Narrabeen Lagoon entrance: Council plan to reduce flooding risk branded a ‘Band-Aid’ solution
Moves to help solve the problem of Narrabeen Lagoon’s entrance becoming regularly blocked with sand have received a mixed reception. See what the council has planned.
Manly
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A new plan to stop the recurring issue of sand choking the entrance of Narrabeen Lagoon — and adding to flooding woes — has been described as putting a “very, very small Band-Aid” on a large problem.
As part of its Narrabeen Lagoon Entrance Management Strategy, Northern Beaches Council has rejected options such as breakwalls and pipes under the beach to prevent the lagoon entrance being blocked.
Instead, it will continue dredging accumulated sand at the lagoon entrance, but do it more often.
And it will keep using mechanical Diggers for “emergency breakouts”.
The council will also investigate the cost of pumping sand south from the lagoon entrance — via pipelines — to replenish the Collaroy-Narrabeen beachfront.
Frustrated residents who live on the edge of the lagoon have complained for decades that more should be done to make sure it doesn’t flood after heavy rains.
But in a report to the council, officers stated that in the last 40 years, it had “proactively managed the entrance of the lagoon so that it is mostly open, reducing the flood risk to homes and businesses”.
In recent decades, the area east and west of the Ocean St bridge has been dredged every three to five years with between 30,000 and 50,000 cubic metres of sand removed. The most recent dredging was between September and December last year leaving a $1.47 million bill.
It will now be dredged every two years, but a lesser amount of sand will be removed.
A critic of the plan, independent councillor, Vincent De Luca, told Tuesday night’s council meeting that it had been promising to “undertake substantive fixes” for two decades.
He said the dredging had been a “complete waste of ratepayer’s money” and that insurance premiums for lakeside residents had risen up.
Cr De Luca said residents continually asked why permanent infrastructure can’t be used to keep the entrance clear.
The council did look at long-term strategies, including a breakwater to prevent sand moving into the entrance of the lagoon from the beach and “low-flow pipes” that allow the tide to enter the lagoon when the entrance is closed.
“I think what we see tonight is very little progress,” Cr De Luca said.
“It is a very, very small Band-Aid that will not address the substantive problems and not serve the needs and interests of those residents.”
Narrabeen resident Jason Gribble, told the meeting that his property had been flooded three times since 2016 and believed the council was not dredging in the right place.
Mr Gribble said council should it should to ensure that the channel near the North Wall remain as the natural entrance.
“Living on the lagoon used to be wonderful, now we live there with fear we are going to be flooded.”
Northern Beaches Mayor Michael Regan has said the main objective of the strategy was to reduce the risk of flooding on the Narrabeen Lagoon flood plain.
“Residents on the flood plain know too well the stress that comes every time there is forecast high rainfall, large swells or flood warnings,” he said.
“The development of (the strategy) is about making sure we’ve canvassed all feasible options to reduce that stress, to reduce the risk and to make sure our lagoon management continues to follow best practice.”
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