 |
| Mural, Solitary Island Coastal Walk, Bonville creek |
Recently we observed 'A Cooked Intertidal Ecosystem at Sawtell Beach'. Today's local paper (Coffs Coast News of the Area) reports about 'Dead Mangroves at Boambee Creek'
The Boambee Creek Estuary is just north of Sawtell and south of Coffs Harbour airport. The creek traverses the suburbs of Boambee, Sawtell and Toormina, many roads and highways, industrial estates and resorts till finally it reaches the Pacific ocean.
The shoreline of the Boambee Creek Estuary and Boambee Beach is used as a playground for fishermen, dog owners and SUV owners.
Recently Kirsten Benkendorff (Professor at the National Marine Science Centre, Southern Cross University) and a Gumbaynggirr ranger of the Traditional Owners (Indigenous Protected Area Sea Country program) discovered the dead mangroves and neurotoxic contaminants at Boambee Creek.
"Most of the mangroves were rotting and the mud underneath was black and stinking and no live forms were visible. There was a smell of sulphur and petrol."
"There was a range of toxic chemicals in the rotting mangrove roots, including carbon disulphide and petrochemicals like naphthalene, furan, xylene and cresol...Many are neurotoxic to the eyes, skin and lung."
"The site is not safe for people or aquatic life." (Coffs Coast News of the Area, 24.11.2023)
Update:
New research led by Southern Cross University has found a cocktail of nasty pesticides in oysters and water from one of the NSW North Coast’s dominant rivers. 12.12.2023
https://www.scimex.org/newsfeed/that-really-shucks-pesticide-pollution-threatens-shellfish-safety
Pesticide residue from farms and towns is ending up in fresh oysters, 13.12.2023
https://theconversation.com/pesticide-residue-from-farms-and-towns-is-ending-up-in-fresh-oysters-219395
 | ||||
| The old camp mural, Coffs Harbour, (no longer exists) | dl |
No comments:
Post a Comment