EUROBODALLA beaches will be included in a water safety project to prevent drowning.
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Funded by the NSW Government, Project Blueprint is a state-wide surf life saving project delivered by Australian CoastSafe.
The project will use industry-leading systems and processes to assess every accessible coastal beach and rock platform in NSW and ultimately provide a ‘blueprint’ for NSW, from which a drowning prevention strategy can be developed to reduce drowning deaths by 2020.
Every accessible beach and rock platform in the Eurobodalla, from Durras to Wallaga Lake, will be assessed as part of stage three of the project.
Moruya Surf Life Saving Club president Mike Hallahan welcomed the project.
“It’s a good thing to look at the safety and to minimise the risk,” he said.
“They are looking at a risk assessment and how those risks will be addressed.”
Mr Hallahan said Eurobodalla beaches were not high risk black spots.
“I don’t think the Eurobodalla is a high risk area because of the number of people who visit our beach, as opposed to the amount of people in Sydney,” he said.
“The risks here are no different to Sydney and further north but the numbers aren’t as great so we don’t see the people drown like we do up there.”
Although Mr Hallahan said it would not improve what surf lifesavers already knew, it would inform those who weren’t aware of the risks.
“The people who are familiar with the beach are generally not the problem, it’s the people who come and don’t know what the risks are,” he said.
“Moruya Beach has lots of currents and rips.
“The safest place to swim is between the flags where people are keeping an eye on you.”
Mr Hallahan encouraged people to get involved in the project.
Consultation with local land managers, emergency services, fishing groups, lifeguards, surf life saving clubs, surfing groups, other specific stakeholder groups and the general public is fundamental to the success of the project.
Interested people can attend public forums at Catalina Country Club, Batemans Bay on February 16 at 6.30pm, Broulee Surfers Surf Life Saving Club on February 17 at 6.30pm or in Narooma on March 3.
