My name is Joel Main. I am 10 years old. I have lived in Queenscliff all of my life.

I think the dredging is a bad idea. When you did the trial you said that know animals would die but lots died. I even saw a washed up dolphin it had dirty water coming out of its mouth braks said he would help business get better but your makeing them worse.

Joel Main

Queenscliff

(Verbatim report. Ed)

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In Regards to the Channel Deepening

My name is Mariah Main. I am 12 years old and I have lived in Point Lonsdale for all my life. We are right next to the beach and I am down there heaps. Because I have lived here so long I would hate to have my home and the wildlife destroyed. I am not the only one who doesn’t want the bay destroyed. There are also heaps of people around me who don’t want the beaches, wildlife, reefs, visibility and the RIP destroyed.

If you dredge the bay it will kill HEAPS of wildlife and the visibility will be shocking. The trial dredge you did a few years ago made it so hard to see anything and marine life were killed.

My family run a little business down here and if you dredge the bay there will be no visibility and because of that we won’t be able to see the dolphins, seals and other marine life. If you dredge the bay our business will get less people, it could even SHUT DOWN. If you dredge the bay, you are just going to have to keep doing it. Even if you do it the big ships still might not be able to get in. What if there is an oil spill? Who is going to clean it up?

From Mariah Main.

PS. DON’T DREDGE THE BAY!!!

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In regards to the Channel Deepening

My name is Sapphire Main and I have lived in Point Lonsdale all my life which is at the entrance to the Rip. I go to Bellarine Secondary in Ocean Grove and I am in Year 8.

I am at the beach almost every day, going surfing and swimming with family and friends. To see this destroyed would be tragic. It seems logic that if 43 million cubic metres of our amazing bay are dredged out, there will be disastrous consequences.

My concerns are:

• Much of the wildlife will die as they need the reef to survive.
  
  
• It’s highly possible that there could be an oil spill, as the shipping channel is narrow and the ships are big, so the ships could get caught in it and our strong winds and tides would impact this. This would result in wildlife dying and polluted beaches.
  
  
• After the last trial dredging I couldn't see a thing in the water. It was murky, the visibility was zero.
  
  
• Because of the circular shape of Port Phillip Bay, having only one entrance and exit in the same place, water can not flow through, leaving the bay filthy for a long time.

As my family runs a small dolphin and seal charter business, it would be a tragedy to lose our home and livelihood so DON’T DREDGE OUR BAY!!

 
From Sapphire

 

Blue Wedges congratulates these students on their contributions to this serious debate, and for taking the time and trouble to express their opinions so well. We also congratulate their parents, Robbie and Jenny, on the great work they are obviously doing to keep their family informed and active in saving the bay.

 

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