1770 Fishers need help.

[ozynorts]

Hey everyone.
The local council up here (Gladstone) has seen fit to remove the bins from the boat ramp. So now when you come off the water you are expected to take all of your rubbish home with you.
So far efforts to get this changed haven't been successful so I am asking those who use bins at boat ramps to lodge a complaint with Gladstone council. http://www.gladstone.qld.gov.au/report-an-issue
They claim they were removed because people were putting rubbish in them........ Apparently the bins were only to be used for fishing waste not anything else. No signs were ever erected to state this so people used the bins as, well, bins.
We are now seeing fish frames in the water all around the ramp in the are also washing up on the sand in front of the camp grounds at 1770.
This is a very short sighted decision by council but they are too stubborn to admit they made a mistake and we are trying to get as many people as possible to complain.
Cheers

[sam687]

I thought i was going mad when i couldnt find and bins the other week, such a disaapointment for what is a nice boat ramp.

also, does everyone have troubles with the pontoon, i couldnt even use it due to fisherman and their famlies taking up the whole thing and wouldnt even wind in as i approached. then to top it off continued to cast at teh bottom of the ramp and the deep area just out a bit where i was sitting trying to line up my boat and trailer.

It was like a video game, i had past level one and now level two was to drive the boat on without touching a fishing line.

[hainsofast]

I thought i was going mad when i couldnt find and bins the other week, such a disaapointment for what is a nice boat ramp.

also, does everyone have troubles with the pontoon, i couldnt even use it due to fisherman and their famlies taking up the whole thing and wouldnt even wind in as i approached. then to top it off continued to cast at teh bottom of the ramp and the deep area just out a bit where i was sitting trying to line up my boat and trailer.

It was like a video game, i had past level one and now level two was to drive the boat on without touching a fishing line. I just get out my knife and cut all lines in my way when that happens.

[Scalem]

Clicked on the link and sent. The words i used were :

Please review your policy on providing adequate rubbish disposal ( Bins) at boat ramps. Failure to dispose unwanted rubbish in connection to boating activities may result in issues such as public health and native wildlife injuries or even death due to ingestion of plastic bags or entanglement with hooks and disquarded fishing line. Council should be encouraging members of the public to "do the right thing" with rubbish and in the effort to keep the area clean.

Scalem

[Short Fuse]

Hi Oz. Note sent to the council requesting that they put the bins back.

At the end of our recent trip to 1770, with no bins at the ramp, I placed all the rubbish in the live bait tank in the boat for the trip home. Promptly forgot about it, even during the wash down process. A couple of days later, I opened the lid and received a reminder that will stick in the memory cells for quite a while. Hopefully, wont make that mistake again.

cheers

Jeff

[tenzing]

Hi Guys
There are a couple of bins at the tip on the way back to Agnes
Used them the other day
Stink like nothing on earth, but a good chance to prove the neighbours are dreaming about how good their catch was.
Cheers
Brendan

[jackamundi]

Disappointed to see the bins there one visit and gone by the next. I think the regional council needs to support the 1770/Agnes Water community and the many visiting boaties, some who are there for a week or more, by not only providing bins but additional parking spaces and a block of toilets. Just my thoughts... I think that fishing and boating brings quite a bit of business to the area.

[Prowl n Wolf]

Whilst I agree with having the bins for fisho's, after talking to Phil and Ruth who own the marina next door to the ramp, complaints were being made from the tourists who use the spirit of 1770 ferry out to Musgrave. They've never had a problem with them as most boaties are responsible and close the lid but on occasion that they are left open Phil runs across and closes them.
Seems to be a few whinging tourists have the council react this way and when I rang them they told me that bins are provided at the refuse station on the way out of town.

[Lucky_Phill]

Thanks Haydn,

I have responded on other forums about this.

The council ( Ms Gail Sellers ) says that they have cameras installed in the area and are monitoring the area. I asked if this is correct, why have they not approached the culprits that drop their domestic waste into the bins.

Secondly, I completely understand the issue of smell in regard to tourists in the area using the LARC and Musgrave Boats. Easily solved with spring loaded lids..IMO

I have suggested to Ms Sellers that a 24 / 7 access offal collection point be made available at the tip entrance and that system could in fact be a recycling machine turning all offal into liquid / chunky fertilizer for the locals and council to use for free.

