On one side, it’s a sandy beach that looks just perfect for families. On the other, it’s slap bang in front of Port Botany, the bustling container hub of Sydney.
Yarra Bay and Molineaux Point, just a few hundred metres along a breakwater, are the two sites most likely to house Sydney’s third cruise terminal. A business case is being developed, and if they pass muster, community consultation on which is preferred and environmental impact studies will follow.
So what exactly does Yarra Bay, meaning Ever Flowing to its traditional Aboriginal ancestors, look like?
The issue has sparked mixed reactions on our site. So Cruise Passenger spent a day filming to bring you a special video to help you make up your mind.
One site sits close to the beach and just across from one of Sydney’s largest cemeteries. The other is several hundred metres from the beach at the end of the breakwater, and looked to us as the one which would cause residents least problems.
Botany Bay has already been overdeveloped. Yarra Bay is the last remaining beach on the North side of the bay and would be dessimated if a Mega Cruise terminal was built. Garden Island is the first choice by the reference group and that is where it should be built.
About 33% of the Botany Bay shore line is used for utility functions like airports, container ports, fuel ports, etc. Less than 20% of the eastern Sydney Harbour (from the bridge to The Heads) shore line is similarly used for ports and docks.
I suggest the shores around Point Piper, Kirribilli Point, Balmoral and Cronulla or anywhere else that senior politicians live, should be developed for infrastructure first before more of it is pushed into Botany Bay.
Move the navy to Newcastle (i.e. decentralisation) and put the extra cruise terminal at Garden Island, please!
Information is being held from the host community and no real information has been released. The cruise industry is NOT more important than the community and the federal Gov. Should be backing the people not BIG BUSINESS. If they really cared they would save money and make the navy share as they’re paying little to nothing for garden island!
This is not okay for little bay. Why Aus the cruise ship industry more important than the host community? Why is it mode important than our history of indigenous people? Why is it mode important that our environment and beach?
It’s not!!!! No cruise shops in Yarra bay go hassle the navy and save some tax payers money actually put it to good use.
This project should not proceed for a number of reasons, including:
1. The environmental impact on a remarkably pristine beach, which is itself close to sites of great historical significance – Bare Island, the La Perouse memorial and Museum, and the Telegraph Station. Cruise ships create tremendous pollution just by their presence, both visual and in terms of waste and disturbance of the seabed. Dredging and construction work will effectively spell the end of the peaceful beach as we know it.
2. The risk of bad weather affecting ships is far greater in Botany Bay than in Port Jackson. The proposed site is directly exposed to wind and wave coming directly through the bay entrance. If a ship is impacted by severe weather it will run the risk of being stranded or beached with all the dire consequences this would engender.
3. Cruise passengers coming to Sydney expect to see from their ship the iconic sights of the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge, not an oil refinery and a graveyard. Botany Bay will not meet their expectations. The site will require buses to transfer passengers to the city, which is some distance away. The on-land facilities required for this activity will impact the local community very negatively. Garden Island, an established anchorage, already perfectly meets all these requirements.
For the above reasons this project should not proceed. It is embarrassing that this project seems to be being presented as a fait accompli, a decision already made, merely requiring a little ‘community consultation’ and tweaking before proceeding.
Not at all. This project should be opposed and stopped. Yarra Bay should be left as it is.
“The other is several hundred metres from the beach at the end of the breakwater, and looked to us as the one which would cause residents least problems.”
The site at the end of the breakwater (Molineaux Point) is within 200 metres of above ground tanks and underground caverns storing vast quantities of flammable and hazardous gases and fluids.
The risks are extreme and if the proponents (Port Authority and NSW Government) choose to ignore them they are legally responsible for that decision. A government acting responsibly would not dream of parking two gigantic ships, with up to 15,000 people (total) on board in close proximity to such a potentially hazardous site.
Should a terminal be built there, it is likely that some cruise lines would, on the basis of their own risk assessments and the instructions of their insurers, refuse to berth there.
I am really shocked that Cruise Passenger is advocating for this site.
