Plea to hit paws on dogs review

The new “green” council will face its first major challenge next month when the region’s dog owners demand that the Shire of Augusta-Margaret River abandon plans to overhaul dog exercise areas. A petition last week netted more than 1100 signatures within 24 hours as regular beach users worked together to up the ante on the proposed review of dog beaches and exercise areas in suburban enclaves. In a sign the Shire considered outcomes of the review a done deal, advertising was already under way to change uses of different reserves under local laws. But regular beachgoers say the plan is a dog’s breakfast because surveys did not consider the needs of people living outside of coastal areas, and well-intentioned concerns around protecting the endangered hooded plover were over-exaggerated. Instead, activists such as retired primary school teacher Gary Gibbon said regular dog walkers risked losing swaths of coastal recreation areas, particularly at Gas Bay and further south, for the sake of unproven efforts to protect birdlife. “I want to see the hooded plover thrive as much as anybody,” he told the Times. “The rangers are going way overboard in using that slim pretext to further shut down dog-accessible beaches, especially without trying basic educational tools, such as highly visible bespoke signage. “The structure of the survey strongly suggests the changes are going to happen anyway and whatever feedback the public provides will only be of marginal significance, if any at all.” Last week, Shire rangers co-ordinator Narelle Graue said the review was part of local government business conducted every four years. Any proposed changes would be advertised in the Times and on social media for 28 days before councillors made their final decision, Ms Graue said. “Pressing issues have been raised by residents in particular areas, namely Gnarabup where hooded plover breeding grounds may be impacted by dogs, and Parkwater, Brookfield (and) Rapids Landing,” she said. “Shire officers have completed detailed environmental analysis for each place, as well as focused conversations with local groups to understand concerns and explore solutions.” More than a dozen other beach users living in Gnarabup told the Times they wanted to protect the plover too, but losing dog areas was not the way to go. A dog owner who asked not to be identified because she feared the wrath of the rangers said the Shire already over-policed the coastal strip south of The White Elephant and waited for dog owners in nearby carparks before pouncing. She and others had collected data on the plovers for years and didn’t believe dogs were a serious threat, she said. Shire legal and governance manager Ian McLeod said coastal residents were surveyed because any changes would affect them most.