Following on from the message from Phil Maher, I sent the following
message to the Shire of Derby My Cc:s failed so here
is the separate message. This is a site that I know well, and I urge you
to support it.
--------------------
Attn : Philip Andrew
CEO
Shire of Derby West Kimberley
PO Box 94
Derby WA 6728
Philip,
I write to you in regard to the future of the overflow marsh area of the
Derby sewage works.
I am a very experienced Western Australian birder. I have developed my
own web pages for birding in Western Australia at
http://www.iinet.net.au/~foconnor. I have a page for Derby because of the
sewage overflow area and the mangroves at the wharf.
Through my web pages a lot of birders who plan to visit WA contact me
about the best places to go. If they are in the Kimberley, then I tell
all of them that the sewage overflow area is an area that they should make
every possible effort to visit, even if it is just a day visit from Broome
over 200km away. In the wet season especially it is one of the best
birding sites in Australia. Every one that I know who has visited the
site easily remembers it as one of the highlights of the Kimberley. I
have personally visited the site on six different visits to the Kimberley
and I have never been disappointed.
I could name 20 or 30 of the highly sought after species that have been
recorded there, but the individual species themselves would probably not
mean much to you. These are species that many birders would make a
special trip to see. The high diversity of the species, and the fact that
so many of the rarer migrant species turn up there strongly illustrate the
importance of this wetland.
I understand that there is a plan to divert a significant amount of the
treated water that currently flows through to the marsh, so that it can be
used to irrigate the nearby golf course. I ask that the effect on the
marsh is strongly taken into account when making this decision.
Certainly this site is man made. But is now a birding treasure and should
be promoted. Please don't make any decisions that will adversely affect
it.
Yours sincerely,
Frank O'Connor
8C Hardy Road
Nedlands WA 6009
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