DEAR News Of The Area,

I AM concerned about proceeding with the intended plan to fix the silting problem at Coffs Harbour boat ramp.

As a commercial fisherman I started netting Coffs beach and walls in 1947, retiring about ten years ago.

The nets used were rather large, so the pull on them told me the exact directions of the currents.

Over the 50 or so years I gained a fair bit of knowledge on our Harbour.

It is on this knowledge that I base my concerns.

When the grant was acquired for the ramp a lot of thought went into it, regarding the site, parking area etc.

However there seems to have been no research done on the possibility of a silting problem.

It wasn’t long before that the ramp entrance silted up and a backhoe was used to clear the silt.

As the silt was all in the neck of the ramp area or up against the shore, the backhoe had no trouble reaching and removing all the silt.

A small sludge pump may have been a better tool.

As time went by, this silt still built up and had to be shifted.

So, it was decided to go for another grant to fix the problem.

The second grant was obtained and the job soon started.

I was in the vicinity of the worksite almost every day.

I witnessed the whole attempted fix.

The only thing I saw done was the lengthening of the breakwater.

If anything else was done, it didn’t work either.

We must concede the fixed ramp was not fixed, because there is more than twice the area trea now affected by silt than before the fix.

Much of this new silted area is out of reach for backhoe or dredging.

The ramp will probably now need a dredge to keep the area in safe condition.

Recently published in Coffs Harbour News Of The Area was a story and plan about what is to be done to cure the ramp’s problems.

Now if the plan consists merely of lengthening the wall again, we should all be concerned.

If we are to learn from our last mistakes we should be asking ourselves a simple question.

Where is the silt coming from and how is it getting to where it is?

Well southerly weather pounds into the Harbour along the inside of Muttonbird Island, then along the boat Harbour wall until it reaches the beach at the Yacht Club.

This turbulent water is carrying silt, evident by the fact that from the Harbour entrance, right down the boat Harbour wall and to the surf, the Harbour is silting.

When this silt-laden water reaches the surf it is pushed south down the Jetty Beach by the current caused by the constant seas pounding on the north wall.

The silt-laden water, upon reaching the end of the beach, starts travelling out the south wall until it reaches the boat ramp.

When it strikes the breakwater it loses its momentum, causing the water to drop its load against the wall ramp.
Still water can not suspend silt.

Let me slip in a hypothetical here.

Supposing this third wall traps silt like the previous two, do you think the Government will give us a few more million to have another go?

Keith ANDERSON,
Coffs Harbour.