FRANKSTON has come fourth on an RSPCA Victoria list showing the number of cruelty to animals reports during 2017 and 2018. The Mornington Peninsula was ninth on the list which was topped by Geelong. RSPCA Victoria CEO Dr Liz Walker said that for the third year in a row, issues with providing the most basic standards of living for animals – enough food, water and shelter – made up the highest proportion of offences reported. “It breaks our hearts to see our Inspectors and vets attend to so many animals that are severely malnourished and ill, who clearly haven’t been…
Author: Keith Platt
WHILE it’s not uncommon to find a seal on Mornington Peninsula beaches or rocky outcrops, this one that came ashore at Dromana was a bit of a mystery for onlookers. It looked different to the Australia fur seals regularly seen Port Phillip and which make their home at Chinaman’s Hat, the octagonal shipping beacon in the South Channel off Blairgowrie. Ryhs Horobin said he and his partner Angelika Schernthaner were thrilled to identify the leopard seal which was probably more at home in Antarctica. He said the male seal was about 15 years old stayed for about fours days on…
POWER company AGL is now being called on by both the state and federal governments to provide further details about likely impacts of the floating gas import terminal it wants to operate at Crib Point. The Commonwealth Department of Environment and Energy last week said that the proposed AGL processing terminal and pipeline from Crib Point to Pakenham was considered a “controlled action” requiring assessment and approval under the Federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act). The decision followed letters from residents to Environment Minister Melissa Price detailing their concerns about AGL’s plans. The process will now…
THERE was not much of Beth Young’s cycling teddy bear being thrown on the tip, but the mechanical toy is now up and rolling thanks to the volunteer “fixers” at the Mornington repair Cafe. Ms Young, 94, (pictured) was one of the dozen “clients” who took a broken item to the cafe’s opening earlier this month. Volunteers experienced in repairing household goods are opening up a repair cafe in Mornington. The fixers, all experienced in repairing household goods and all members of the Peninsula branch of Solve Disability Solutions, set up shop at the Mornington Men’s Shed on Sunday 18…
MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire is poised to start fencing off access to The Pillars cliff jumping site of the Esplanade, Mt Martha. The 450 metre wire mesh fence will run parallel to the road between Deakin Drive and Marguerita Avenue. Classified as a temporary fence, the $200,000 structure has been given the go ahead by VicRoads. Last year the shire failed to get backing for the fence from either the state government of Aboriginal Victoria. This year the shire sought indemnity from the state government after receiving advice that it could be liable for anyone injured or killed while visiting the…
Mornington Peninsula Shire’s rangers have been using “conflicting” laws for the past eight years when issuing infringement notices to dog owners. The “discrepancy” was revealed only after “a diligent search of council records”. To clean up its legal blunder council was last month forced to revoke an order gazetted on 11 February 2010. Prosecution officer Gustav Cook, in a report to council’s 9 October meeting, said that despite the “absolutely irreconcilable” orders made under the Domestic Animals Act and adopted in 2007 and 2010, all infringement notices issued under them “remain valid and enforceable”. “Important to note, is that both…
POLICE arrested nine people at Rye on Saturday following a series of drunken brawls that have been connected to schoolies’ celebrations. Police reinforcements and several specialist units were called to the township following a near riot two weekends ago and a brawl on the pier on Friday night. While there are few, if any organised schoolie events at Rye, there is no shortage of “schoolies accommodation” being offered for the annual pre-Christmas visit by schoolies. After the first schoolies incident on Saturday 24 November the mayor, Cr David Gill said “it shouldn’t be lost in the post mortem of this…
MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire councillors have refused to lift the cost cap on the Rosebud Aquatic Centre. In March, the council capped the centre’s budget at $41.57m, but the latest estimates now put the cost at $46.63m. The net cost to council was put at $36.57m after taking into account $5m from the federal government, $3m less than was sought. In a bid to avoid delaying construction of the centre, councillors last week accepted a design for an eight-lane pool and agreed to seek expressions of interest and then tenders from builders. But they refused to accept the $5m increase and…
