Minjerribah in the Toondah Harbour ferry channel
Vehicular ferry MV Minjerribah departing from Toondah Harbour

You could argue the most telling sentence in Walker Group’s draft of its Toondah Harbour Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) has nothing to do with the environment at all.

“The vast majority of the economic benefits derived from the Project are accounted for by the economic value of the land created by the development to be used for residential, commercial and retail purposes.”  ES-38

It follows that when the creation of this new land is finalised, the moment the last truckload of dredge spoil  is dumped, Walker Group’s’ profit margin, if it sold its interest in the land and walked away, would never be greater. Why hang around for years of less profitable construction and marketing?

But first, as Walker Group details in the Draft EIS, over half a million cubic metres of landfill is needed. They want to extract it right ‘next door’ by dredging wider and deeper the Fison Channel in front of the Toondah ferry terminal.

This, in turn, requires Walker Group to come up with pressing reasons why dredging up a public resource, for the exclusive use of a private company, is justified. And that turns the whole Toondah debate on its head.

Walker’s argument now is that without “the desired and necessary growth in the tourism industry envisaged for the Redlands Coast” (1-20)  the city’s economy will suffer badly.

Redlands folk will supposedly be rescued from this looming disaster by Walker Group dredging the Fison Channel, and ‘beneficially’ using the massive amount of dredge spoil to create a raised foundation, of vast economic benefit, upon which a new suburb can be built.

Walker Group says The Project will result in the removal of up to 37 ha of seagrass and 3.4 hectares of mangroves (ES-37) but from Walker Group’s perspective this environmental destruction is inconsequential, to be paid for with a proposed $4.75 million contribution to an offsets fund (ES-49).

This is the ‘win-win’ scenario which Walker Group wants approved by Tanya Plibersek the Federal Environment Minister.

But where’s the proof, in the Draft EIS, that this dredging needs to happen at all?

Without a convincing case for a wider deeper ferry channel, the whole case for Walker Group’s proposal collapses – like a house of cards in a gentle breeze.

Walker Group wants a bigger ferry channel

An integral part of the Toondah Harbour Project is capital dredging to widen and deepen the Fison Channel and extend the turning basin (2-45)

The central argument in the Draft EIS, that the ferry channel must be made deeper, wider and straighter is not substantiated by Walker Group and its hired consultants.

Walker Group’s story hasn’t changed substantially since its first attempt to get Federal Government environmental approvals in 2015 when it said that “Achieving a net material balance within the development footprint (i.e. volume of dredged material equal to the volume of reclamation) will be a design objective for the project”.

No science is invoked anywhere in the 5,400 page document to prove that Walker Group’s latest dredging plan is necessary to keep North Stradbroke Island / Minjerribah (popularly known as Straddie) adequately serviced with ferry transport.

Deafening silence from ferry companies

Remarkably, the Draft EIS doesn’t include letters of support from the two ferry companies (SeaLink and Stradbroke Flyer) expressing their long-held desire for a wider and deeper ferry channel. Indeed, these companies have been remarkably silent since 2014 when Walker Group was given the Toondah development opportunity.

Why the deafening silence from the ferry companies?

Perhaps they are happy with the way things are at present and are not particularly keen for Toondah Harbour to become a construction site for 20 years.

Toondah Harbour ferry channel

The channel leading into Toondah Harbour (the Fison Channel) has been used by ferries for about 50 years.

It’s a narrow channel that requires maintenance dredging every few years to remain navigable by the ferries which are the main users.

While using the Fison Channel, vessels are not allowed to pass while traveling in opposite directions. Ferries only take a few minutes to pass through the channel.

The vehicle ferries currently servicing the Toondah to Straddie route are single ended vessels so they execute a 180 degree turn in the Toondah Harbour turning basin before docking at Toondah Harbour.

Ferry channel upgrade not needed

Queensland’s Department of Marine Safety confirmed in 2020 that no upgrade to the current marine channel at Toondah is necessary to achieve safety requirements for current usage of Toondah Harbour.

To justify its arguments for obtaining 530,000 m3 of fill by dredging the channel bigger, Walker Group has suggested in its Draft EIS that:

  • Vessels should be able to pass in the Fison Channel;
  • The Channel should be wider to cater for larger vehicular ferries in the future; and
  • The Channel needs to be deeper so vessels don’t scrape their bottoms, occasionally.

Walker Group’s Draft EIS doesn’t substantiate any of these claims with detailed evidence and solid arguments. All that can be found in the Draft EIS is a bit of wishful thinking and some anecdotal recollections.

Motorized yachts instead of tinnies

Apart from ferries servicing Straddie, some small craft such as tinnies (small aluminium boat with outboard motor) and jet skis occasionally use the current Toondah Harbour boat ramp which Walker Group is proposing to close.

The Draft EIS says that Walker Group’s proposed development which includes a 200 berth marina for “motorized yachts” would not result in an increase in the current small number of motor driven water craft using Toondah Harbour.

The existing public boat ramp at Toondah Harbour will be decommissioned by the Project. Motorised recreational boat traffic generated by the new 200-berth marina is expected to be the same or less than traffic generated by the existing boat ramp.(ES-18)

If Walker Group’s plan is approved, the number of private motor driven watercraft using Toondah Harbour won’t increase, but tinnies will be replaced with motorized yachts.

Owners of these motorized yachts, on the rare occasions that they leave the Toondah Harbour marina, will benefit from Walker Group’s wider ferry channel as they cruise comfortably past a ferry traveling the other way.

Future demand for ferry services

The Draft EIS does a very poor job of analysing potential growth in demand for ferry services between Toondah Harbour and Straddie.

There are no detailed forecasts of demand  broken down into use of passenger only water taxis and vehicular ferries.

