Dredging plan for Swansea Channel put off until February

The planned dredging work for the Swansea Channel before Christmas has been delayed until next year.

In the December update from Transport for NSW, the State government said that the planned dredging campaign before the holiday period has had to be put off until February next year due to the presence of endangered shore birds that are nesting on a sand island.

Swansea MP Yasmin Catley is disappointed at the latest update from Transport for NSW.

“In May, the Minister for Transport told me that sand dredged from upcoming dredging campaigns would be transferred to Blacksmiths Beach to renourish the beach,” said Catley.

“The Government has now stated that the sand dredged early next year will not be immediately transported to the beach, but instead stockpiled on the sand islands or at the old Belmont Sands stockpile site.”

“On the weekend I spoke with NBN about the Liberals failure to follow through with their dredging commitments. The local community is tired of Swansea Channel not being dredged. It is the gateway to Lake Macquarie, yet it is virtually unnavigable.”

The dredging campaign is set to take place following the end of the nesting season of endangered shore birds around February 2023, said Transport for NSW.