2014-03-25 Infrastructure & Services Committee Agenda

INFRASTRUCTURE AND SERVICES MEETING AGENDA                                        25 MARCH 2014



Experience suggests that the Christmas school holidays break has historically been the time for
highest use of the area. Local residents have reported to Council that groups now regularly visit
the area, and of late it has become increasingly known to visitors to the area.

Reports claim:
•    Visitors are common at the site at all times of the day jumping from both the Weyba Creek
     footbridge and the rope swings on the eastern bank of Weyba Creek. There are now 5 rope
     swings hanging from overhanging trees at this location;
•    Itinerant visitors and many unsupervised children use the area regularly;
•    People have been observed to camp on site in vans for up to 8 days; and
•    Bollard barriers have been removed to allow cars to be parked further into the Reserve,
     closer to the creek.
It is therefore recommended that Council consider intervention in this matter as soon as possible
to:
•    mitigate the public safety risk; and
•    manage the environmental and cultural values of the Reserve and river catchment
     sustainably.

Option 1. Do Nothing

Council could restore bollards and allow the activities on site to self-manage. It is however likely
that the creek banks would continue to erode and trees would fall into the creek causing a hazard
to users of the area. The environmental and amenity values of the reserve in this locality would
be further degraded and continue to compromise the water quality of Weyba Creek.

Option 2. Minimal Management Intervention (Environmental Services, Regulatory
Services)

•    Provide educational signage and undertake a letter box drop to local residents explaining
     that the area needs immediate rehabilitation to prevent major erosion and risk to public
     safety;
•    Remove tree ladders and rope swings now and on an ongoing basis as need arises;
•    Close degraded, high risk areas for regeneration and restoration (e.g. bare earth riparian
     zones, eroding riverbanks) including fencing (e.g. post and rail) to protect vegetation and
     restrict access;
•    Monitor activities and erosion; and
•    Increase surveillance of the area by local laws officers to achieve compliance on illegal
     camping issues.

This action would effectively close the site for an extended period while management activities
are implemented to facilitate natural stabilisation and revegetation. In order to be successful,
Council would need to put effort into ensuring compliance with the site closure and revegetation
activities which would be difficult to achieve. The site would not be available for public use for
some time, and when rehabilitation is achieved public use would need to be maintained at low
levels to avoid reoccurrence.




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