A mulching machine was set up at Waddy Point on Fraser Island for the Toyota Fishing Comp that used to be run there. Great idea as it made sense to have a single collection point and the " mashed " offal was taken offshore and spread as berley / food in close areas. A little searching on the web by council could find this ( probably now disused ) machine and introduce it to the tip to the benefit of all people in the area. I just find it a waste that good and nutritious foods like fish offal , goes into a bin when in fact it could be put to good use. Let's face it, the ramp at 1770 is heavily used and a huge amount of offal wasted. There is the other component of bait bags, old fishing line and other food waste etc, which of course needs to be addressed.

The council needs to be reminded, which I will, that not all people that use the ramp stay in town long enough to use the tip. There are hundreds of crews / boats, that blow in for a day or two, and stay offshore overnight, then return to land, pack up and piss off. If they have nowhere to deposit their refuse, they could start dumping it illegally. The very least they could do is provide a 24/7 dumpster at the tip gate for " Fishers " only with a large sign indicating so. That area is also monitored by security cameras and that fact should be signed as well.

It is up to council to provide services they are paid to do and that is part of the community responsibility they hold.

Another letter on its way to council today....

If you are, like me, a frequent user of the ramp and facilities at 1770 / Agnes Water, let's do the right thing in regard to our waste. We must demonstrate our regard for the environment and that will go a long way to having a good result over this " bin " issue.


cheers LP

[ozynorts]

What council fails to tell people though is that the tip is only open from 8am till 12pm(midday). What do you do with your rubbish if you miss that small window.

[Moonlighter]

Done. They want fishers to behave responsibly for the environment, then make it hard b cause some people whine about the smell. They could move the bins over into the carpark area just as easily too.

[Scalem]

So has anyone else got a response? I have a customer service request #.

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[Short Fuse]

Yeah Brian. Just received a response stating they had received my communication and giving a CSR number for future reference.

Jeff

[Scalem]

So I have had a reply, and it appears that the household rubbish which includes mattresses and all manor of items, which should ordinarily be taken to the transfer station at Agnes, has been accumulating in the bins at the ramp. Over the last 5 years bins were increased to skips which again became full and overflowing ( unsightly and odorous), being cleared several times a week. There is, at Agnes Water Transfer Station (open 7 days a week from 8:00am to 12:00pm) a dedicated fish waste skip bin.

I plan to be at 1770 soon and have taken a keen interest for this reason, what signage is there to suggest to the casual visitor ( as Phil said above) that tells us how to dispose of fish waste according to what council wants? ie: taking it to the transfer station at Agnes?
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[marto78]

Where exactly is the tip? Is there a sign at the boat ramp with directions?

I've never dumped fish frames in those bins before but have usually got a couple of big bags of rubbish from a 3 day trip that needs disposal and I'll be stuffed if I'll be taking it all back to brisbane with me.

You'd think emptying some bins a couple of times a week would be better than having to pick up piles of rubbish all over the carpark.

[ozynorts]

There aren't any signs at the ramp with any directions to the tip.
The tip is on the way to/from the ramp. It is right opposite the road to the surf club and right next to the bowls club. The issue though is that the tip is only open from 8am till midday 7 days.

[Lucky_Phill]

a pic for you marto :)

http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/mm246/Lucky_Phill/Agnes%20tip_zps8uzoidiv.jpg (http://s298.photobucket.com/user/Lucky_Phill/media/Agnes%20tip_zps8uzoidiv.jpg.html)

cheers LP

[Moonlighter]

And not to forget that the tip charges you to dump fish frames as well. Probably this whole issue has been caused by the Council charging people to dump rubbish at the tip.

Usually if we are going out again the next day we take our frames out to see and dispose of there, which of course is the most environmentally appropriate way to deal with them.

But if we are not going out again, or the weather keeps us on shore, and the tip is closed, I guess our frames will just have to be tipped into the creek off the pontoon .........

[Lucky_Phill]

I have emailed a local real estate agent in regard to this and info supplied to anyone renting a holiday house there.

Next stop, the Council.


cheers LP

[Moonlighter]

OK, an edit to my earlier post. I checked the fees and charges list, then phoned GR Council to confirm.

I can confirm that they have dropped the tip fees we were charged a year ago when we took an esky full of frames and other associated fishing trip rubbish to the tip. Now, anything you can fit in the back of the car is free. A single axle trailer load is $5. (So don't be conned into paying anything if you go there to dump this kind of quantity of stuff - tell them you've checked the official "fees and charges" and there is no charge!!)

Here's an interesting fact - they charge $15 to dump a single bed mattress at the tip, and $30 for any bigger mattresses! This despite charging only $5 for a single axle trailer load - but put a mattress on your trailer and its $15-$30. No wonder people were dumping mattresses near the bins at the ramp - this was one of their claims in their response to me as to why they took the bins away.

