History has a habit of repeating itself and certainly over the years there have been many instances of governments – of all nationalities and political persuasions – being seduced by the siren call of commercial interest. It seems such seduction is irresistible and inevitably blinds all concerned to any other considerations.

Unfortunately the offspring of such unions has often been environmental vandalism.
As Peter, Paul and Mary sang: “When will they ever learn?“

The proposed scuttling of a 138metre warship weighing 4100 tonnes close to shore on a unique sandbed at Avoca Beach is a sad case in point.
The proposal is misguided at best, environmentally disastrous at worst.
In the passion of the moment and the heat of the seduction, community consultation – by any tier of government – was ignored. When will they learn indeed!

It is a sad situation when residents find it necessary to fund-raise in order to save their environment from the ravaging this proposal would inflict on their community.
If there is any possibility of pollution to the marine environment of Avoca Beach from leaching toxins, if there is any possibility of a negative impact on wave activity and the domino affect on surfing conditions and an increased shark population, if there is any possibility of sediment transfer and beach erosion, surely the only answer is to scuttle the proposal and not the warship.

Of course, there are the financial aspects to consider – the checks and balances. On one side of the ledger we see the potential loss of tourism dollars due to a fear of toxins and a burgeoning shark population. We also see the huge waste of public money an allegedly financially strapped government is outlaying on scuttling preparation and a court case. On the other side of the ledger we see the supposed benefits to scuba divers who may or may not be enticed to the area.

At the end of the day money can’t buy a new environment, so let’s save the old one. It’s time for the government to call a halt to this ill-fated affair and move on to more productive and worthwhile relationships.