‘It’s not a highway, it’s a habitat’: Residents condemn damaging beach driving

As more animals are found dead on local beaches, including Teewah, due to careless driving, several residents are calling for change.

As more animals are found dead on local beaches including Teewah as a result of reckless beach driving, several residents and wildlife advocates are calling for change.Â

The debate over whether or not four-wheel drives belong on beaches has intensified in recent years, with reckless behaviour and crashes where humans are seriously injured or killed being the main factor driving the conversation.

However, some residents have been advocating for change on behalf of the animals that suffer as a result of reckless and careless beach driving.

One advocate in particular, Thomas Schlacher, has expressed his frustration over seeing birds run over by cars on Teewah Beach, posting a photo of a dead oystercatcher on Facebook.

“I am simply putting this out there to counter the completely false assertions of ‘no damage by cars because the tide washes over the tyre tracks and we have been doing this for years’,” Mr Schlacher posted.

“(The photo) is clear evidence for environmental harm directly caused by cars and requires no further explanation. Simple, plain and sad.”

This comes after eight shorebirds were killed on Fraser Island during the week when a person in a four-wheel drive allegedly deliberately drove into the flock.

A Sunshine Coast resident and previous manager of a Coastal Environment Centres in Moreton Bay, Liz Stubbs, said it was not just birds affected by cars but also “invisible” creatures like crabs, shells and tiny bacteria.

“I don’t think people realise that there is so much life in the beach strip,” Ms Stubbs told The Gympie Times.

“It always bothers me that we treat the beach like a highway. It’s not a highway, it’s a habitat.

“Another perfectly balanced habitat that humans use without seeing the invisible creatures, let alone the highly visible animals like turtles.”

Ms Stubbs said humans could also disrupt the shoreline habitat by letting their dogs run wild.

“Do people realise that dogs or humans can disturb birds who are resting before their next big migration,” she said.

“Every time those birds fly up if a dog disturbs them, they lose energy, the important energy that they need for the long haul.”

Ms Stubbs said she did not believe removing cars from beaches altogether would be a popular solution, but said it would be safer for both humans and animals.

“I’d like to see less cars, slower speeds, no driving in the upper dunes and designated camp areas in the dunes, so that dune camping is not a free for all,” she said.

“We have to be careful not to turn it into a black and white issue because that pushes people into camps for and against.”

Ms Stubbs said she liked the idea that beach drivers should take responsibility to solve the issue themselves and create balanced solutions, instead of relying on authorities to enforce rules.

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