The problem is, as Phill and others have said, the tip times of 8am till midday often don't work for offshore fishers. Most come back to the ramp after lunch, even when having done an overnighter. So by the time you're going past the tip on the way home or to your house, it's closed! We don't want that sort of rubbish in household wheely bins!!

I think a very good solution would be as was suggested - a shute thru the fence at the tip going into a bin, with a spring loaded door say 60cm x 60cm so only smallish loads will fit through. And a camera to monitor abuse, with a notice warning people of that beside the chute!

If Gladstone Regional Council had consult with all groups affected by this decision before they made it, something like this would have come up as a better solution. But they only listened to one affected party, and looked at their surveillance camera. That tells them there is a problem, but it doesn't tell them the best solution for all affected parties.

I am going to take this up with them further. The more of us that do, the better!

Trust me, Council's take notice when the complaints grow in number.

Especially if those complaints are put up in public places, like, oh well, I don't know, maybe, their Facebook page?????::)

[scottar]

Start taking your rubbish and offal into the centre of town and disposing of it into the public bins there (if they haven't removed them too). When the locals ask what your doing and why - tell them the council removed the bins from the ramp and the tip is closed. Ask them to ring the council and request the bins be put back. Quickest way is to get a response from rate payers in the town which is about all the council will give a flyer about. Touring fishos don't elect councillors or pay rates. They won't care about inconveniencing someone who doesn't live in their electorate - you will simply get told you are quite welcome to take your rubbish with you.

[Lucky_Phill]

Just got this back from local R/E folks:-

Hi Phil

Yes this removal of bins is a problem. The council has provide special fish bin at the dump free of charge

The dump opens 8am to 12noon 7 days.
I will include this on our check in literature.




LP

[ozynorts]

Ask them to ring the council and request the bins be put back.
Oh don't worry mate the locals are very much in councils face about this issue.

[Moonlighter]

A council's decision making process these days is supposed to take into account the views of all affected stakeholders, not Just those who have complained.

Ive emailed them asking for evidence that they consulted with recreational fishers before the decision to remove the bins was made. And I've asked them to advise me of the alternatives that were considered to meet recreational fishers needs, how those alternatives were assessed and what lead them to conclude that removing the bins and directing us to the tip was the best solution.

if they admit that recreational fishers were not consulted, I will be asking them to have the decision reviewed by the CEO on the basis that it was not properly made. Next stop if that fails, the ombudsman.

[Scalem]

After talking to Jeff this morning it sounds like the same email went to all of us. So what it appears is council have no consultative approach with actual users of the ramp, quoting most of rubbish has been coming from the locals and their fix is to provide open hours the majority of fishermen can't make use of. Good one! Then after their " director" has reviewed the situation, made a decision, seems not to have adequately informed the public of what the policy is around waste disposal. And they also don't want disposing fish waste around the Area of the ramps as it attracts stone fish and sharks. I wonder what scientific evidence they have that proves an increase population of stone fish and sharks due to fishermen throwing carcasses into the water immediately close to the ramp. It's not an ideal scenario, but without bins accessible the mud crabs and bream populations have a big feed there I am sure, but at least there is no smell throwing biodegradable fish waste into the water. Why can't the council provide a muncher close to the ramp that churns up fish frames into smaller pieces, returning it into the water as food?

After all said and done, it appears to me that council are not demonstrating interest speaking to a major income stream that has always played a big role in their tourism and economy. If the fisherman isn't a local rate payer he draws the short straw.




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[marto78]

Whilst I agree with having the bins for fisho's, after talking to Phil and Ruth who own the marina next door to the ramp, complaints were being made from the tourists who use the spirit of 1770 ferry out to Musgrave. They've never had a problem with them as most boaties are responsible and close the lid but on occasion that they are left open Phil runs across and closes them.
Seems to be a few whinging tourists have the council react this way and when I rang them they told me that bins are provided at the refuse station on the way out of town.


It was more likely the owners of the marina themselves complaining as I had noticed the bins used to be at the top of the ramp but were moved across the road the last time I was up there.

I think the biggest issue with the smells from the bins is that they were not emptied regularly enough. I've been up there before when there was 2 skip bins at the top of the ramp and they were overflowing with bags of rubbish stacked almost as high as the bins all around them.

[Prowl n Wolf]

The bins were moved to allow more access to the rigging area and to allow the rubbish truck to access the bins without interrupting the flow of launching and retrieving of vessels.

[Scalem]

The bins were moved to allow more access to the rigging area and to allow the rubbish truck to access the bins without interrupting the flow of launching and retrieving of vessels.
That's not what council has written to us via email. Have you other intel?

