Two yacht owners say bats are damaging and decreasing the value of their most prized possessions. 

Harry Watson Smith, of Malua Bay, and David Rowland, of Canberra, are constantly hosing off bat faeces from their yachts, moored in the marina. 

However, they can only use water, without soap, because the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) prohibits soap in a marine park. 

Mr Watson Smith is calling on the EPA to fast track the approval of biodegradable detergent for use in the marina and the Batemans Marine Park. 

“I just got a cut-and-paste response from them,” he said.

“It is an ongoing thing. We wrote to the EPA in May 2005, asking for biodegradable detergent and they came back with no assistance.

“It was an environmental issue then; now we are talking about a health issue. This is health and safety and if there is any risk to an individual of catching a virus, that risk is too high.” 

Mr Watson Smith, who has had moored his 42ft yacht ‘Malua’ in the marina for several years, said it was a daily occurrence. 

“The bats come on the boats, they defecate on the boats and we can’t wash it off because we aren’t allowed to use a detergent,” he said. 

“Whether the faeces is dangerous or not, it is just unsightly and it stains the boats. We can’t get it off. 

“My issue isn’t getting rid of the bats; my issue is that they are dropping here, and there is the possibility of a virus infection which is deadly and we can do nothing about it.”

Mr Rowland said it became an issue this year, particularly in the past few weeks.

“I sell boats, so my interest is in keeping the boats looking nice,” he said. 

“We used to see one or two occasionally, now it is three or four bats per mast, fighting each other. It is constant, for hours. They start at about six in the evening.”

Mr Rowland said a visitor spent “hours shaking his mast to get rid of the bats”. 

“I don’t think he will come back or have nice things to say about Batemans Bay,” he said. 

”It is going to damage tourism and the amount of people who are going to want to have a boat in the marina.”

Mr Watson Smith said the bats also destroyed property. 

“All the yachts in here face the same issue. The wind instruments on the masts, I have counted 18 broken,” he said.

“They cost from $100 to $1500.

“Aerials have been bent over and they cost anywhere from $200.”