Yarra Bay is not a suitable area for cruise ships. No respect is given to the history of botany bay which is the birthplace of Australia. With oil tankers coming weekly on the southern side at Kurnell and thousands of fully loaded container ships entering the narrow headlands every year the risk of accident or mishap will increase greatly due to the large seas and under currents at the head of the bay which has previously left devistation on the yarra bay, la perouse side from said storms. Lives and land will be put at great risk!!!!
What fool would pay for a cruise that didn’t dock in amazing Sydney Harbour, settling instead to be greeted by massive piles of junk-filled shipping containers and processing machinery? Cruise passengers who want to respect the local residents and aboriginal communities of Sydney should boycott any cruise landing here and urge Royal Caribbean and all deciding bodies to develop a passenger terminal on Garden Island instead.
Gladys why dont you care about us? You took away beach for the airport and then gave us 24/7 port botany noise and pollution. Also factories continually belching smoke.
Now you want to take the last bit of beach there. Shame on you. You are a disgrace.
If they do build at Yarra Bay I hope there will be an alternative place to leave from, as I like to cruise, but dont like what will be the destruction of the existing community at Yarra Bay and La Perouse. I would feel ashamed to cruise from that terminal. I wish they would just use Garden Island as that would be perfect and the Navy doesn’t need to be housed there. It is obviously just some big wigs in the parliament and/or Navy want Garden Island to themselves.
This is a beautiful family friendly beach, it’s beauty and popularity is skilfully camouflaged in this video. Totally unsuitable for a cruise ship terminal in every way. The community is rallying together to fight this dreadful proposal and will give it everything they have got.
I think that Sir Joseph Banks whom discovered and named the many species of flora & fauna in the area would be totally disgusted with what future generations of greedy politicians have done to this great natural area of historical significance and another disgraceful attack on the 1st Australians, to all involved you should be ashamed of yourselves for repeating an already horrible mistake to people who were here 1st
How dare they! The community does not agree to this. Absolutely disgraceful, all to line greedy pockets with $$$! Go elsewhere.
The environmental impacts of dredging and motoring mega cruise ships for marine life and beach quality at Yarra bay and surrounding beaches will be terrible.
The area does not have the road infrastructure to support mega cruise ship passenger transportation or supply and waste trucks.
NO CRUISE SHIPS IN YARRA BAY!
Cruise companies should put pressure on both governments to reverse the Garden Island decision because as stated by Peter Collins who was tasked with the search for the best site…. there is no good reason why the terminal can’t be located there (Saturday Telegraph 10/11/2019) It’s a win win as it would be ready for use much sooner, cost way less and give passengers the desired entrance to our beautiful city. Just commonsense
There are also other options in Sydney’s north, Newcastle and Wollongong. Yarra Bay residents are asking for transparency in the Governments decision making.. there is more at stake than cruise line’s profits such as the environment, community, infrastructure and consideration of tradional owners of the land around Yarra.
Completely inappropriate for the area – residents and councils are opposed because it will kill sealife by dredging, destroy priceless indigenous land, destroy the peacefulness and tranquility, and result in ugly traffic snarls through our already packed suburbs. Go to garden island.
Peter Collins report recommending a shared facility at Garden Island needs to be revisited. This was not considered by the Federal Government.
Garden Island is the obvious choice. The construction of a terminal, berth and breakwater at Yarra Bay would be a huge waste of taxpayers money, would provide a poor return on investment and would be very dangerous location to locate a terminal. Dredging will disturb toxic chemical that have settled in sea bed following years of industrial activity. The breakwater they would need to contruct would change tidal flows and wave energy, changing shipping conditions for our busy port.. It would send waves rebounding across Botany Bay to Kurnell, destroying coastline, beaches and wetlands.
This area has been built up enough. Leave it alone. There is a delicate harmony between the busy commercial port, the beach, the natural environment and the residential and recreational uses of the Bay. It is sacred to the indigenous community. Please leave this area alone. You are putting foreign commercial interests over the community, the people that pay taxes and have built and care for this environment. NOBODY WANTS THIS.
Neither of these sites are suitable for the people that live and play in this area. Let’s put one on your beach!
Take your cruise ships somewhere else!!!
Politicians should not be allowed use their political influences to shut down the Garden Island idea because they don’t want it in their back yard. ” nimby”