There is no management plan for the natural resources of the Kimberley coastal and marine environments, and developments are proceeding ad hoc. Environs Kimberley has been busy campaigning on many coastal and marine matters.
– Proposed Kaolin Mine, Thangoo Station
– Coastal tourism
– Eco Beach Wilderness Resort
– Roebuck Bay
– Eighty-Mile Beach
– Aquaculture
– Pearling Licences
– Marina
– Tidal Power Station, Derby
Proposed Kaolin Mine, Thangoo Station
The proposed kaolin mine on Thangoo Station, 100km south of Broome, was defeated in December 2002 after several years of campaigning. The proposal threatened the Ramsar-listed wetlands of Roebuck Bay – feeding ground to hundreds of thousands of migratory shorebirds – as well as Roebuck Plains and the neighbouring pindan woodlands. Eaglehawk Kaolin’s plan was to mine the kaolin (used in paint and to whiten paper) in open pits. The pits, covering 642 ha, and reaching a depth of 100m, were to be located just 2km from a shore seasonally inundated by monsoonal rains and high tides. There was no plan to fill the pits once the minerals had been extracted. John and Steven Grey (leaseholders of Thangoo Station) and Environs Kimberley worked together to defeat the plan in the Mining Warden’s Court.
Coastal tourism
Many locations along the Kimberley coast are subject to impacts from coastal tourism. Plans to re-surface the road to Cape Leveque (200km north of Broome) to an all-weather standard will increase pressures on the area from greater visitor numbers. Economic benefits may flow to local Aboriginal communities but there could be massive environmental and cultural impacts unless the additional activity is properly managed. With no management plan to regulate where people can go, how they get there, what they do and where they leave their rubbish, there is risk of overfishing and damage to cultural heritage sites and fragile habitats.
Eco Beach Wilderness Resort
Eco Beach is located on Thangoo Station, about 150km from Broome on the southern shores of Roebuck Bay. This award-winning ecotourism resort was destroyed during Cyclone Rosita in April 2000. Problems occurred during cyclone cleanup, when an entire foredune (120m by 120m and 12m high) was bulldozed, exposing the inland environment and destroying a Yawuru (traditional owner) burial site. After the event, EK had several discussions with the developers and commented on their Environmental Management Plan. While rehabilitation was a major component of the plan, the dune will not be reconstructed. Revegetation efforts have had limited success and the resort is unlikely to be re-developed soon.
Roebuck Bay
Roebuck Bay is one of the richest marine and intertidal ecosystems in the world. It is an important feeding and roosting habitat for hundreds of thousands of migratory shorebirds that travel the East Asian-Australasian Flyway, between Siberia and New Zealand, every year. Environs Kimberley, in partnership with the Department of Conservation and Land Management (CALM), the Netherlands Institute of Sea Research (NIOZ), and universities in Australia, USA and Germany, conducted the South Roebuck Bay Intertidal Benthic Mapping program (SROEBIM2) in 2002. This was a sequel to the study of Roebuck Bay’s northern shores, carried out by CALM and NIOZ in 1997. South Roebuck Bay Intertidal Benthic Mapping program (SROEBIM2) in 2002.
Eighty-Mile Beach
Like Roebuck Bay, Eighty-Mile Beach is an important feeding and roosting habitat for migratory shorebirds travelling the East Asian-Australasian Flyway. Three years before SROEBIM2 was Annabim99 – the Anna Plains Benthic Invertebrate and Bird Mapping program held at Eighty-Mile Beach, about 200km south of Broome. This was EK’s first collaboration with the Department of Conservation and Land Management (CALM), Netherlands Institute of Sea Research (NIOZ) and others. Annabim99 was the second in a series of surveys of Kimberley mudflats which started in 1997 with a study of the northern shores of Roebuck Bay by the same team. The series included a 1998 survey of the Derby mudflats near the mouth of the Fitzroy River. In an unpublished report, team leaders Theunis Piersma and Grant Pearson praised Eighty-Mile Beach: “Among the wetland wonders of the northern part of Western Australia, the intertidal foreshore of Anna Plains Station, representing the northernmost 80 km of Eighty Mile Beach, stands out for its importance as a key non-breeding area used by arctic-breeding shorebirds”. For about 18 months after the major study, EK continued to conduct monitoring surveys of the beach and provided data to the scientific team.