Scalem

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[honda900]

That is not what the Council employee I spoke with @ the depot said either, but apparently he was on the water side of the council and couldn't have cared or helped less..

BTW the council depot is between the ramp an the tip.. thoughts crossing mind..

Regards
Honda.

[Prowl n Wolf]

That's not what council has written to us via email. Have you other intel?

Scalem

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Regarding the removal of bins completely I have no other intel. The moving of the bins to the car park from the ramp some time ago, yes I do.

[heoheo]

Hi All,
I have been one of the vocal people on GRC FB page and council direct, and I have also posted comments to Gladstone observer with the following article. I received this email from Wayne, one of the local guys up there trying to get this stupid decision reversed, and he has asked me to post this on the forum's that I frequent. So I have posted to my fishing club's forum and thought I would post it on this thread as well, seeing some of you on this thread already know me and the fight we are in.
cheers
H

Hi H
I have been busy posting articles about the bins removal on the local newspaperand GRC facebook page and the Gladstone Observer ran another story about thebin today..

I thought i would send you a copy of todays post so you might post it on anyforum or group you think might lend support..

Thanks for your and all the guys down there for the support so far..

http://www.gladstoneobserver.com.au/news/one-bin-wheelie-skimpy/2838320/ (http://www.gladstoneobserver.com.au/news/one-bin-wheelie-skimpy/2838320/)



Wayne
HI Folks.
Recently at the Roundhill Creek, 1770 boat ramp representatives of ourGladstone Regional Council took the Bins away from the area without warning orconsultation with the Public or the Boat ramp users..
When questioned about the reasons for this action Council issued a statementthat stated "Illegal Dumping of Household Waste" as the reason theaction was taken..
For those that may not know the story ,there was bins placed at the boat rampsome 6 years ago and gradually these bins became a popular place for lazylocals to rid themselves of all kinds of waste including Furniture, waste oiland dead animals to name a few of the interesting things amongst the householdwaste dumped there..
In its wisdom,Council decided that the best way to deal with this problem wasto gradually increase the number and size of the bins and in fact increase theservice intervals of the bins and each time the service was increased thepublic responded by dumping more waste in and around the bins.
This was seen by locals, visitors and local business owners as anunsightly,smelly health risk and complaints to council increased with thevolume of the waste allowed to be dumped there uncontested.
Previous to the time of the bins removal Council had not placed a singlenotification about the chance of prosecution to the people responsible in anypublication reasonably expected to be read by anyone effected by the rubbishproblem..Council had not posted signage, erected surveillance measures orendeavored to personally issue warnings or on the spot fines to the culprits atany time and not one prosecution had been made in order to halt the continualillegal dumping.
Instead of the above actions ,that any rate payer would sensibly expect itselected officers to carry out, Council instead decided the best way to halt theIllegal dumping was to penalise the very people that the bins were placed therefor originally and as a service to the people using the ramp and indeedsupporting the local community by removing the bins without Notice..
Ironicaly, after the bins were removed Council proudly announced thatmonitoring devices had been place to watch the area and no waste had beendumped since the bins removal.
For weeks since the bins removal, I ,and others have made complaint to theMayor, Councilors and our State member without a positive and in fact asometimes smug unmoving attitude was offered to questions asked of them..
On several occasions I have asked the Mayor, The CEO and the Council complaintsteam specific questions regarding the Proceedure, the Decision Makers andComplaints Origin proof that they state were reasons that lead to the decisionthey took without reply except a generic scripted reply or a total lack ofresponse for them.
Our Lady mayor at time of my typing this letter has not bothered to answer aproposal from myself that offers a proactive answer to the problem thatinvolves me personally supplying waste collection and camera monitoring at theramp for the cost to them of set up and on costs only so I can only suspect thatshe is unwilling to listen to reason on the matter..
I wish to clear up a few untruths that have been bandied around about the binssince their removal so people can decide for them selves why the decision toremove the bins is a wrong one by the council..
1 The bins were smelly and the local businesses were effected by the smell inthat it was unpleasant for customers..
A. true. The bins were very smelly and very unsightly but this was a directresult of the inaction by Council to halt the illegal dumping that caused thebins to be filled to overflowing and the lids left open.
2 The bins were mainly used for fish waste.
A. Not true..The Qld fisheries laws governing the filleting of fish at seaalmost make the returning of fish to the ramp in any condition but complete wasunlikely and most fishermen took the whole fish home to be filleted and thewaste was placed in a freezer for removal on bin day..Some visitiors andcampers did place fish waste in the bins but compared to the boats using theramp this was a minimal amount. Fishermen using the ramp do not as a rulereturn from sea with old bait or anything that can be returned to the seawithout causing harm so in fact the majority by far of the waste placed in thebins by the people the bins were intended for was Plastic bags, Ice bags. Baitbags and containers and grocery containers.
3. The bins can not co habit the same area as a cafe without creating smell andeffecting business negatively for the operators.
A. False..there is many places around the country that shares boat ramp andeateries within the same and less distance without problem (see Mackay harbourRamp)..If the bins are managed and not allowed to become illegal dumpinggrounds then the smell and litter argument becomes null and void and simplespring loaded self closing lids will ensure smells are sealed in..
Please folks ,Support the Fishermen and Ramp users and make a complaint toGladstone Regional Council in order to see the correct decision made and thepeople that the bins were placed there to serve again able to dispose the wastethat is mostly purchased locally and generates Jobs and security for the localeconomy..
Wayne Bonham

