By JONATHON HOWARD
SEVERAL Noosa Councillors have expressed their disgust with the treatment of the Noosa North Shore following the Brisbane G20 long weekend.
Thousands of loaded four-wheel-drives converged on the North Shore on Friday from Brisbane and by Sunday they had left a trail of garbage and human faeces in their wake.
Noosa Councillor Joe Jurisevic spoke with Noosa Today and expressed his disdain for the mistreatment of the fragile dunes, habitats and ecosystem.
“What is it going to take to get the message through to these people,” he said.
“There’s already so many reminders telling people to ‘do the right thing’, ‘don’t destroy what you came to enjoy’ and ‘take photos, leave footprints’, but nothing is getting through.”
Mr Jurisevic takes part in the Surfriders Foundation Sunshine Coast beach clean-up initiative and he’s inviting people to come back and help clean up on the 29 and 30 November weekend.
“There’s a need for people to start taking responsibility,” he said.
“You can’t just dig a hole and use it as a toilet – where do you think it all goes.
“There is simply no regard for the fragile environment and maybe it means the State Government should reassess the number of vehicles allowed up the beach.”
Noosa Councillor Frank Pardon, who lives on the North Shore, said he was also shocked and appalled by the coastline’s mistreatment.
Cr Pardon said Noosa Council had no jurisdiction over the North Shore camping, other than issuing camping permits at the Wilderness Camp Grounds.
He said the installation of a toilet block was long overdue, but the ball was in the State Government’s court.
“The State Government and Cooloola (Gympie) Shire Council need to develop a better plan to control and monitor this dumping situation,” he said.
Cr Pardon said the State Government was currently receiving in excess of five fees from each beach goer to the North Shore, which averages about 22,000 vehicles per year or translates to millions in revenue.
“There’s registration for cars, boats and trailers, camping permits – this all goes to the State Government and yet the local governments are expected to step in and resolve these issues,” he said.
Both Councillors Jurisevic and Pardon said the state needed to do more, including a possible revision of the number of vehicles using the Noosa North Shore, which many people believe is compacting sand, destroying fragile habitats and leaving a terrible mess.
Help needed: To get involved in the Surfrider Sunshine Coast clean up contact surfridersunshinecoast@gmail.com or phone 0415 670 639.
HAVE YOUR SAY: Do you think the 22,000 vehicles per year is an excessive number of vehicles using the Noosa North Shore? Email your thoughts to newsdesk@noosatoday.net.au
