Point Peron is area of land known as crown land, this area includes the island known as penguin island. Penguin island and the Point Peron area is a 12.5 ha area near the coast of western Australia. It is home to about 1,200 little penguins and some of the oldest living creatures in the world. This is the largest population of birds in western Australia. The water around the island are part of the Shoalwater islands marine park. What the government wants to do is cut through some of the land creating a canal for boats to come through. How will this affect the home of the penguins? More wake and waves formed from the boats will speed up the weathering of the island and is drives the penguins away from their home, killing them in the long run. The boats will also drive the food of the little penguins away meaning that they have to travel further away from their home to reach the food.

 

Impact and issues of point Peron Marina Project:

Habitat degradation of little penguins:
The habitat of the little penguins will be destroyed if the canals are built, it will drive the food of the penguins away and kill the rest of the food that remains. Meaning that the penguins will be killed as they have evolved to suit the island of Australia.

 

Destroying seagrass beds:
Seagrass expert Dr Mike Van Keulen from the school of Biological Sciences and Biotech at Murdoch University says that the proponents are relying on flawed seagrass reports. In these false reports it states that the seagrass is already dyeing as the density as dropped by nearly by 50% but the reality is that it has only dropped by about 25% and this is due to the building of the local marina. These seabeds are home and a nursery to many of the local residents of the area. If the canals are built the already damaged seabeds will die due to the increase of wake and waves caused by the boats. 

 

Mercury contamination hazards
If the canals and marina are built it will release methyl-mercury into the ocean. This will cause a mass increase in contaminated fish and little penguins. This will end up contaminating our food sources and we can be infected as well. 

 

Sale of crown land- land that belongs to all of us
The land the local government want to use for the marina is crown land. This means that the land is restricted to parklands and recreation land. This was implemented on the 10th of January of 1964. If the park land does end up not a reserve for whatever reason there is a law that will classify the and as an 'A' class reserve.

 

Who paying for ongoing dredging
After all the government is not paying for dredging, we are! The ratepayers will be paying for the marina and dredging this means that our taxes in the local area will spike. If the project does fail the taxes will go up again and we will be paying for the repairs.

 

Critically endangered thrombolysis
If the dredging start it will wipe out a living museum. The thrombolysis are a bacteria that have been dated about nearly 3.5 billion years ago to the start of life on earth. If the Marina is built we will be killing of a living museum.  These bacteria live in lake Richmond which will be cut into in the Dredging and will end up killing a billion year old life from.

 These issues the Point Peron Project should be stopped as it is killing of some of the most iconic living creatures of Australia. 

contact details 

All Saints College Western Australia 

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