A Warrnambool fisherman has urged residents to implore the council to dispose of dredged material away from the beach.
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The council has asked the community to have a say on how to dispose of the material as part of its 10-year dredging strategy.
Neville Dance said option one - disposing of the dredged material in specially constructed retention ponds behind the dunes at Worm Bay - was the only sensible option. "If you put the sand on the beach it will wash away," Mr Dance said.
"A few years back they did that and we had a big sea and within a few weeks the sand was back in the harbour.
"All the money that was spent was wasted."
Mr Dance said while there was no evidence the sand had returned the harbour, it was obvious that was what happened.
"I haven't heard of anyone being charged with theft," he joked.
The council is asking for feedback to ensure dredging is done in a way that best meets community needs and those who use the port's boat launching facilities.
Mayor Tony Herbert said dredging had been carried out at the Port of Warrnambool on behalf of the state government for many years.
"It ensures there is enough water depth to make the area around the port navigable and the greater depth also helps diffuse wave energy at the launching ramp. Dredging has proven to be effective at reducing the height of waves experienced on the public boat ramp by as much as 40 per cent," Cr Herbert said.
Other options include disposing of the material on a wide stretch of the Lady Bay, a combination of disposing it in retention ponds and on the beach or near-shore marine disposal of the dredged material to create an artificial sand reef.
Cr Herbert said each of the options had advantages and disadvantages.
"Council has a preference and it is option one, which sees the sand placed behind the dunes," he said.
"This means that none of the dredged sand re-enters Lady Bay and the sand is also able to be used elsewhere such as in road building."
Residents can have their say by visiting council's website.
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