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The vast majority of people (77%) who have responded to a survey conducted by Friends of Fraser Island have said that they wanted the old forestry tracks on Fraser Island reopened. Altogether 1550 surveys have now been returned. Survey forms have been available on the barges and in shops for visitors to Fraser Island to fill out. Queenslanders and those who have traditionally used Fraser Island as their holiday destination have filled in the vast majority of the forms.
“Friends of Fraser Island is
group of people, mainly representing family groups who visit Fraser Island for
their holidays. The Association came into being last September because Fraser
Island holiday makers were incensed by the Government’s decisions including the
closure of roads and beaches that they had traditionally accessed. It is not an
organization made up of red necked madmen intent on ripping up beaches and
dunes. It is made up of over 560 families who have in the past enjoyed hassle
free holidays on Fraser Island,” Mr. Lin Powell said Eighty - five percent said that the Platypus Bay road recently closed by the Government should be reopened. People who spoke to Friends of Fraser representatives at the recent 4x4 Show in Brisbane were incensed that they were denied the ability to visit Platypus Bay while commercial fishermen were able to obtain a key and access the beach.‘It seems it is all right for commercial fishermen to rape the beaches but it is not OK for families to sit on the beach’, was a common sentiment heard. Others lamented the fact that for years they had been able to stand on the shore near Rooney's Point and observe whales close in to the beach during the spring months and that now because of the Government’s decision to summarily close the Platypus Bay road and the beach south from the Lighthouse that pleasure was denied them. In the survey, 95% of respondents want the beach between Hook Point and Dilli Village to remain open for vehicular traffic. 96% wanted the old sand mining road lightly maintained for those periods when the beach is impassable. Frequent users of Fraser Island reject the claims made that the majority of birds found dead on the Island are killed by vehicles. They point out that many die from natural causes and predator birds such as sea eagles and other raptors kill some. President of Friends of Fraser Island, Mr. Lin Powell said that most of the people who approached the Friends of Fraser's stand at the 4x4 Show were despondent about the effect of consultation about proposed changes to the management of the Island. “They feel disenfranchised,” he said. “In the survey 75% of respondents said that they felt that their views would have been ignored even if they had been consulted,” Mr. Powell said.
He said that this was an indictment on the
Government and that the Minister for the Environment should be very concerned
that a significant number of Queenslanders felt so ignored. Mr. Powell said that from the survey it was very evident that the decisions of Government on the management of Fraser Island were quite unpopular and that the review of the Management Plan was eagerly awaited. Another issue addressed in the survey was the issue of the provision of camping facilities. 91% wanted more campsites that include toilets with the provision of coin operated showers. “With the attraction of Fraser Island to the large number of Backpacker type tourists the provision of well maintained group camping facilities is imperative,” Mr. Powell said. He said that the camp ground near Indian Head was deplorable by any standard and for international tourists to be herded into such a primitive area without adequate toilet or showers was degrading to say the least especially when they have been charged $4 per person per night to stay there. “There is an urgent need for the Minister to personally inspect the Island during peak tourist times and to see for himself the very poor conditions under which international tourists and family groups are treated,” Mr. Powell said. “The policy of his Government in closing roads has forced more traffic onto fewer tracks thus deteriorating them further. The closure of the roads in the centre and north of the Island further compounds the serious fire danger too as with the roads being kept open they were effective fire breaks. Now with their lack of use they become overgrown and useless as fire breaks. I just wish the Government would take notice of those with a proven record of management on the Island. Foresters who managed the Island successfully for 125 years are horrified by the present decisions.” Mr. Powell concluded.
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