The City of Stirling is seeking feedback on the development of a major, long-term body of work that will identify which assets along the City’s 7km of coastline are most important to residents and how the City can best manage the effects of climate change to the coast into the future.
The work builds on consultations and analysis beginning at Watermans Bay as far back as the 2009 storms, as well as through the Strategic Coastal Process Study provided to Council in 2017, and most recently in 2019 at Mettams Pool.
Loss of beach sand, the retreat of the dune buffers protecting West Coast Drive and public amenities, and the damage to existing infrastructure along the coast all form part of the issues to be investigated in the preparation of a long-term adaptation and mitigation plan.
The Coastal Hazard Risk Management and Adaptation Plan (CHRMAP) – which is required under the State’s Coastal Planning Policy (SPP2.6 – as per the Planning and Development Act 2005) – will:
- set the framework for the assessment of coastal hazards
- inform the community and stakeholders about potential coastal hazard risks
- provide strategic guidance for coordinated, integrated and sustainable land-use planning and decision-making by the City of Stirling.
Mayor Mark Irwin said while it was tempting to focus on extreme scenarios contained within various climate models of sea level rises, as a local government it was critical to focus on what it can do to protect those assets and amenities, based on feedback from people who most love our coast.
“There is no doubt that climate change is having an effect on Western Australia’s coastlines, and with 7km of that beautiful environment in our area, the City will have a role to play in adapting to these changes and mitigating the risks,” he said.
“Given the global nature is this problem, the City of Stirling is taking a very pragmatic, methodical approach to responding to the issues, being aware both of the potential effects of these changes as well as the limits to what we can practically do.
“At the broader end of the scale of actions we can take, as a City we have committed to reducing our emissions by 70 per cent and sourcing 100 per cent of our electricity from renewables by 2030 on the road to net zero by 2050 under our Sustainable Energy Action Plan (2020-2030).
“This is in line with the Paris Agreement and COP26 communiques that speak to a need to take bold actions by 2030 to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees.
“If the City of Stirling was a country, our 70 per cent 2030 target would be one of if not the strongest in the world. The UK has pledged to reduce emissions 63 per cent, Germany by 53 per cent, the US by between 50-52 per cent, the European Union by 51 per cent, Canada by between 40-45 per cent), Japan by 44 per cent, and Australia by between 26-28 per cent (whilst forecasting closer to 30-35 per cent).*
“On the more localised scale of actions, we are currently making repairs and improvements to counter coastal erosion at locations such as Mettams Pool, including works currently underway to future-proof the access ramp with Geotextile Sand Containers (GSC) as well as planned sand nourishment to restore the sandy beach environment for the short term.
“Without any coastal adaptation or mitigation works at Mettams Pool, erosion of the beach and dunes will continue, and without looking to the broader, longer-term as we will in CHRMAP, we will not be appropriately equipped with the views of our residents and the analysis of science to do all we can to protect what we love.
“There has barely been a day in my life that hasn’t started at the beach, so I have a very clear picture of what I love and what we need to protect.
“Now I need every resident in the City Stirling who wants to be a part of a productive, positive, and pragmatic conversation about what amenities are most important to us, both recreationally and economically.”
The original 2019 consultation for Mettams Pool is now incorporated into the CHRMAP process and will help to inform the upcoming community engagement process for the whole of the City’s coastline. In 2019, Watermans Bay and Mettams Pool were included to the list of the state Coastal Erosion Hotspots prepared by the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage and the Department of Transport.
Given it is important to understand residents’ values as an input into the process for developing the right response to coastal changes, the City’s CHRMAP consultation page has an interactive map of the coastline which will allow residents to report erosion incidents and tag locations they love.
The City has initiated a team of specialists in the respective fields of coastal engineering, environmental economics, statutory and strategic planning and community and stakeholder engagement. These are Cardno, the University of Western Australia, and element.
The City anticipates the final CHRMAP will be delivered towards the end of 2022 and include findings in risk identification, vulnerability analysis, risk evaluation, risk treatment and an implementation plan.
If you visit, live or work near the City of Stirling’s 7km of coastline, consider having your say by submitting feedback on the CHRMAP Shaping our City webpage by 24 December 2021.
* https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-11-03/will-australia-meet-and-beat-2030-emissions-target/100568416. The City of Stirling’s SEAP (2020-2030) relates to the corporate emissions of the City of Stirling itself as a Local Government Authority.
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