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Re: Penrhyn estuary.
Those who have been visiting Penrhyn estuary over
the last ten to twenty years will be fully aware that wader numbers have crashed
dramatically over that time. The area is under constant change from public
activities including boat launching, jet skis, walking dogs off leash, as
well as natural changes such as encroachment of mangroves. This area will
continue to become degraded as habitat for waders unless someone is prepared to
spend a million or two on restoring the area. Fat chance of that!
While the proposed port expansion is going to be an
eye sore and will partly encircle Penrhyn the compensatory work proposed by
Sydney Ports Authority will result in a much larger area of wader feeding
habitat and roosting sites. The result will be an area totally out of bounds for
any people, dogs, boats and jet skis.
Some may ask whether the birds will continue to use
the site once the port expansion goes ahead. I had the same question in mind
when I specifically visited similar sites in Japan. The Yatsu-higata shorebird
site is a totally enclosed area of mudflats with buildings on most sites and a
freeway viaduct cutting across one corner. The wetland is about 40 ha but only
about 35 ha is totally open due to the freeway. Yatsu has two small channels
connecting it to Tokyo Bay, which is about 1km away. Yatsu-higata is so
important for birds it has been listed as a wetland of international importance
for waterbirds under the Ramsar convention because it attracts up to 10 000
waterbirds including regular counts of between 2000 and 4000 waders during
migration.
We are lucky to get 100 or 200 waders at Penrhyn
estuary these days.
The proposed new wader habitat at Penrhyn will be a
little smaller than Yatsu-higata but will most likely have a channel 130m wide
connecting it to Botany Bay.
While I am not in favour of habitat loss from
landfilling or as a result of disturbance, I am in favour of gaining more
habitat as a result of development if this is possible and wherever there is an
opportunity. No one who is objecting to the port expansion has come up with a
way to enhance Penrhyn (or any money). I suggest that anyone responding to the
EIS when it comes out push for as much habitat as possible as well as a quality
all-weather viewing area for bird watchers and members of the public. I am of
course assuming that the port expansion will go ahead.
The NSW Wader Study Group will have a lot more
information about Penrhyn and what we should be asking for in its next
newsletter due out in a week or two.
Phil Straw
Chairman NSW Wader Study
Group
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