By Charlene Macaulay
A recreational fisherman is less than impressed with the state of the Werribee South boat ramp just ahead of fishing season.
Werribee’s Arthur Showell said with fishing season kicking off at the end of this month, the site needs dredging urgently.
The Werribee South boat ramp actually comprises six boat ramps, two of which are shallow, and four floating pontoons, one of which is currently closed due to damage.
“You’re going to have 400 boats trying to get in and out down there, and there’s no water,” Mr Showell said.
“They still haven’t dredged out between the pontoons, and it’s getting shallower and shallower around there.
“I was down there with a small tinny and a guy was launching a five-and-a-half metre boat and all the mud went up and through his propeller.”
Wyndham councillor Mia Shaw said a combination of high winds and a change to dredging patterns by the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) had resulted in a large amount of sand being deposited under the pontoons at the Werribee South boat ramp.
“As a result, one of the pontoons, which is the least used, has incurred considerable damage. Although the two middle, double ramps and pontoons have been impacted by the build-up of sand, they are operating as normal,” she said.
Cr Shaw said Iramoo ward councillors recently met council officers at the ramp and a dredging plan is being developed which will be submitted to the DELWP for approval.
“Our plan is to prioritise the repair and dredging of the middle pontoons that have double ramps, and then the shallow ones.”
But help is still months away – it can take the DELWP up to 60 business days to consider and approve an application.
