Wollongong City Coucil's decision to embark on a review rather than take action on life jackets for rock fishers was not good enough, Wollongong MP said, saying council was "dragging its feet".
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With five rock fishermen having died after being washed off rocks at Hill 60 at Port Kembla, the council considered whether to bring in a rule mandating life jackets but instead opted for a report into how a mandate worked in Randwick.
"Council's response to the rock fisher deaths at Hill 60 at its meeting on Monday night was underwhelming," Mr Scully said.
"I am advised the Lord Mayor is wrong when he asserts that all responsibility would fall to council if Hill 60 were designated as an area requiring life jackets to be worn. It would remain a shared responsibility.
"Given that council is dragging its feet to get to a designation of Hill 60 that I believe many councillors think should happen, I have approached Minister Hancock to consider putting an electronic message board at the entrance to Hill 60 area indicating that there have been deaths at this location and encouraging fishers to wear life jackets."
At issue is the fact the NSW Government designed an "opt-in" system for local government areas on mandating lifejackets.
This came after an inquest into several rock fishing deaths and was criticised by councils as passing the buck onto local government to enforce the rule.
Shellharbour City Council estimated it would cost $100,000 per year to enforce a lifejacket mandate.
"Just like at our beaches there is a shared responsibility for protecting people, responsibility is also shared at our fishing spots.
"There is no single solution to improve safety for rock fishers, but I am firmly of the view that there is no solution that does not include wearing life jackets. Throwing your hands up and hoping someone else will fix the problem or victim-blaming is not a responsible course of action."
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Ben Langford
Senior journalist writing on the environment. Opinion columnist, independent. We rely on your news tips so please, don't be shy to let us know what's going on.
Senior journalist writing on the environment. Opinion columnist, independent. We rely on your news tips so please, don't be shy to let us know what's going on.
