Dog areas for Mona Vale and Palm Beach uncertain
A proposed trial for timed off-leash dog areas on Mona Vale Beach and Palm Beach has been put in doubt due to administrative errors and lack of council authority.
At the 22 August council meeting, councillors received a report about controversial off-leash dog areas for Palm Beach North and Mona Vale Beach South. Due to an administrative error, council found it had not properly registered several plans of management in the local government area (LGA), some of which involved the off-leash areas. In addition, some parts of the proposed off-leash areas are Crown Land, over which council has no jurisdiction.
Council has been forced to reconsider the trial, after a consultation on the review of environmental factors (REF) was completed in September, 2022.
The proposed trial elicited much community interest, with 879 submissions. Compliance was the biggest issue raised by respondents, though the majority wanted a trial to proceed.
Under council’s current Dog Policy, canines are prohibited from all beaches in the LGA. Council would have to revoke this policy in order to undertake the trial.
It will also need to develop new plans of management – with each requiring a 28-day public exhibition and 42 days for submissions to be made – before it can consider a change of use for the relevant areas.
In terms of environmental impact, the report found a trial would be ‘unlikely to significantly affect the environment’. The biodiversity assessment also said there would not be a significant impact on threatened species. “However a number of mitigation and management measures are proposed to be implemented should (the trial proceed).”
Pittwater Ward councillor Miranda Korzy is against the off-leash area, but purposely left the chamber before the vote. Ms Korzy told Peninsula Living Pittwater that given the plans of management had to be updated, she could not in good conscience vote against the motion. “However, I believe the REF remains problematic (as it failed) to identify species as present on the beaches that are shown to be there in scientific records.
“Further, staff could not put a figure on how much work toward a trial would cost. I therefore could not vote for a ‘blank cheque’.”