ENTHUSIASM, if not waves, won the day when teams of surfers descended on Pines Beach, Shoreham for the second annual DSAMP Champs contest. Dressed “in wild costumes to match the occasion”, the surfers had to be content with beach games in their efforts to compete against one another. Rod Jones, of the Disabled Surfers Association Mornington Peninsula (DSAMP) said the “offbeat” competition attracted 15 teams. Organised by the Peninsula’s Maladiction Longboarders Club the event raised $2700 for DSAMP’s surfing days at Point Leo, the second Champs event Champs on Sunday 10 November saw surfers dressed as animals, pirates, 1960s rockers,…
THE Environment Protection Authority Victoria (EPA) has started its summer water quality tests at Mornington Peninsula and Frankston beaches. The forecasts over the next four months will cover eight peninsula beaches and four at Frankston. EPA chief environmental scientist Dr Andrea Hinwood said last year’s forecasts for peninsula illustrated how conditions could vary from beach to beach. “Last season, good water quality was forecast for Sorrento beach 81 per cent of time – the second highest score [out of 36 beaches in Port Phillip],” she said. “But a few kilometres away, Rye beach had forecasted good water quality 72 per…
THE failed bid in August by Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton and Flinders MP Greg Hunt to be prime minister and deputy Liberal Party leader is being blamed for much of the party’s loss of support on the Mornington Peninsula. The Liberals Nepean candidate Russell Joseph was last Friday reconciled to accept defeat in an election that saw Daniel Andrews’ state Labor swept back to power with nearly twice the number of MPs as the Liberals. “It’s all a bit confusing, but I’m not particularly optimistic,” Mr Joseph said as the Victorian Electoral Commission announced the latest voting figures showing…
By Stephen Taylor and Keith Platt SATURDAY’S state election has signalled to the Liberal party that it cannot always count on holding the three seats covering the Mornington Peninsula. While it has retained two seats – Mornington and Hastings – Nepean remains undecided. All three may be within Labor’s grasp next time around and doubts are being voiced over the Liberals’ ability to retain the seat of Flinders in the federal election that must be held by May next year. Flinders is held by Greg Hunt, one of leading figures in the leadership crisis that saw Scott Morrison eventually succeed…
Mornington Peninsula Shire has changed tack and virtually ruled out backing Baxter as the end of the electrified train line from Frankston. Shire councillors last week signalled they want an electrified rail line to Hastings, ruling out their earlier support for Baxter to be first in a two-stage electrification process. In the lead up to the Saturday 24 November state election, councillors have called on “all political parties … to commit to extending electrification of the Frankston railway line to Hastings in the current Baxter electrification business case”. In doing so, councillors have also withdrawn their support for a two-stage…
A PILOT plant at Hastings to turn hydrogen gas into liquid before being shipped to Japan is scheduled to be operating by 2020. The state government has effectively bypassed Mornington Peninsula Shire by signalling its intention to amend the planning scheme to allow the hydrogen plant to proceed. In April the state Labor government and the federal Liberal National coalition each gave $50 million towards the $496 million project to produce hydrogen from brown coal in the Latrobe Valley (“Parties unite over power” The News 17/4/18). The gas to liquid plant will be built on “highly-suitable land” owned by BlueScope…
WHILE the Liberal Party contenders for the three state electorates that make up the Mornington Peninsula are making promises on a weekly (if not daily) basis, the Labor Party has been slow to name its candidates. Faced with an uphill battle to win any one of the seats, Labor last week listed Ryan White as standing for Mornington, Simon Meyer, Hastings and Chris Brayne, Nepean. Mr Brayne announced his own candidature last month (“Labor’s late start in Nepean”, The News 1/10/18). He is opposing Liberal Russell Joseph, who is trying to win the seat of his former boss, Martin Dixon,…
