Moreton Bay Regional Council enforces changes to popular dog beach

Calls for a new dog off-leash beach are growing louder after a council north of Brisbane made changes to a popular walking spot following attacks on wildlife.

Changes to Red Beach dog off-leash area have created calls for another dog-friendly beach on Bribie Island.

CALLS for dog off-leash beach on the Pumicestone Passage side of Bribie Island are growing louder after changes to Red Beach were enforced last month.

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Dogs must now be walked on lead from the beach access point off Tully St, east along Red Beach for about 700m on-leash before they reach a marker point, which designates the beginning of the 4km off-leash area.

Moreton Bay Regional Council has made changes to off-leash dog areas on Red Beach, Bribie Island.

Moreton Bay Regional Council announced the changes in January following a spike in attacks on wildlife near Buckley’s Hole Conservation Park.

It caused a social media meltdown when signs were incorrectly installed on May 1. One Facebook post had more than 500 comments from confused residents.

“It seems a lot of people hadn’t heard of the changes that were coming,” Councillor Brooke Savige said.

“We got some inquiries through official channels, but a majority of it was through social media.

“People were confused and didn’t understand the changes. Initially the signage was incorrect, but we rectified that immediately.”

Councillor Brooke Savige and Ellie want another Bribie Island dog off-leash beach.

Cr Savige now hopes to reignite talks with council about introducing another off-leash area on one of the island’s eastern beaches for those who require better accessibility.

“There has been some angst (toward the changes) and I can understand that, particularly for some who can’t walk the distance,” she said.

“There is a strong need for us to investigate the possibility for another off-leash beach on our Passage side.

“There are some challenges because it is a marine park and it involves us working with the state departments.”

A council spokeswoman said it is awaiting advice from Queensland Parks and Wildlife which is understood to be developing guidelines for future foreshore off-leash areas.

“Council will wait for an outcome on these guidelines first before considering the designation of any new off-leash facility,” she said.