Aquaculture
Aquaculture is a fledgling industry in the Kimberley. Mostly, it takes the form of reef re-seeding with species such as trochus and clams. Aboriginal communities are the main holders of aquaculture licences and most ventures are small-scale and appear to be ecologically benign. The Kimberley Aquaculture Aboriginal Corporation, formed a few years ago, has been active in developing the Broome Aquaculture Park, a research and training facility near the Port of Broome. During the past few years, other aquaculture ventures for the Kimberley have been proposed. The one that seems to be receiving most support from the State government is for prawn farms on the mudflats near Wyndham and Derby. Our understanding of coastal environments is quite poor but impacts may include:
– Clearing of mangroves and sensitive coastal and/or estuarine habitats
– Overuse of water – significant quantities of good quality fresh water are likely to be required.
– Discharge of water containing elevated nutrients and chemicals, possibly diseases, antibiotics etc into the natural environment
– Introduction of feral species – non-native species may be accidentally released (e.g. during floods/cyclones). Native species are at high risk from new diseases and/or competition from feral species for food and places to breed.
– Soy feed could include Genetically Modified soy products with unknown impacts.
Ek’s major concern is the absence of a management plan, and the low level of awareness amongst the community of the potential environmental impacts of aquaculture.
Pearling Licences
The pearling industry is well established in the Kimberley. It is regulated by the WA Department of Fisheries, which is responsible for issuing pearling licences, hatchery licences and pearl farm leases, and for overseeing the activities and practices of the pearling companies. The industry has come a long way since the late 19th century, when wild Pinctada maxima were collected, mainly for their mother-of-pearl, along the shoreline. The cultured pearl industry started in the 1950s and has grown steadily ever since. Now, pearl farm leases are found at frequent intervals along the Kimberley coast, on average one every 60km. The safe natural harbours and anchorage points along the north Kimberley coast are favourite locations. And therein lies the problem. Until recently, pearl farmers have had a free run of the coast. Now, traditional Owners have odged native title claims over much of the land and sea, there is growing interest from charter boat operators and recreational fishers and boaters, and the Department of Conservation and Land Management is keen to develop a representative marine reserve system for WA, to include many sites along the Kimberley coast. Clearly, the main issue here is one of natural resource management, and Environs Kimberley is actively pursuing a comprehensive plan for our coast, despite the apparent lack of political commitment to it. Some progress was made early in 2003 as a result of an EK objection to a pearl farm lease application by Paspaley Pearls at Encounter Cove. While the Minister did not uphold our appeal, it seems he did take our concerns seriously, and a number of changes were made to the lease conditions, with a promise to rectify the inadequacies of the marine planning processes in the Kimberley region. The Department of Fisheries arranged meetings between pearling industry representatives and charter boat operators, and facilitated an agreement about access to and use of the coast and marine environments. Other stakeholders missed out, but this could be a useful first step.
Marina
A marina is proposed for the Broome Peninsula. The Department of Planning and Infrastructure, in its Broome Boat Harbour Report, has recommended an inland basin at Riddell Point as the preferred site for a boat harbour facility. There has been strong opposition from Traditional Owners and Environs Kimberley because:
– The marina is on and adjacent to the only area in the world where the declared endangered species Keraudrenia exastia is found.
– An increase in the number of visitors to the area will quickly cause environmental harm.
– It will require the clearing and levelling of at least 11 hectares of previously uncleared land and the excavation of at least 7 hectares.
– It will result in the removal of the natural landforms, erasing all environmental and cultural values.
– Such a development would significantly damage the dune system and interrupt the proposed coastal park. Scientific information about the environmental values of the area is slight.
