THE process of further fortifying Port Fairy’s East Beach has begun.
Boulders arrived on site yesterday in preparation for their distribution along a section of the beach where dunes cover the remains of the old Port Fairy rubbish tip.
Wild weather has exposed the tip site over the past week, spilling rubbish onto the beach.
The Moyne Shire Council has enlisted contractors to regularly clean the beach to ensure the rubbish does not find its way into the sea.
The preventative works will include an extension of the seawall already in place along the shoreline.
The works are jointly funded by the Department of Environment, Land Water and Planning, Moyne Shire Council and Sustainability Victoria.
The improvements will also include the installation of 25 metres of sand-trap fencing from the south-western end of the extended structure and are expected to take a fortnight to complete.
During the works, the Parks Victoria car park and the beach in front of the landfill off Griffiths Street will be closed to the public.
Residents and visitors are asked to observe signs and safety measures, which include keeping out of fenced-off areas where heavy machinery will be in use.
Moyne Shire mayor Colin Ryan said the area has been affected for many years by erosion of the dunes, which threatened to expose the old landfill site beneath.
“As the waste contained within the coastal Crown reserve is within 20 metres of the beach, it is prudent to undertake these extra preventative works,” Cr Ryan said.
“These works will stabilise the dune system and ensure that public beach access will also be maintained. Council is happy to provide $81,000 for this project, which includes $25,000 of in-kind support.”
Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning senior environmental planner Scott Elliott said the sand-trap fencing trialled at the site has succeeded in protecting the dunes from swells and high tides.
“The aim of the fencing is to trap sand in front of the primary dune and then create a secondary dune to assist in stabilising the primary dune,” Mr Elliott said.
“The works trialled at the landfill site demonstrate that soft engineering techniques are viable on the open coast and are less visually intrusive in the natural environment.”
