12th June, 2018 The General Manager Shoalhaven City Council P.O Box 42 NOWRA NSW 2541

Conjola District Association (CCB) Comments on Shoalhaven City Council’s Coastal Zone Management Plan for the Shoalhaven Coastline – Exhibition Draft In response to Shoalhaven City Council’s invitation to comment on the proposed CZMP, please find following the collective thoughts of those community representatives that form the Executive Committee of the Conjola District Association (CCB). With this in mind, the Executive Committee of the Conjola District Association (CCB) is extremely disappointed with Shoalhaven City Council’s decision to exclude estuaries from the CZMP without adequate explanation for doing so. Particularly given the number of estuaries and communities adversely affected by the chronic, decades long, under-funding of prescribed management works to mitigate the increased frequency of low level flooding events, improve user safety on these waterways and restore natural tidal flows – amongst other well documented issues familiar to Council. Notwithstanding this, the Conjola District Association (CCB) acknowledges the importance of a certified CZMP that establishes and maintains Shoalhaven City Council’s eligibility for NSW Government Funding from the Coastal and Estuary Grants Programme for the purpose of implementing prescribed works therein – albeit limited to the open coast line. To which end, the CZMP includes proposed actions for Berrara, , (Local Area Plan 4) and Beach, Bannisters Point, Beach and Collers Beach, (Local Area Plan 5) both of which are regarded as being within the Conjola compartment. Given this, the Conjola District Association (CCB) offers the following specific comments to the proposed actions therein. Taking each LAP in turn… Local Area Plan 4 - Berrara, Bendalong, Manyana… Action LA4.1 proposes to prepare and implement the Boat Harbour Master Plan and Stormwater Upgrade Plan initiated by the village. Community representatives suggest a working budget of $1.7m is necessary to deliver the complete programme and involves re-establishing a stable sand buffer and renourishment of the beach from an available and suitable sand source - amongst other works. Local Area Plan 5 – Narrawallee Beach, Bannisters Point, Mollymook Beach and Collers Beach… Action LA5.1 proposes several options to manage dune heights at Narrawallee Beach which include beach scraping and dune nourishment, if a sand source is available. Similarly, LA5.9 proposes the same actions/activities at Mollymook Beach and Bannisters Point – again if a sand source is available. As LA4.1; LA5.1; and LA5.9 are acceptable risk management options for existing development and all that is required, is an available and suitable source of sand - a source which can be found in the entrance to . In terms of implementation priorities, the Conjola District Association (CCB) notes that the aforementioned actions have received a priority ranking of 1, with LA5.1 and 5.9 to be implemented in the more immediate short term of 0-2 years. Whereas, LA4.1 is to be implemented in 3-5 years, not in the short term. The Conjola District Association (CCB) is of the opinion the latter action should be implemented in the more immediate short term of 0-2 years and delivered in whole – not part. Particularly in light of the high, year round user demand placed upon Boat Harbour, not to mention the additional stormwater flows and impacts associated with increased hard surface areas presently under construction in the Holiday Haven Tourist Park. This aside, Ministerial certification of the CZMP would provide Council eligibility to apply for NSW Government funding to assist in the delivery of all those coastal zone actions identified therein, thus supplementing Council’s works budgets to a large extent. Council would then be in a position to allocate increased monies from works budgets for the purpose of improving the efficacy of several Community estuary, canal and stormwater management plans excluded from the CZMP. This would also serve to improve upon the episodic and fragmented grant funding approach to managing these waterways throughout the decades. Alternatively, the Conjola District Association (CCB) respectfully requests Council give serious consideration to allocating these funds toward the preparation of a CZMP that does include estuaries, ICOLL’s and entrance management policies. The purpose of which would provide Council eligible access to the various NSW Government Coastal and Estuary Grants funding streams – particularly Streams 3 and 4. In closing, should you require any further information regarding this submission, please do not hesitate to contact Robyn Kerves – CCB President on (M) 0438 500 101, or the writer on (M) 0408 293 323. Thanking you in advance. Yours faithfully, Dirk Treloar – CCB Vice-President