Geoff Mallinson

1:01 Geoff Mallison: dog prohibited area. Mr Mallison if you'd like to make your way through the lectern. Thank you. I'll have to read this so I cover all the most important points. My name is Geoff Mallison, I live adjacent to Tingera Crescent, adjacent to the beach at Sunrise to Sunshine Beach. I particularly came to that area and purchased a house there because I like to run and swim and walk, same with my wife, on the so-called prohibited dog area beach because we considered that would be a safe spot considering there's a large amount of Noosa Council area which has unleashed dogs, a large amount. We're very lucky because in Sydney there are no dogs allowed on beaches, only selected areas which are very carefully monitored and policed. So you know when we came here three years ago to live permanently we thought that would be a safe place to be able to run. Unfortunately this is not the case. That dog prohibited area is used a lot by a minority by the way of dog owners. The majority of dog owners don't actually want to take their dog to the beach anyway. So we're catering for a minority in the first place.

2:29 And of that minority there is another minority of very vocal people who think that they can just come anywhere and do what they like. And we find that constantly there are dogs on the beach in that area. 24-7 I can go down there and there's always a dog somewhere on the beach. Despite many letters and complaints to council, the problem is getting worse and I believe that it's mostly due to the lack of funds and manpower that's allocated to policing it. Older people like myself who have thin skin, we can't risk a dog jumping up on us even playfully because it rips the skin off. And then we've got to go to hospital, get stitched up and recoup from it. So it's quite frightening to be running along the beach, the dog racing towards you or chasing you and you think hell if it gets near me it's going to injure me. And so on many occasions since we've been here we've had to run into the water to get away from dogs. Now okay maybe only a few of those dog tracks are going to attack us but it's risky for us.

3:50 Also young children that are on the beach, babies and mothers and people are at risk of dogs who are running around off leash. And this is a prohibited area so they shouldn't be there in the first place. So I'm coming to you tonight to plead with you to do something because it's spoiling our life. We've bought a house adjacent to a beach which is supposed to have no dogs on it. But it's not the case. And we feel that the council, the nursing council is very generous. They've allocated a lot of area to people to take and exercise their dogs and mostly off leash. Which we also find hard to work out how we can allocate a beach area and say that that's for dogs to exercise on. But we're really excluding, excluding the people who are afraid of dogs. Or for some reason don't want dogs running around here than when they're on the beach. I've been attacked by a dog in the past a couple of times but only once actually injured. And of course I'm afraid of them under those circumstances.

5:11 When you go to the beach where we go or you've noticed that the signage is, inadequate. It's very small signs about the dog on a big sign that nobody reads. And we've noticed this regularly because we go to the beach and we often say to people if their dog is near us and annoying us or whatever, Tewantin your dog off the beach is a prohibited area. The replies are we know we don't care. Or the other reply is also, oh we didn't see any signs. Oh you know they're innocently in their area. And I agree that it's quite easy for them not to see the signs. So the signs are a big issue. Other councils I've been to have good large visible signs. That are a deterrent in themselves because if people come to the beach with their dog and they see a really obvious sign that says dogs prohibited. They're not going to go any further. But if it's a little insignificant sign half the time they're not going to see it. And when you get on the beach the other problem is that there are no signs that are visible when you're on the beach.

6:27 So if you're in a dog exercise area where you're supposed to be and you start walking your dog along towards Sunshine Beach from say, Peregian or you're even about to take it home or Castaway. You're not going to know that you've just come out of a dog exercise area into a prohibited area. So there's a real signage issue that needs to be addressed. Up the other end at the National Park which I find also very hard to believe. In the past the council's made a decision to have an exercise area in a little corner adjacent to the National Park. Which is Caboo. With the people who are interested in protecting wildlife. And when you come from the National Park, which lots and lots of people do, walking and running down onto Sunshine Beach. No signs to say that they're entering an unleashed hog area. Also that little corner is very inaccessible for the general public. The parking is very limited. There is no real parking area that accesses that corner. There's a small amount of parking. So of course what the people who do use it do.

7:44 They park at a surf club. Take their dog on the beach in the non dog area. And walk it down to the dog area. So it should never have been allowed to have a dog exercise area in that little corner. Catering for a very few amount of people. They're creating a very big problem for council. So my main reason for coming to council is to make everybody aware of the situation. Because I have written countless letters and made many many complaints. My wife and I. And we feel that we need to be heard.

8:24 Because we're the silent majority really. The minority of dog owners. And I'm saying minority of the minority. Are very vocal. And get a lot of attention. And a lot of reaction from council. They don't want to upset the dog owners. Well they're not upsetting the dog owners. They're upsetting a minority of the minority. Who actually want to use the beach with their dog. Lots of people I know who have dogs like me in the past. Avoided going to the beach with their dog. Because they had problems. And other little irritating things is that we go along. And we find that people are just hitting a doggy poo in the doggy bag. And they're just leaving it at the bottom of the walkway. They're not looking for a rubbish pit to put in. But they're just leaving it behind. And we're constantly putting that in the bin for them. Because they're not doing the right thing. So policing is a big issue. And a lot of verbal conversations and correspondence with council. And the head rangers are doing the best job they possibly can. With the limited amount of staff and funding that's been allocated to do the job. So this is a big issue.

9:40 And I think it's the main point. Is the council needs to take the bull by the horns. And say look, you know, let's get this sorted because it's not right. Let's allocate the funds. Let's allocate the staff. Let's improve the signage. And we should get some good results.

9:59 We love living in Noosa. We think it's the best place in the world. And we find that the general acceptance of people in the area is that, you know, everyone's really friendly and happy. And we would love it to be that way. We're just concerned about our safety. And the safety of other people. Particularly kids. My son, for example, came up from Sydney. Came down the beach with his little baby. And came home and was like, hey dad, there's a dog running all over the beach down there in a prohibited area. You know, I have to protect Orion. I said, well, you know, we're constantly complaining. Maybe you'll go and seek council and try and do something about it. And so that's why I'm here today. So thank you very much for listening to me. And hopefully we can get something done.

10:52 Deputy Mayor Stockwell: Thank you, Ms Penelton.