[KEMEL K]

hi guys, not sure your aware but we fished 1770 on sun 8th and industrial bins back in usual position on right side of car park. well done to all who pressed issue. good one;D

[ozynorts]

I will be going past today so will have a look and check it out.

[heoheo]

hi guys, not sure your aware but we fished 1770 on sun 8th and industrial bins back in usual position on right side of car park. well done to all who pressed issue. good one;D
Sorry buddy, but they are not there. Just got Wayne to do a drive by and they are not there..??

[KEMEL K]

Sorry buddy, but they are not there. Just got Wayne to do a drive by and they are not there..??

yep sorry guys 11yo son took rubbish to bin, asked him before 1st post "big industrial bins like usual dad"
Tonight it's "wheelie bin beside ramp dad" :-[

[heoheo]

LOL a bin is a bin to a 11yr old. The wheelie bin lasted half a day before rubbish was overflowing in it. manifestly inadequate. The Gladstone observer just ran a story on it also. Hopefully council will start to take notice.

[ozynorts]

I drove past the other day but was distracted by the 4 cars with trailers on them parked in the rigging bay. Couldn't believe it, 4 of them, NSW plates and the drivers were nowhere to be seen....

[GBC]

https://www.facebook.com/returnthebinstoseventeenseventyramp/

[Andy56]

Just starting to take an interest in topic. It kind of reminds me why I stopped going to national parks , NF Rubbish bins. Some years ago some bright spark thought that no bins meant people took their rubbish home. HA BULLSHIT. the ONLY reason we had bins in the first place was because people DIDNT take their rubbish home. I tell you , the nuts are in charge.
In this so called enlightened age where we are trying to minimise pollution, some councillors just dont get it that its a responsibility to collect it. Its expected in our society. It should be looked on as a duty NOT A LIABILITY. Encouraging people to use a tip, I would have thought was a good outcome for everyone. BUT NOOOO, Notice how tip fees are over the top? Thats why rubbish collects outside tip gates.
In the rush to beautify and encourage tourism, you would have thought keeping the place clean was a good idea ! Its one of the attractions for overseas tourists - how clean the place is. Keeping the forshore clean is AN ASSET. These nuts /bean counters need to understand the value of things, not just the immediate bottom line. The same applies to recycling, although most city councils now recycle because they make money out of it. How long did that take to sink in?
These guys are sitting pretty close to the water, notice the revolt over parking meters in one melbourne council. Its cost the council more in repairs than the new meters will make ( some one found another use for liquid nails, and it wasnt one or two) and physical violence in council chambers. Does it have to come to this? Having some muslim brothers ( they like fishing too! ) living near by could help persuade. Just like saying I was of Italian decent or born in Griffith sent the fear of mafia to everyone years ago. Not PC I know. It worked for me. Yes I know, just angry /funny thoughts.

I believe the main consideration in the local council is the bottom line. A good case as to why long term its in the councils interest to collect the rubbish is the best argument. we have. Making them understand is a bit more difficult.
Thats my rant.

[ozynorts]

An update to this thread......
After a long and sustained campaign that resulted in the standing mayor getting the flick in the recent council elections we have success...........
The bins are back at the ramp.....;D
If your are in the area and using the bins please don't abuse what we have fought so hard for. Ensure that rubbish is placed in the bins and if they are full please find another bin or go to the tip if it is open.

[Dean1]

Gail sellers went out of her way to do nothing for agnes/rules beach. She hated the southern part of the shire.
Great to see her gone now we mite have some progress, especially at rules beach/baffle creek.