In the early 1960s, I was part of the NSW state government's National Fitness Program for young people. My parents sent me to several of these camps when I was a teenager in an attempt to "normalise" my life as much as possible in the devastating wake of contracting polio when I was very young.
Myuna Bay Sport and Recreation Centre was my third camp, and what was particularly exciting for an adolescent was that it was co-ed. During the five-day camp, we did lots of hiking, canoeing and other fitness activities. I have fond memories of those times. I am sure it is the same for the thousands of others who shared my experience.
Near Myuna Bay, the state government built the giant Eraring coal-fired power station in the following decade. One of the drawbacks of this technology is that burning coal creates fly ash, and some of this is conveyed to a nearby purpose-built dam, creating a moonscape of grey, gluggy waste material.
All coal-fired power stations have these dams. What to do about these sites is becoming a significant environmental challenge. The ash dam for Eraring was built above the Myuna Bay campsite. In 2019, without warning, the recreation facility was closed.
The reason for such a sudden decision was Dams Safety NSW reported that the ash dam could be breached in the event of an earthquake. Really? Geotechnical experts were scathing that such conjecture led to the closure of the campsite.
Geoscience Australia said the risk of an earthquake of magnitude 5.7 or above was a one-in-5000-year event or longer, and this would have to be in conjunction with a one-in-500-year flood - those very long odds, indeed.
Phillip Pells, an expert in this field, stated: "The decision did not make any logical sense."
This supported the growing realisation of the minuscule threat the coal ash dam poses, particularly since the owners, Origin Energy, implemented the Eraring Embankment Stabilisation project.
On the ABC (31/7/19), Lake Macquarie MP Greg Piper said, "The decision to close the site was outrageous, the risk is incredibly low. Everything we do has a degree of risk, but we don't shut everything down or lock everyone up indoors." He also presented a petition of protest to the NSW parliament signed by 10,000 Lake Macquarie residents.
There is now strong disagreement between the state and local government on what should happen with the Myuna Bay site. Lake Macquarie deputy mayor Madeline Bishop wants the facility reopened. "The site is an icon on the western side of Lake Macquarie," she said.
In a delaying tactic this week, Lake Macquarie City Council unanimously resolved to undertake a site inspection.
The NSW state government and the independent Member for Lake Macquarie, Greg Piper (who now appears to have changed his mind), wants the site bulldozed and the land left vacant. The Department of Regional NSW submitted a DA to this effect.
Four years ago, there was a plan to build a replacement facility on the northern side of Morisset Hospital. This would be very expensive, and there has been no progress so far.
So, how are matters resolved when two levels of government hold opposing views on the way forward? Under our federal system, when policy resolution is needed between the national government and the states and territories, each policy portfolio has a ministerial council arrangement to resolve issues.
There is no parallel mechanism between the state and their local governments. There are 128 local councils in NSW, each with specific jurisdictional issues. Also, the responsible NSW Local Government minister has the ultimate authority.
Perhaps what is needed in the absence of any formal state-local government mechanism is a round table of all the stakeholders, including politicians, bureaucrats, and experts, hosted by the Hunter and Central Coast Regional Planning Panel, which may now be given the final say.
This group could map an agreed way forward for the Myuna Bay site based on science, not politics.
