Pier beach washed away, but why?
• The level of sand at the Old Pier beach has significantly reduced in recent years, exposing many rocks, in spite of the controversial archival image published in the Advertiser May 8. Above is a comparison of the beach, then and now.
By Daisy Baker
May 22, 2019
Recently The North-Eastern Advertiser reported that popular online blog, the Traveller had named Bridport’s Old Pier beach in their top ten best and most beautiful beaches in Tasmania list.
The photo published of the Old Pier beach was from several years ago and prompted questions from readers about how drastically the beach has changed in recent years.
Much of the sand from the once sand-filled beach has washed away, exposing many rocks, which in turn raises questions about the future of this iconic tourist destination.
Bridport residents Colin Lovegrove, who used to work for the Lands Department said he has never seen the sand level so low at the beach.
Mr Lovegrove said while sand levels naturally fluctuate due to the tide and wind, other factors have contributed to this including reduced rainfall in recent years, planting marram grass at East Sandy Cape, and farmers putting in dams and drawing water out of the river, which reduces the silt coming down the river.
“The government instructed us [Lands Department] to plant the dunes at Sandy Cape with marram grass to help the river,” he said.
He said they planted Marram for 50 odd years throughout Waterhouse and around Bridport, and at one time they had a crew of 22 people.
“At the time, they said it would take 30-35 years before you see slowing up of the sand,” he said.
“The sand that is coming off Sandy Cape now is all bypassing the beach near the Old Pier, and is now going over to Barnbougle.
“When it’s calm weather, the sand builds up again on that beach but it’s gone again in a few weeks.”
Mr Lovegrove said at one point there was a wall at the end of the Old Pier boat ramp that went out to the first pylon, which let some sand build up on the beach.
He said later the Fishing Club had permission from Council to move the wall back in, to make way for a jetty, and its removal caused sand to bypass the beach.
Mr Lovegrove said they also planted marram grass at Waterhouse because the sand was starting to take over farms.
Waterhouse farmer Elizabeth Hall said now that the Lands Department no longer exists, the work they did to stabilise the dunes and coast line, is now a responsibility of individual landowners.
She said the sand is encroaching on her boundary and she has moved her fence several times.
She and neighbouring farmer Jamie Hall received a grant from the state government last year to plant marram grass to help stabilise the dunes.
The grant supports them to plant marram for three consecutive years, and they will begin planting again early next month.
“Last year we planted 60 acres and we’re hoping we can do the same this year,” she said.
“The dune we’re addressing now is inland and wasn’t stabilised by the Lands Department years ago, because the landowner at the time wouldn’t allow it.”
She said like all things, the marram planting and dune stability needs constant maintenance, and while the work of the Lands Department was great, without maintenance, sand will continue to increase on Waterhouse properties.
Given that it’s an introduced species, Ms Hall said some members of the public are opposed to marram grass being used.
“Once the sand is stabilised, there will be native species coming in and covering the dunes, but they can’t come in until the primary stabiliser, the marram, has been used,” she said.
“Planting marram is labour-intensive and expensive, but we have to do it, otherwise the sand will keep encroaching mine and neighbouring properties.”
The current, vastly changed landscape at the Old Pier Beach is perhaps a telling story
that the impacts of today’s actions are sometimes not seen for decades.
A potential solution to the rocky beach could be sand nourishment, which has been used at beaches around the world and involves periodically dumping sand on the beach to counter that which is washing away.
Mr Lovegrove said without a rock wall off the end of the boat ramp as there once was, the sand would not stay in place.
Mayor Greg Howard said sand nourishment is not something that Council had considered.
“Who’s to say if we did truck in sand that it wouldn’t just wash out again and there’s thousands of dollars down the drain,” he said.
“I don’t think [the sand level] concerns tourists – Bridport still has plenty of good beaches.
“Long-term I think we’ll just let nature take its course. There’s no doubt that the planting of marram has affected things and the town now has to pay for it, but if that wasn’t done, there’s no saying that the port of Bridport wouldn’t have been closed over by now.”