– The introduction of saline water inland is likely to have a detrimental effect on the local hydrology and on the vegetation that depends on it.
– The land is prone to flooding and is an important recharge zone for local aquifers. Introducing saline water via a channel and harbour is likely to cause the aquifer to become saline.
– It is unacceptable on cultural and aesthetic grounds; the area is considered by the Broome community to be significant, fragile, unique and worthy of preservation.
The Riddell Point site offers the cheapest option for a Marina and will allow for major real estate development to offset the cost. The other three sites considered were:
– Dampier Creek – this site did not meet the selection criteria. Continual dredging would be required to keep the channel open and the facility would be too small. It is adjacent to the Roebuck Bay Ramsar wetland. It is also on country significant to the Traditional Owners.
– Entrance Point/Port of Broome – this would require major breakwater construction. It is unpopular with boat operators because of the strong currents and high winds. It would be very costly to build and is also opposed by Traditional Owners.
– Roebuck Bay/Port of Broome – this would also require major breakwater construction and would also be very costly to build. It is opposed by local land holders and Traditional Owners.
Environs Kimberley supports the establishment of a safe boat harbour for vessels working in and around Broome. We do not support a marina with all the trappings of tourism resorts and expensive residential developments and we do not support any kind of marina or boat harbour being established at the Riddell Point site. The status of the land in question is mostly unallocated crown land and various reserves. The area is subject to the Rubibi (Combined) native title claim. The need for a marina was identified in April 2000, after Cyclone Rosita caused serious damage to vessels and the loss of eight boats. EK agreed at the time that a safe harbour should be created for working boats, as a basic workplace right. We are committed to continue working with government agencies, businesses and other interest groups to find a solution to the problem. We are also committed to ensuring the environmental values of the Broome peninsula, especially in the vicinity of Riddell Beach, are not compromised. We understand that the Department of Planning and Infrastructure is undertaking an investigation into the stability of the proposed entrance channels to all short-listed sites. Typically, the economic and technical aspects of the proposal will be sorted well ahead of heritage, environmental and community values.
Tidal Power Station, Derby
Derby Hydro Power planned to construct and operate a tidal power station and to construct 450km of overhead transmission lines to supply power to Broome, Derby, Fitzroy Crossing and West Kimberley Aboriginal and mining communities. Two barrages were to be built, approx 0.5 and 1.3km long, with sluice gates across the entrance to West and East Doctors Creek, and 26km of levee banks. The two basins would be joined by a channel in which 4 to 6 power turbines were to be installed with generation capacity of 48MW. The proposal was defeated on a number of counts, including the EPA report and recommendations (Bulletin 942) which stated that: ‘the environmental impacts, uncertainties and risks associated with the proposal at the proposed location are significant and are of such nature that the proposal should not be implemented’. Likely environmental impacts:
– Loss of 1,500 hectares of mangroves – progressive decomposition releasing significant amounts of carbon
– Geo-heritage – changes to the geomorphological and sedimentary processes, mangrove communities and aspects of significant geo-heritage value.
– Water quality – changes to water quality, pH, flushing, turbidity/suspended solids etc and subsequent effect on fish species – particularly recreational fish species (threadfin salmon, barramundi, mangrove jack) — and mud crabs, disrupting life cycles, reducing availability of food, preventing movement from creek to open ocean.
– Sedimentation (affecting fish, invertebrates and other species in the tidal/estuarine zone) requiring regular dredging (further affecting water quality)
– Possible saline infiltration into the groundwater (Derby residents’ source of drinking water)
– Exposure of acid sulphate soils
– Greenhouse gas emissions
– Visual pollution by 450 km of transmission lines
Note: Little is known about the ecology and species of the area, and speculations as to the impacts of the proposal are therefore unreliable. The plan has been revised several times, but remains unsatisfactory. The latest variation was proposed during the Hydrogen Conference held in Broome in 2003 – to create hydrogen power using tidal power generated over a vast stretch of ocean off the Kimberley coast.