he Coffin Bay Draft Master Plan is a document meant to guide planning and policy decisions by the Council over the next 10 years and beyond. In our view it fails to satisfactorily address, or even acknowledge key issues that are critical to planning for a sustainable future.

The Master Plan projects natural growth of the resident population of the town from our current 600 (approx.) to 800 people by 2031. Based on historic growth trends this is not an unreasonable projection and in fact there are already enough development blocks available in Coffin Bay to meet that demand. Despite that, Council is also proposing to add a further 78 lots to the existing 12 lots at Angasi Shores as well as an unspecified number of lots in the proposed new "Retirement Style Living" area. Added to pre-existing lots, this implies Council are planning for a permanent population of around 1,000 (or more) by 2031.

Again based on historic growth trends, it is predicted that tourism numbers will grow to 7500 visitors during peak periods within the next ten years. Keep in mind that Coffin Bay experienced an estimated 4,000 visitors last Summer. To us it seems unreasonable that the Master Plan contains little information on the implications of these numbers in terms of demand on infrastructure, impacts on the lifestyle of residents and our precious environment.

We believe that committing to a strategy for residential and tourism expansion without first determining the limits for safe and sustainable growth, is irresponsible. We are also deeply concerned about Council's apparent rush to finalise the Master Plan. Why not take the time to gather critical research? Why has Council persisted with the proposals to develop the Deferred Urban Land for residential and industrial purposes despite low community support? And why has the community only been given until 19th July to comment on the Draft Master Plan? What is the rush?

Friends Of Coffin Bay is not anti-development or anti-tourism. However, we believe it is perfectly reasonable to demand that legitimate research be conducted into the limits of our environment to cope with the proposed burden of residential growth and tourism, before population and tourism targets are set via an approved Master Plan or any other strategic document.

t costs money to improve or provide the new infrastructure required to support a growing community and its visitors. That money has to come from somewhere - usually rates or borrowings. Regardless of the source, the burden will be on residential ratepayers to fund Tourism growth.  And in a world where funds are always limited, there is a risk that funds will be diverted to Tourism and away from projects that would be more desirable to the community.

Safety & Security

Power outages are a fact of life. At best, a nuisance, at worst (say on a 40+C day with a Northerly howling in off the bay) a danger to our more vulnerable residents. The problem is that here in Coffin Bay power outages also mean loss of communication with the outside world. That exposes each and every one one of us to enormous risk including the possibility that in a health emergency we or one of our loved ones won't get the medical treatment we need in time.

Congestion

Apart from all of this, increased population and tourism means more cars, more caravans, boats and trailers on our streets. Worse, we have one road in and out of town. The more people that are here during bushfire season, the greater the probability that an emergency evacuation will turn into a catastrophe. We see no evidence that Council has considered a remedy for any of these matters as part of the Draft Master Plan.

Waste & Water

It is known that at times last summer, with an estimated 4,500 to 5,000 people in the town, the Coffin Bay Treatment Plant was at capacity - in fact, at times beyond capacity. Consider this in light of the fact that the Draft Master Plan is guiding us towards an increase in residents and tourists to a total of 8,500 (approx.) residents and visitors by 2031.

The Aquifer that supplies water to Coffin Bay is depleting and under significant pressure to supply the needs of our existing resident and visitor numbers. Consider the consequences for local home-owners if Council's drive for unchecked population and tourism growth causes the aquifer to become exhausted. Additionally, residents in parts of Coffin Bay already experience a deeply frustrating drop in water pressure during Summer months. More people in the town will naturally intensify the severity of this problem. At least until the Aquifer runs dry...

Emergency & Other Services

Coffin Bay already lacks adequate police presence. One might also argue that we don't currently have enough rangers and fisheries officers to protect the parks and waterways properly. And, with the greatest respect to our volunteer ambulance service, who do a terrific job, in the event of a serious health emergency we have to wait a minimum of 30 minutes for an ambulance to arrive from Port Lincoln.

It should be obvious to all that unchecked increases in population and visitors will only place additional strain upon all of the above. Again, Council has not addressed any of these issues in the Draft Master Plan, beyond making vague references to car parking.

e understand that some change is inevitable, and that economic growth (especially including tourism) is important to our town. However Coffin Bay is an extraordinary place. It is valued by residents and visitors alike precisely because of it's natural beauty, peaceful and friendly atmosphere, the abundance of native animals and birds, and of course, our spectacular waterways.

We believe Council's apparent failure to perform detailed research into the impacts of population and tourism growth prior to creation of the Coffin Bay Draft Master Plan risks all of that.

If we're right, this will mean that local residents are likely to pay a heavy long-term price for Council's short-term thinking.

And apart from the cost to our environment, safety and security, we are likely to experience more road congestion, illegal camping, over-fishing, dumping of waste, excess noise and other social nuisances (possibly including crime). We can also expect that our access to services and infrastructure (e.g. the boat ramp) will be less and less accessible to us over time. This is the experience of towns like Byron Bay.

Finally, let's remember that this is not the 1980's. We now know climate change is real and that our biodiversity is already under threat. We've seen the effects of over-crowding and over-tourism upon once-delightful destinations across our Sunburnt Country.

So instead of chasing blindly after the old "growth at all costs" model, we wonder if Coffin Bay might not be the perfect candidate for a new, enlightened approach to sustainable Tourism in South Australia? One that balances the needs of environment and community with a healthy Tourism industry. One that sets a standard that would be admired and respected across the country. If so, how would that look? How would YOU like it to look? It may be worth taking some time to think about.

In any case, if you care about Coffin Bay, and if you care about preserving those aspects of our environment and lifestyle that make this place so unique, we strongly encourage you to contact our local Councillors and make your voice heard. Please do it now, before the Draft Master Plan becomes the approved Master Plan.