Flinders MP Greg Hunt took the first steps on a planned 500 kilometre walk on Monday. The walk around his Flinders electorate will no doubt be a welcome change to the past few months in Canberra which saw him fail to attain the deputy leadership in the bid for the top job by Peter Dutton. In the turmoil that followed, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull was eventually replaced as the leader of the Liberals, and Australia, by former treasurer Scott Morrison. Both Mr Hunt and Mr Dutton were subsequently reappointed to their respective portfolios – health for Mr Hunt and home…
PSYCHOLOGIST Vanessa Thiele has chosen to use a dog as the main character of a book aimed at fostering children’s “social and emotional intelligence, work ethic and grit”. Thiele says these are “mindset skills that are of particular interest to parents and teachers”. The man vehicle for these character traits is Biggles, a Jack Russell. In real life Biggles “worked” on farms for 15 years alongside Thiel’s husband Tim and his brother. “Tim worked all over the Mornington Peninsula and had lots of clients, many of who would remember Biggles,” Thiele, who practices in Hastings, says. “I was inspired to…
Contract managers at Mornington Peninsula Shire have been banned from accepting “gifts, benefits or hospitality” from companies or individuals supplying the tens of millions of dollars in goods or services bought each year by the shire. The shire has tightened up the rules to avoid conflicts of interest between staff and suppliers following internal audits and receipt of a probity report of its buying and contract procedures. Gifts that have been offered and declined must be recorded in the staff gift register. Staff and advisors directly involved with any tender evaluation panel will need to declare “any relationships or connections…
Temporary works to protect cliffs at Mt Martha North Beach from erosion by the sea and the public from landslides have been finished. If the work passes a “practical completion inspection” this week control of the beach will be handed back to Mornington Peninsula Shire. Access to the beach and beach boxes was closed during the works contracted by the Department of Environment, Land, water and Planning (DELWP). “The temporary works involved placing large rocks and a geotextile at the foot of the cliff to prevent high tides from further eroding the bottom of the cliff, and to provide protection…
Mornington Peninsula Shire has admitted it needs state government “co-operation” to carry out its unilateral decision to fence off The Pillars cliff jumping site at Mt Martha and introduce a 200-metre no go zone for watercraft. The government and Aboriginal Victoria last year ruled a fence out, but the mayor Cr Bryan Payne last week said the council’s 9 October decision was needed “to get some meaningful discussion and action underway”. The boating ban had been included in council’s latest decision “as part of the strategy to limit increased dangerous activity at The Pillars” (“Fencing The Pillars for safety” The…
IT’S National Bird Week and Parks Victoria has nominated Coolart Homestead and Wetlands Reserve near Somers as among its top 10 places to watch birds. Run by BirdLife Australia, the Aussie Backyard Bird Count is also under way throughout the country from 22-28 October. Bird counts can be made anywhere, but must be made over a 20-minute period. “Australia is home to some of the world’s most beautiful birds, often literally right in our own backyards and thanks to BirdLife Australia’s Aussie Backyard Bird Count we now have four years of data about their changing populations,” Australian Birdlife Magazine editor…
The horrific burning and drowning of more than 62,000 sheep seems an unlikely source of inspiration for a children’s book. But the loss of the live sheep export ship the MV Uniceb in August 1996, gave freelance writer Sally Nowlan pause for thought: imagine being a sheep caught up in the live export trade? Unlike the thousands of sheep that perished aboard the Uniceb six days into a 16-day voyage from Freemantle to Aqaba, Jordan, Nowlan’s tale does have a happy ending. While Jumbucks Misadventure certainly carries a message about the “the wrongness of live export for such creatures”, it…
Planning Minister Richard Wynne says power company AGL’s plan to import liquefied natural gas through Crib Point will be subject to “the strongest environmental assessment process in the state”. The Save Westernport group opposing AGL’s floating gas terminal saw Mr Wynne’s announcement last week as “a huge win”. “It’s the deferral to EES [environmental effects statement] we’ve been waiting for. The study will start in January and take nine to 12 months to complete,” the group’s website proclaimed. “It’s just the first step, but thanks to your hard work spreading the word and contacting your government representatives we are seeing…
