❓ Hon Dr Steve Thomas questions the Minister for Transport regarding the management of seagrass wrack accumulation at Port Geographe, specifically the trigger point for intervention and the effectiveness of the environmental management plan.
AnsweredQoN 1555Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
PORT GEOGRAPHE
RECONFIGURATION PROJECT
1555. Hon Dr STEVE THOMAS to the minister representing the
Minister for Transport:
I refer to the Department of
Transport's coastal management of the Port Geographe reconfiguration
project and to my question without notice 868 of 28 November 2017—two
years ago.
(1) What is the current volume of
seagrass wrack accumulated west of the Port Geographe groynes?
(2) What is the
volume that must accumulate before intervention by the Department of Transport
is triggered?
(3) What was the
average volume of seagrass wrack that accumulated on the western beach at Port
Geographe prior to the current groynes being installed?
(4) Why is the
trigger point for Department of Transport intervention, previously stated in
question without notice 868 of 2017 as 60 000 cubic metres of accumulated
wrack, set so high when the impact is so severe at lower volumes?
(5) Who determined this trigger
level originally, and which parties agreed to it?
(6) Given that
the answer to question 868 says ''the Department of Transport has
developed a comprehensive environmental
monitoring and management plan for Port Geographe'', how is the success
of this management plan in managing the seagrass wrack and odour issues
being assessed?
RECONFIGURATION PROJECT
1555. Hon Dr STEVE THOMAS to the minister representing the
Minister for Transport:
I refer to the Department of
Transport's coastal management of the Port Geographe reconfiguration
project and to my question without notice 868 of 28 November 2017—two
years ago.
(1) What is the current volume of
seagrass wrack accumulated west of the Port Geographe groynes?
(2) What is the
volume that must accumulate before intervention by the Department of Transport
is triggered?
(3) What was the
average volume of seagrass wrack that accumulated on the western beach at Port
Geographe prior to the current groynes being installed?
(4) Why is the
trigger point for Department of Transport intervention, previously stated in
question without notice 868 of 2017 as 60 000 cubic metres of accumulated
wrack, set so high when the impact is so severe at lower volumes?
(5) Who determined this trigger
level originally, and which parties agreed to it?
(6) Given that
the answer to question 868 says ''the Department of Transport has
developed a comprehensive environmental
monitoring and management plan for Port Geographe'', how is the success
of this management plan in managing the seagrass wrack and odour issues
being assessed?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the honourable member for
some notice of the question. The following answer has been provided by the
Minister for Transport.
(1) The current volume is
approximately 20 000 cubic metres on the western beach.
(2) Approximately 60 000 cubic
metres must accumulate on the western beach.
(3) In the 10
years prior to the reconfiguration, the average volume was approximately 100 000
cubic metres annually.
(4) The 60 000-cubic-metre trigger level was set
following an assessment of the volumes likely to result in hydrogen
sulphide levels exceeding the Department of Health's guidelines. It
also acknowledges the comments from residents during the environmental
monitoring and management plan public consultation period that disruptive
coastal maintenance works on the western beach be minimised.
(5) This trigger level was determined by the
Department of Transport following consultation with environmental consultants, coastal engineers and the public.
This process began in 2015, with public consultation occurring in 2016.
This trigger level was approved by the Office of the Environmental Protection
Authority.
(6) The Department of Transport assesses the
compliance against the environmental monitoring and management plan each
year and then makes these compliance statements publicly available.
some notice of the question. The following answer has been provided by the
Minister for Transport.
(1) The current volume is
approximately 20 000 cubic metres on the western beach.
(2) Approximately 60 000 cubic
metres must accumulate on the western beach.
(3) In the 10
years prior to the reconfiguration, the average volume was approximately 100 000
cubic metres annually.
(4) The 60 000-cubic-metre trigger level was set
following an assessment of the volumes likely to result in hydrogen
sulphide levels exceeding the Department of Health's guidelines. It
also acknowledges the comments from residents during the environmental
monitoring and management plan public consultation period that disruptive
coastal maintenance works on the western beach be minimised.
(5) This trigger level was determined by the
Department of Transport following consultation with environmental consultants, coastal engineers and the public.
This process began in 2015, with public consultation occurring in 2016.
This trigger level was approved by the Office of the Environmental Protection
Authority.
(6) The Department of Transport assesses the
compliance against the environmental monitoring and management plan each
year and then makes these compliance statements publicly available.
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