2021-01-18 GC - Item 2 - Attachment 2 - Consultation Report River Plan Version 1 (2018)

                             -   Private Jetties are presently being used for private mooring / rental arrangements and Airbnb and should continue to do so, providing they meet all
                                 the Harbour Master and Qld Maritime Services requirements and there is no negative impact on the River.
                             -   The existing activities of Private Jetties enhance the River, whilst not expanding the mooring areas.
                             -   The mooring areas of all the Commercial Jetties are disgusting.
                             -   They keep on expanding in the water and on the foreshore.
                             -   This is the eyesore which is destroying the River.
                             -   The Commercial Jetty operators are doing the wrong thing.
                             -   Not the private Jetty owners.
                             -   There should also be a reduction in the amount of boats allowed to moor in the River.

Private                      -   Stop the boat hire places selling coffee !!
                             -   Stop them using wax coated paper cups as they are using them for water as well and are ruining the world!! BYO cup or none
                             -   Actually shut them down it just blocks up the area !!!
                             -   The cups end up in the river!! It’s in breach of the guidelines for environmental protection and the advice from the war on waste and I’m going to get
                                 the media involved How could council let this happen Is coffee more important than the river?

Noosa Nth Shore              -   Commercial uses of the river:
Residents Association        -   During peak season, many operators take over the beach for their hire watercraft.
                             -   Also they place tables and chairs right on the foreshore.
                             -   This makes it dangerous and difficult for boaters to beach their vessels safely - especially when there are swimmers or people fishing in the same
                                 place.
                             -   A policy or rules need to be created to police commercial activities and at least some warning signs alerting people that the beach is shared.

Private                      -   There is little or no uniformity relating to permissible jetty buildings areas on and off water lease areas.
                             -   There is little or no uniformity relating to jetty on and off water lease areas.
                             -   The Government owned land of NR foreshore has developed into a retail precinct to the detriment of rate paying Gympie Terrace traders.
                             -   The NR foreshore traders disadvantage Gympie Tce traders as they pay less lease and rent fees than their Gympie Tce traders across the street.

Private                      -   Re pollution and commercial facilities.
                             -   Over the past few years the number of unlicensed coffee shops or coffee serveries on the river has increased enormously, there is no regulation
                                 regarding these non-food operators.
                             -   Although the service they provide is very nice there seems to be an imbalance between licensed vendors paying full council rates and fees and others
                                 who are able to dispense coffees without restrictions or obligations.
                             -   There seems to be a ‘blind eye’ taken by council in permitting these premises to operate.

Private                      -   Many of us have become aware that on and off water transport provision for daily tourist visitation to the everglades area of NR has been increased
                                 by 72.2% this past month by one tourist operator alone, placing ever increasing potential for environmental damage upon the sensitive area.

Pelican Boat Hire / T Boat   -   FEEDBACK
Hire                         -   The report (page 7) says the river is under pressure from many sources including recreational users and environmental impacts.
                             -   It pleasingly does not attribute any issue to commercial operators or the commercial leaseholders and rightly acknowledges their important role in the
                                 tourism economy.
                             -   We welcome the many initiatives to improve safety and responsible use as well as applaud initiatives to protect the Noosa River from environmental
                                 damage.
                             -   Given the Council’s stated ambition of governing in an open, transparent and accountable manner, we expect this river plan to have the discipline of
                                 only proposing actions that address real and measurable impacts and problems.
                             -   It should not contain random thought bubbles and bureaucratic ambitions that are not related to solving real issues.
                             -   Actions must be linked to specific problems.
                             -   We are very pleased that this report does not describe a single impact or issue caused by commercial operators and leaseholders that affects the
                                 health of the Noosa River.

                             -   We are however worried that the report repeatedly proposes actions and bureaucratic controls over commercial operators and leaseholders despite
                                 the lack of connection to the Plan’s stated objectives (1.6).
                             -   As such we strongly oppose Council’s ambition to take over management of commercial leases from the State.
                             -   Commercial leases and their management are not attributed as the cause of a single negative impact on the Noosa River within this plan.
                             -   A change of management of those leases will not achieve any of the stated objectives in this plan.
                             -   More so, we note Council risks legal challenges if they pursue this proposal and may face a significant contingent liability that is neither warranted or
                                 necessary to improve the river outcomes.
                             -   We oppose heading 3.1.5’s reference to “shared responsibility creates a challenging management model for all levels of government” as the report
                                 fails to describe any actual issue or problem in the current management of commercial leases.
                             -   Government agencies already have adequate powers to enforce management of the river.
                             -   While we support more resources being committed by the State, we do not support legislative changes that would treat the Noosa River differently to
                                 every other waterway in Queensland.
                             -   We note Council has made no attempt to work cooperatively with the commercial operators to improve their apparent sense of impotence in
                                 managing the river and believe taking over leases is a gross over-reach when Council already lacks resources for core services.
                             -   We oppose any Council ambition motivated simply by territorial power and the imposition of new taxes on local businesses rather than focusing on
                                 delivering benefits for the river.
                             -   We believe it is fundamentally disingenuous to put forward a plan with veiled references to new fee structures without open and transparent
                                 disclosure of the full extent.
                             -   We oppose any goal of Council to restrict or limit recreational boat use beyond the introduction of greater safety measures and speed controls.
                             -   Recreational boating is a significant industry and tourism drawcard for the region.
                             -   We oppose any increase in regulation, red tape and bureaucracy which impacts negatively on small businesses involved in the Noosa River and are
                                 essential to local tourism and employment.
                             -   We strongly oppose recommendation 15 on page 60 which states that Council wants regulatory powers to control the size and type of commercial
                                 vessels operating on the Noosa River.
                             -   This recommendation is not related to a single issue or problem in the report and appears as an unnecessary thought bubble as … Few commercial
                                 fishing boats operate on the river and there is little expectation of growth, the size of commercial marinas creates a natural ceiling on the size of
                                 commercial hire vessels and other charter vessels that can exist in the river, as no new marinas can be developed, fleets are already close to the
                                 ceiling limit, there is no strategic framework to inform a Council making any decisions on commercial fleets and Council lacks any expertise in the
                                 field, commercial hire boats have operated on the river successfully for over 65 years.
                             -   There is no evidence that the fleet sizes have been inappropriate or caused damage.
                             -   Rather, commercial fleets have been integral to the regional tourism economy.
                             -   We strongly oppose Council having any control of fleet compositions.
                             -   They should be solely determined by market and recreational trends and the existing safety regulations prescribed by Federal laws and regulations.
                                 Council will add no value to this topic.
                             -   We strongly oppose Council considering using commercial fleet size as the basis for additional fees particularly as commercial boats are not identified
                                 as causing the problems prioritised in this report.
                             -   We also oppose any Council attempt to limit the number of recreational boats using the Noosa River as Council lacks data, expertise or any strategic
                                 framework.



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