Consultation on off-leash area trial at Mona Vale south
Locals will be able to have their say once more on whether dogs should be allowed off-leash on the southern end of Mona Vale Beach. Council voted by nine to six to put out to public consultation a new plan of management for the area, which would include a 12-month trial of an off-leash area for dogs.
The issue has been debated at council for many years, drawing protagonists for and against. While there are many off-leash dog parks across the Northern Beaches, dogs are not allowed to roam free on the sand. Council conducted a consultation on the issue back in 2022, with 879 submissions on a timed off-leash proposal, which was approved for 2023. However, given some of the area was Crown land, council could not conduct the trial, but has now obtained authorisation from the State Government.
The 10 December council meeting which discussed the plan drew a host of public speakers, including dog owners in favour wondering why the issue was still being debated.
All Greens councillors and Good for Manly’s Candy Bingham voted against the plan, citing difficulty of compliance, ecological concerns and the high number of dog attacks on the Beaches.
Cr Bingham said signs asking owners to keep dogs under control would be of little use. “Dogs don’t read signs. We have two dog rangers for the whole of the Beaches and I fear it will cause a domino effect.
“It’s time to draw a line in the sand and simply say we don’t allow dogs on beaches of the Northern Beaches.”
Greens’ councillor Miranda Korzy said there had been 200 dog attacks in the last 12 months across the Northern Beaches. Cr Korzy also raised the issue of the environmental impact of dogs on the beach, saying council had only surveyed the area over two days when dogs were present. Last year, council agreed that an off-leash trial would not ‘significantly affect the environment and therefore an environmental impact statement was not required.’
Colleague Ethan Hrnjak said the Beaches had a high number of dog attacks compared with the rest of Sydney. “It is surprising for me that you are considering letting unleashed dogs on a busy public beach.”
The draft plan of management also looks at the protection of coastal vegetation and sand dunes, with coastal erosion an ongoing issue of concern.
Submissions can be made on the Your Say section of council’s website by 9 February.