to receive any of the documents discussed.

The Bairnsdale Advertiser also reported on comments made by Member for Gippsland East, Tim Bull, on the government’s current examination of the SBPC alternative: Study on existing boat ramp upgrade.

See Royce Millar’s 18 April 2011 Age article and our Media Release.

FOI documents from the Department of Transport demonstrate the extraordinary lengths the Brumby government went to in progressing the Bastion Point breakwater being planned by the East Gippsland Shire Council – which was required to secure the vote of Independent Craig Ingram. Ingram had made the construction of the breakwater a condition of his support in the event of a minority government

The BSFP assessment panel report described the project a ‘Substantial structure to improve access for recreational boaters who would not normally consider boating in the open ocean from the existing facility’.

The boating safety panel’s overall assessment was: ‘Not recommended: The applicant has not referred to the MSV Safety Audit or addressed the ongoing management of this site. The applicant has not established demand – the project does not respond to existing demand by recreational boaters but seeks to increase demand by its presence ….The case of demand from recreational boaters has not been made’.

An analysis of the failure of Victoria’s Environmental Effects Act in the case of Bastion Point may be seen in the Pacific Rim Law & Policy Journal.

For much greater detail, see Background Information. Downloads of all the FOI files are available here. The article generated great interest in local media and in letters to the Age.

We welcome this move by the Government, which gives some hope for a sensible outcome. However, we have strong concerns that a proposal such as Option 3b, which clearly does not meet the requirements of the Coastal Management Act, will still be considered.

Thanks to all our supporters for helping to turn the tide. However we must continue to put the case for a low impact facility– see our What can I do? page for suggestions.

At the same time, a new low impact ramp has been opened at Torquay’s Fishermans Beach – see our one pager on this recently completed ocean access boat ramp that meets relevant Australian Standards, whilst giving full consideration to preserving the social, landscape and environmental values of the area.