Beach flattened for volleyball practice court shocks southern Gold Coasters

A GOLD Coast MP has taken aim at authorities for not notifying locals before sand dunes on Greenmount Beach were demolished to create a practice volleyball court for the Commonwealth Games.

Bulldozers on the beach at Greenmount

MEMBER for Currumbin Jann Stuckey has taken aim at authorities for not notifying Southern Gold Coast residents before sand dunes on Greenmount Beach were demolished to create a practice volleyball court for the Commonwealth Games.

The Gold Coast Bulletin was sent photographs and video of the beachfront works involving bulldozers at Greenmount which began early yesterday and continued today.

A view of the site.

“Council beach works on Greenmount Beach this week have caused untold anxiety for residents who were upset to see dunes being scraped away and no signage to explain what was happening,” Ms Stuckey said.

“Neither my office or I were warned of these works and I am genuinely concerned at the lack of communication from the State Government and GOLDOC as residents quite rightly expect me to be informed.

“The relocation of 2000 cubic metres of sand from Greenmount Beach is to supplement practice volleyball courts at Coolangatta for the Commonwealth Games.

“I understand that vegetation that was removed will be replanted by the end of the week.”

Friends of Currumbin secretary Gloria Baker told the Gold Coast Bulletin: “It’s getting worse (today). They’re flattening the whole of the area. It’s going 100mph.

A council sign at the site.

“They’re moving sand from Greenmount Beach to Coolangatta Beach to provide practice volleyball.”

Ms Baker said she had contacted the office of local councillor Gail O’Neill and was told the dunal works were the responsibility of the State Government.

Griffith University environmental researcher and award-winning land care advocate Naomi Edwards has voiced her disgust on community Facebook pages after bulldozers began moving the sand.

“This is crazy, this is why we have a massive sand stock reserve at The Spit,” she wrote, to Rainbow Bay residents.

Council workers are on the scene.

“To provide sand stock to replenish beaches. They don’t need to take this approach, this is quite backwards in my opinion.

“I would be asking Cr Gail O’Neill on a budget breakdown between different approaches.”

Ms Edwards said residents should be provided with the cost of follow-up revegetation and maintenance of Greenmount Dunes and social impacts of locals and any economic loss from beach access.

Costings for the trucking sand from The Spit which did not impacting locals and businesses should also be provided so the two methods could be compared.

Volleyball will be played on the beach during the Games

A council spokesperson said the “improvement works to the beach” at Coolangatta included reprofiling and levelling of the dunes, and preparing the sand bed for the practice volleyball courts for the Games.

“It involves moving 2000 cubic metres of sand from Greenmount to Coolangatta. The works will be completed within a fortnight. The City has the appropriate State Government permits to carry out this work,” the spokesperson said.

“Where vegetation is being disturbed, dune restoration/replanting works will be undertaken to re-establish the dune system. Similar re-profiling and replanting works were undertaken by the City in 2005 as part of beach management responsibilities.”