North Stradbroke Island’s native title custodians (QYAC) have affirmed “Placing ecological and cultural sustainability as the primary requirement for tourism on Quandamooka Country” in their five year tourism strategy. This objective appears to have been ignored by Walker Group.

Instead, the Draft EIS includes a few vague statements, for example:

Additional demand for vehicle and passenger ferries is expected to be met through the use of larger vessels that cannot currently be used as the Fison Channel and turning basin are too narrow and shallow. ES-18

Walker Group says that its new harbour and ferry channel is designed for an 80 metres long ferry “based on discussions with SeaLink”. (Appendix 1-I page 15)

No details are provided regarding when any communications with ‘the ferry operator’ took place, the circumstances which might lead to SeaLink introducing larger vessels and the likelihood of this happening in the foreseeable future.  

SeaLink’s vehicular ferries

At this point in the story, it’s worth having a look at some of the vehicular ferries that SeaLink operates on services to Straddie, and some similar routes in Australia.

VesselPassengersCarsLengthBeamRoute
Minjerribah4005267.7m13.0mStraddie
Sea Breeze3006049.0m15.8mStraddie
Quandamooka4005267.7m13.1mStraddie
Nairana1923644.9m13.7mBruny Island
Parrabah1923644.9m13.7mBruny Island
Sea Lion 20003755049.8m16.0mKangaroo Island
Spirit of Kangaroo Island2405050.4m18.0mKangaroo Island
Examples of vehicular ferries currently operated by SeaLink

Of the vessels servicing the route from Toondah Harbour to Straddie, the one that carries the most cars is the catamaran Sea Breeze (formerly the Big Red Cat) which is only 49.0 metres in length, much shorter than the Minjerribah and Quandamooka which are both monohulls about 68 metres in length.

Advantages of double-ended ferries

A double-ended ferry could be more suited to use of the Toondah Harbour ferry channel.
Double-ended ferry servicing Bruny Island: Photo: SeaLink

For service to Bruny Island in Tasmania, SeaLink has introduced two new catamaran ferries which are double-ended. These ferries can travel in either direction. They don’t need to do the 180 degree turns performed by vehicle ferries currently arriving at Toondah Harbour.

Use of double-ended ferries out of Toondah Harbour would reduce travel time and fuel use by avoiding the part of the trip when the vehicle ferries currently in service do their 180 degree turns. This would also reduce mud disturbance in Toondah Harbour.

It would seem quite possible for SeaLink to cater for steady increases in demand for vehicle transport by deploying new ferries that are suitable sized double-ended catamarans up to say 60 metres in length which can operate comfortably within the confines of the current Fison Channel.

Why didn’t Walker Group discuss this option in its Draft EIS?

Presumably, because they are only interested in a scenario where they get to dredge lots of mud to create new land upon which they can develop 3,600 dwellings.

Reducing use of private vehicles

Walker Group talks down the additional vehicle traffic that would be caused if its proposed 3,600 dwelling residential development went ahead.  For example:

Toondah Harbour presents an opportunity to bring forward sustainable transport for the Redlands Coast including pedestrian and cycle infrastructure to fulfil strategic movements between Cleveland Point, Eddie Santagiuliana Way and Cleveland CBD via Middle Street. To achieve sustainable outcomes, the Project proposes to reduce private vehicle travel and promote public and active transport travel to the site. Use of an autonomous shuttle bus between Cleveland CBD, Cleveland Rail Station and the proposed ferry terminal will be explored. ES-20

But the Draft EIS doesn’t extend this thinking to Straddie where reducing private vehicle travel on the island would mean less need for vehicles to be transported by ferry to the island, so less need for larger ferries and a wider ferry channel.

Ferry channel depth

Walker Group claims in its Draft EIS that vehicle ferries traveling to Straddie “are regularly observed ‘bottoming out’ in the channel” (2-16) but no details are provided regarding the frequency of occurrence. We are told that “expenditure on repairs to hulls and propellers are already significant due to vessels bottoming out in the shallow channel” (3-7) but again no evidence is provided.

The only recorded instance of a ferry being grounded was not in the Toondah Harbour ferry channel.
Big Red Cat aground near Dunwich in 2016 – RCB Geneve Hague

The only time a vehicle ferry has grounded on the route from Toondah Harbour to Straddie was in 2016 when the Big Red Cat (now Sea Breeze) spent a few hours on a sandbank near Dunwich (Gumpi).

The Draft EIS mentions future sea level rises in a few places but not when discussing the depth of the Fison Channel. Obviously, as sea levels increase due to global warming, the ferry channel will get deeper.

Have your say about the Draft EIS

Now is the time to have your say about Walker Group’s proposed plans to construct 3,600 dwellings on wetlands between the Grand View Hotel and the Toondah Harbour ferry terminal.

Walker Group’s plans are set out in a Draft EIS which Redlands2030 has made more easily accessible here.

Electronic submissions about the draft EIS should be emailed to Walker Group at: engage@toondah.com.au

Anyone making a submission is welcome to also email a cc copy to Redlands2030 at: thereporter@redlands2030.net

Redlands2030 – 30 October 2022

2 Comments

Gloria Litchfield, Oct 31, 2022

Stop the dredging if Toondah Harbour, it will kill the dolphins and dugongs and mangroves and seagrass. Do not build 3,600 apartments bringing traffic and people endangering the lives of wildlife including koalas. Do not interfere with Ramsar protected wetlands, these are for migrating birds to rest and regain fitness after their long yearly flight

Margaret woodland, Oct 30, 2022

Compare the mess Redlands Council has allowed to happen at Redland Bay ferry terminal to this proposal at Toondah to see that another larger problem will occur there with 3600 additional vehicles in the area.

Please note: Offensive or off-topic comments will be deleted. If offended by any published comment please email thereporter@redlands2030.net

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