The State Government has identified Oakajee, 23 km north of Geraldton as a potential major industrial estate and they are also saying a new deep water port could also be developed if required. Wonder what impact this would have on Corros!!!!!

I remember reading about that proposal about 8 or 10 years ago. Must have got shot down or put on the back-burner the first time.

Over here some *** want to build a golf course and resort along the beach front (7 Mile Beach) between Gerroa and Shoalhaven Heads where there is currently only national park bushland. And apparently the state govt may be able to approve it without asking the public what they think.

Just how many more spots do these rich fat c**ts want to phuck up??

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Over here some *** want to build a golf course and resort along the beach front (7 Mile Beach) between Gerroa and Shoalhaven Heads where there is currently only national park bushland. And apparently the state govt may be able to approve it without asking the public what they think.

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You have got to be kidding me! Such a beautiful area around there, if it's ruined by a golf course that would be such a tragedy. I guess it might not effect the windsurfing though, unlike that abortion proposed for Windang.

Single policy parties never work... we will need to tie in some other things like:

• Daylight savings
• 3 day weekends
• Indoor windsurfing venues
• Banning the baggers

Perhaps the last 2 are a little like the first concept

Pugs

Found this on the net:

THE State Government has dumped plans for heavy industry at Oakajee with Planning Minister Alannah MacTiernan telling Chapman Valley Shire she would not approve rezoning to accommodate the industrial site.



An amendment to Chapman Valley’s planning scheme has been with the minister since July 2001 awaiting a yes or no. Plans for an industrial site at Oakajee have been in the pipeline for more than a decade.



Shire president John Collingwood said it was evident from last week’s discussions with the minister that the State Government did not see Oakajee as the only suitable site for heavy industry in Mid West.



“The minister suggested a review will be undertaken of the Geraldton Regional Plan, finalised in 1999, to investigate alternative sites in the region,” Mr Collingwood said.



“The minister also indicated the existing Oakajee amendment was too committal and prescriptive, to the point where Oakajee would be locked in as the only possible heavy industrial site in the Mid West – a position the Government was not prepared to accept.”



Mr Collingwood said the minister did indicate she was prepared to work with the council and introduce a plan for development at Oakajee which would allow for more flexible land use.



“Although council’s position is to fully support the existing amendment for heavy industry at Oakajee, representatives at the meeting indicated they will recommend to council that Chapman Valley work with the minister to investigate (the minister’s) proposal as an alternative to the existing rezoning amendment.”



Greenough MP Jamie Edwards said the minister’s stalling tactics were robbing the Mid West of economic benefits.


Any locals herd anything different?

Don't necessarily have to go in the front door, or tee of at the first hole.
Cow Tipping may soon become the 2nd most popular non-water, non-daytime, non-sober sport at Gerroa

Ian

Not sure that is good news or not. I seem to remember the last I read about the Oakajee development was in the paper about 5 yrs ago and the site was about 5km north or south of Corro's.

If that was the case..... all you've found is the GovCo saying it will not be where the developers initially wanted it to go... and they will look at other sites. Depending on the original plan this may mean they are going to look at Corro's.

For all the WA people, who may not know, Windsurfing WA opposed the canals / flash housing development at Coogee as the breakwater they will build may bugger up the sandbank at Crazy Waves (near the south freo caravan park / Pt Catherine).
A long submission was sent in (along with other interest groups) and te Planning Minister DID NOT EVEN REPLY. When it was announced that it would go ahead I rang the office to ask if our submission was considered. Left a message and the Minister couldn't be f'd ringing back.

If we have to fight for Corro's we will REALLY have to fight.

Ian730,
Grant Woodhams (www.parliament.wa.gov.au/parliament%5Cmemblist.nsf/WAllMembersFlat/Woodhams,+Grant+Allen?opendocument if you're really keen) is now the member for Greenough, the info you have dug up is from the last time they tried to get this thing off the ground. Ang Feng Kingstream (Ken Court, premier Dicky's brother) wanted the government to kick in a shed load to build the port (now that is a suprise ).
This time around the boom in iron ore means that the mining companies are going to pay for the project outright The government likes this as they do not have to put their hands in their pockets.
BUT WHERE IS IT GOING TO BE EXACTLY? Kingstream cleared a huge area up there before they ran out of money. I can't remember seeing this on the way into Corros? Anyone got a map

GWC is having a meeting tonight regarding a few of these type of issues...here's an extract of some things that are "discussion points" just to consider. At present it's a local issue but needs support from as far afield as possible. Please take a few minutes of your time to type out a letter to the shire of Chapman Valley opposing any deep water port at Oakajee.

It will be great if all people write to council (Chapman Valley) and ask questions....protest in writing. it all helps. But read below for a few home truths from Industry Inland and the GWC. it's cut and pasted from an internal GWC memo between committee members, so picture it as a letter from one committee member to another not necessarily worded for public reading.

