Indodreaming said...
It seems to me that the better waves are by-products not where it was set out to create a wave.
Still think there must be a way to create a offshore structure that captures lateral sand drift and makes a wave without causing downstream erosion.
The sand spit back wash makes the snapper backwash pretty tame but it has got me a few times.
A lot of the reefs have been designed primarily for coastal management works with the surfing side of the equation a secondary benefit. Narrowneck on the Goldie is a perfect example of this. And usually when they talk surfing - it includes all potential users of the spot.
If you want one in Perth there is no reason you can not start a grass-roots movement yourself and see where you can take it. Its clear that cashola is not in short supply over West these days
and that they are more than happy to look at housing developments that impact the coastal zone. In NSW canal type estates have been banned for quiet some time.......so over West if you want to do something about it you need to get busy. I would suggest that you need to think about the project benefits beyond just the surfing component if you want buy-in from all sides of the equation. Check out Surfriders principles re artificial reefs as you will want them on board (I can introduce you to the WA branch if you wish). Also think about areas that could benefit from the protection that an artificial reef acting as an end control structure would have. I would also encourage you to investigate the work that Andrew at Surfing Ramps did in Cronulla over east. Andrew is a super nice bloke and very approachable. He loves to chat about this sort of stuff and has some great ideas. He is not a classically trained coastal engineer which can offer a refreshing view at times. He is a doer. Have a read about the Northward Drift and how that impacts longshore sand transport on yr side of the continent. If you require any help to get you going send me a PM and I will help you out.
Up until this point in time the success of dedicated surfing reefs has been relatively poor in my opinion.....but you could also argue that many of them were not permitted to be made / or were completed as initially intended for a variety of reasons. You do not have to search very far to find a lot of people who feel extremely let down by what has occurred and this I imagine would be a big issue that you would need to overcome. Sand nourishment on the other hand has some great success stories - think Snapper.
However - you come from the West - have a liberal govt and lots of resources types with cashola to burn and have erosion issues to deal with. I would think that your State is as good as any to have a crack. Engineering works to address the medium term issue of coastal erosion here in NSW have been off the table for some time with the ideology of 'planned retreat' the favoured method....that looks like it may change under our new govt but it will be a while I would suggest. You can play this card.
Have a crack - your fellow Perth strugglers will love ya for it....but just remember it will not be a secret spot and you may find some stickered board owners down there creating issues for ya
Here is some reading to get you started on your adventure!!!
http://www.swellnet.com.au/news/2462-cronulla-s-latest-surfspot-all-new-all-naturalwww.swellnet.com.au/news/3041-the-mechanics-of-the-sand-slug
ing laugh
