Graham Burgess and Helen Wilson, Illawarra Branch
Killalea Regional Park is the only coastal reserve between Shellharbour, south of Wollongong, and Seven Mile Beach south of Kiama. As housing developments have burgeoned in the former dairy farming area, many coastal environments have been threatened. It’s important that what remains is well protected, so the new Draft Plan of Management (DPOM) is a step in the right direction.
Killalea is well loved and used by locals and others for its famed surf breaks (it’s been a National Surfing Reserve since 2009), its cultural heritage, campground, walking tracks and variety of bird habitats. It houses an environmental education centre.
The park includes a freshwater lagoon and wetlands, a small offshore island, and a spectacular vegetated sand-spit and estuary at the entrance to the Minnamurra River. There are remnants of various forest types amongst the predominantly cleared and weed-infested hilly landscape. Adjoining land uses include Bass Point Quarry, the growing suburb of Shell Cove, a golf course and a waste disposal depot, all of which could prove problematic. Killalea does not have the buffers we expect around NPWS lands.
Formerly a State Recreation Area, Killalea was governed from 1991 by a trust and from 2016 managed by Reflections Holiday Parks. Over many years local people became unhappy with the management of the park as its facilities were run down and inappropriate developments mooted. To defend the park the group Save Killalea Alliance (SKA), which included many surfers, was formed and leading figure and surfer Chris Homer became Mayor of Shellharbour in 2021.
SKA called for the park to be handed over to NPWS as a regional park. NPA was an enthusiastic contributor to this campaign and first put the suggestion forward in our 2018 50 Park Proposals discussion paper. We were very pleased to finally see this come to fruition in 2022, to have been involved in the Community Reference Group leading up to this plan and to see the DPoM materialise. We’re especially pleased to see that the DPOM recognises the strong affiliation and sense of ownership the local community has for the park as a result of campaigns by conservationists, surfers and residents.
Illawarra Branch, various members, individuals and other community groups made submissions on the DPOM and on the Draft Precinct Plan. The consensus among us is that there is little to object to in the general approach but, as with many other recent POMs, we’d like to see a more detailed plan of action showing what will be done. We heartily endorse NPWS’ vision for the park as a place where:
- the park is recognised and celebrated as an Aboriginal cultural landscape
- healthy resilient coastal ecosystems return, extend and flourish
- facilities support sustainable use of the park by Aboriginal people, the local community and visitors.
NPA welcomes the DPOM’s mention of potential future additions to the Park: notably of Bass Point Reserve (currently managed by Shellharbour City Council), and parts of the estuarine zone including mangroves along the Minnamurra River, currently Crown land.
NPA’s submission also supports the upgrading of walking and cycling tracks within the park and proposes formalising a coastal connecting track between Killalea and Bass Point.
However, we also outline a number of shortcomings, including:
- We appreciate that there are few models of regional parks in NSW where recreational activities are allowed consistent with the aims of the NP Act in what may be modified landscapes. However we would like to see stronger wording in this POM to make clear that the aims of conserving natural and cultural landscapes and fostering appreciation of them must be the determining factor in any permissible activity.
- The DPOM recognises that the extent of weed infestation is the major issue regarding the biodiversity of Killalea, but we’re disappointed in the lack of a detailed plan to tackle it. We urge best-practice, long-term patient weeding and revegetation to give native species time to adapt.
- The boundaries of the park include ‘mean high water mark’, meaning the high tide mark, but we think the boundary should be ‘mean LOW water mark, or low tide mark. The intertidal zone is fragile, may be important habitat and may also be a zone of destructive and illegal activities such as driving vehicles, horse riding or uncontrolled dogs. It must be managed consistent with the overall vision.
- With regard to its terrestrial boundaries, we would also like to see a more expansive vision for a larger park in future. Bass Point quarry is licensed until 2044 but its possible effects on the lagoon are cause for concern and the land could well be rehabilitated to eventually become part of the park. Action to incorporate Bass Point Reserve to the north, such as negotiations with Shellharbour Council, and the estuarine mangroves should also be given higher priority.
Note: We thank Brian Everingham for leading a site walk and making suggestions about submissions on the DPOM, and Sam Garrett-Jones for suggesting changes to our submission and this article.