It has taken until now to get more of the facts together regarding the meeting with the consultant from Chapman Valley Shire. I think it's really important to consider the following points and make them clear to all potential/past members on Tuesday night.

1. The Chapman Valley Shire is doing standard coastal management consultation which has nothing to do with Oakajee as a port, it's just what they have to do to get federal/state government funding for places like Coronation for the next 15 years. BUT they want development. It’s investment in the Shire regardless of financial blow-outs.

2. A port at Oakajee will only go ahead if it is financially viable. At present, no-one has the money to do so because it's a financial/engineering nightmare, and the Chinese have no interest in it or the piss ant ore deposits east of here. The ore grade isn't high enough and the deposits aren't enough to warrant 2 billion dollars for a rail line and permanent port at Oakajee.

3. Not only are the ore deposits east of here of a poor grade and low quantity to warrant a long term port facility at Oakajee, but whoever puts up the money, must ALSO have an exit strategy once the deposits are depleted and the port scales back. Who is going to wear the financial cost of this in ten or so years time from now?. The Government won't and that's why they are not touching it.

4. The combined companies east of here have a lagging representation on the stock exchange and they are desperately trying to raise capital JUST to keep things going, hence the media hype/push to try and raise capital and investment.

5. The fact that they are consulting with us "considering the port goes ahead" means that they are leaving a big chunk out of coastal management/development and focussing on other spots along the coast, "just in case it goes ahead". hence the consideration of an artificial reef to replace the Spot at Oakajee.

6. To think that an artificial reef will be built for windsurfing/kiting as compensation for the loss of the Spot is just dreaming, the government or private companies are not going to spend two billion dollars plus compensation to a maximum of 20 windsurfers in Geraldton. It's just a joke to even consider that any corporation or government would fund that. It's a dream. Consider yourself a non-windsurfer, would you and 2 million other WA tax paying non-windsurfers want your 2 million dollars of your tax dollars to go towards compensating 20 guys in Geraldton who lost their fun play time on the water? at one little wave break called "The Spot"?. There is no government policy that exists in place to ensure that a user group like the GWC is compensated for loss. We will have to take legal action AFTER to try and get anything.

7. The club will only be taken seriously if they start acting like they know what's going on and understand the facts regarding what is involved in constructing a deep water port at Oakajee. the time is now for actually continuing the work that Industry Inland did for the Spot in the beginning. The windsurfers in Geraldton have a lot to thank Industry Inland for, in gathering the huge volumes of facts about the site. The least the club can do is read it and understand what it all means.


8. The bottom line is "financial or ecomic viability." What does it cost to build a port/rail link to the Spot? Who is going to pay for it? Is there enough iron ore in the ground east of here to justify the huge cost? What are the geographical components and engineering requirements of turning the Spot into a port?. How much does it cost to retrain a river mouth? What is required by government departments to develop a site for a port and heavy industry at Oakajee? What has actually been "ticked off" by the government in this process so far?. What are the actual environmental requirements in building a port? How will a port at Oakajee affect Coronation beach? Has modelling been done to see how much sand a huge port breakwater would collect, which therefore wouldn’t be deposited north along the coast as it is everyday now? These are all questions that the club must ask.



Most of these questions have already been answered and are available, BUT are not being reported in the media, the opposite is. Simply to raise money on the stock exchange.

The media are brain washing people into believing that all of these questions have already been answered publicly, when they simply have not, but instead a lot of mistruths are being told.

So back to the shire consultation:

The first and most important thing is that a few representatives(not just one) of the club attend the April workshop and register for it by calling the Shire on 99205011 AS SOON AS POSSIBLE

The second thing is, learn all the facts before going to that workshop so that we are seen as knowing what the hell is going on because there are few of us who do. After all we have the most to lose.

The GWC should consider asking the Shire to consider including a second option, just in case "WHAT IF THE PORT DOESN'T GO AHEAD" within the coastal management plan. Otherwise the Spot will miss out altogether on Government money which will be the first step in protecting it permanently for recreation/tourism purposes.

It is too early for the GWC to be considering possible artificial reefs at the cost of millions to try and replicate what is already there and probably will still be there in years to come. We should be coming from the stand point that the port will not go ahead beause it simply isn't financially viable and we want the shire to consider the coastline management plan “WITH NO PORT AS WELL AS WITH A PORT”. Our job is to get that message across to everyone.

It is too easy to fall victim to media beat ups that it's a green light "go", because it simply isn't. It's just being mooted to try and raise capital on the share market. It's a white elephant and everyone needs to know.

The GWC needs to get up to speed on all of the facts before just going "oh well. if the money is there it will happen and there's nothing we can do" It's just ignorant to believe that it's going to happen just because it's written in the Guardian.

A written submision to the Shire should ask them to consider OPTION B – NO PORT AT OAKAJEE as part of the coastal management process.