PORT HUGHES MARINA

The Hon. M. PARNELL (15:17): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for State/Local Government Relations a question about the Port Hughes marina.

Leave granted.

The Hon. M. PARNELL: Last week I attended a public meeting at Moonta to hear about plans for a possible new marina or boat harbour at nearby Port Hughes. The meeting was convened not by council but by concerned residents, primarily to air concerns about the impact of boating facilities on nearby beaches. These impacts are already apparent with the existing boat harbour, and the fear is that any new marina, boat harbor or breakwater would exacerbate erosion of nearby beaches, particularly those to the north of the facility.

The reason these areas are of concern is that the coastal dynamics at Port Hughes are similar to other parts of the South Australian coast where there is a long shore drift of sand from south to north. If you put in an obstruction then the sand cannot replenish the beach and erosion can occur. It is just like what has happened at Glenelg and West Beach. The difference with Port Hughes is that the community does not have millions of dollars to spend each year on sand replenishment, as we do in Adelaide.

One of the most contentious issues raised at the meeting was the extent to which the local council, the District Council of Copper Coast, had consulted with its residents before commissioning plans and before seeking funding from the state government, as I understand it, from the Recreational Boating Facilities Fund. I understand the council has described the various plans circulated at the meeting as very early drafts. However, it was unclear how much these had cost the ratepayers of Copper Coast and equally unclear how the project had advanced to this stage without any community consultation. My questions of the minister are:

1. How much money has been spent on this project to date?

2. Does the minister believe it is appropriate for a council to commit ratepayers' funds to a major project that has had no community consultation?

3. Will the minister, either on his own account or in collaboration with ministerial colleagues, ensure that no state controlled funds are allocated to this project until a thorough environmental impact assessment has been undertaken and the local community given a say in whether or not the project should proceed and, if so, in what form?

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY (Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister for State/Local Government Relations) (15:20): I thank the member for his very important questions. There are a number of issues here, and I would imagine that this would cut across the portfolios of a number of my ministerial colleagues. I will make it quite clear now that I do take public consultation very seriously. I will take this on notice and get back to the honourable member as soon as possible.