Although they may be several hours’ drive away from the nearest forest, motorists heading south along Nepean Highway, Mt Eliza last week witnessed part of the protests aimed at getting the premier Daniel Andrews to stop logging in Victoria’s native forests. The walkway over the highway near Mt Eliza Way and Wooralla Drive – traditionally used to proclaim anniversaries and birthdays – was used as a platform for banners calling on the Premier to “Save our Forest Dan” and “Protect our Wildlife”. The walkway was also used recently by groups opposed to AGL importing gas through Crib Point. The politicisation…
A FENCE stopping access to The Pillars rock jumping platforms at Mt Martha is to be built before summer. Mornington Peninsula Shire mayor Cr Bryan Payne said the situation at The Pillars “is out of control and the only option is to close it off permanently”. The shire will also declare a 200 metre exclusion zone for boats and water craft out from the cliff face. The move seemingly defies directions from the government in 2016 not to build a fence. The latest decision to build a fence followed legal advice which stressed the shire could be “liable” if someone…
Builders and owners have paid tens of thousands of dollars in fines and costs in a crackdown on building regulations by Mornington Peninsula Shire. With 15 more prosecutions underway, the seven successful actions taken by the shire since May have involved: The construction of retaining walls with no building permit at Mt Martha: Owner fined $22,500 with costs of $20,000. Alterations to dwelling and bungalow at Rye with no building permit: Builder fined $25,000 plus costs. Construction of garage and carport with no building permit at Rye: Owner fined $15,000 plus costs Construction of basement and dwelling additions with no…
Removing a small bridge over Hearn Creek on Mt Martha South Beach has stopped beach boxes being undermined, but is presenting a new hazard for pedestrians. Those accessing the beach across the creek must walk over concrete covered with slippery weed. After rain, the creek is too wide to step over and, under certain conditions, the flows create what can only be described as quicksand where the creek enters the sea. Two main access points across the creek to the southern section of the beach are then effectively closed or compromised. Mornington Peninsula Shire’s project delivery manager Derek Rotter, said…
Flinders MP and Health Minister Greg Hunt has reiterated the federal government’s position that asylum seekers on Nauru are “free to leave and return home if they so choose”. “If they choose to stay, Australia provides significant welfare support to refugee families. This support includes funding for upgrades at the Republic of Nauru hospital, worth approximately $36 million.” Mr Hunt’s comments were in response to a call from the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) for the government to act “on their duty of care and immediately transfer all refugee and asylum seeker children and their families from Nauru to…
Eleven projects from Frankston and the Mornington Peninsula are among 237 Pick My Project ideas sharing $30 million of taxpayers’ money. Ranging from charity works to recreational pursuits, the successful projects were chosen on the number of online votes they attracted. The amount of money available to particular communities was based on an equal split between “regional partnership areas” in metro and regional Victoria and then on population numbers within those areas. The peninsula had the second highest number of successful projects (eight) in the Southern Metro area but attracted the most money. Improved lighting at Alexandra Park, Mornington attracted…
The gas import terminal proposed at Crib Point is part of power company AGL’s $2 billion “electricity generation projects aimed at modernising and improving energy supply”. AGL chairman Graeme Hunt last Wednesday (26 September) named Crib Point as being one of these projects, along with wind farms at Coopers Gap and Silverton, gas-fired power stations at Barker Inlet and Newcastle and a coal-fired power station at Bayswater. A protest, pictured, against the Crib Point floating storage regasification unit (FSRU) was held outside while Mr Hunt was speaking to shareholders at the company’s annual general meeting in the Melbourne Recital Centre.…