On 28 January 2016, Council adopted their Open_Space_Strategy 2016-2025, which will guide open space planning, provision and management across the Surf Coast Shire during the next 10 years and support greater collaboration with other land managers. The Shire’s open space includes parks for passive social and family recreation, sporting reserves for active sport and recreation, conservation and nature reserves and linear reserves and paths. The new Strategy reflects the Shire’s vision for its open space i.e.

“to continue to deliver high quality, connected and sustainable open spaces that will provide the community with environmental, social, health and economic benefits.  This will further enhance the Surf Coast’s position as a destination renowned for its diversity of outdoor recreation experiences”.

and incorporates eight guiding principles and a prioritised action plan to deliver a diverse range of sustainable public open spaces to meet community expectations.  Council received a total of 8 submissions – all providing positive and constructive feedback – during the recent public exhibition period.

AIDA’s feedback AIDA Open Spaces Submission March 2015  and that from other groups highlighted our bush and our beach areas as important, with access, connectivity, supply and quality representing critical factors for all open spaces.

A major purpose of AIDA is raising community awareness of, and canvassing the community’s views on, issues of significance in the district. In addition AIDA supports environmental, sociological and other studies and surveys performed by the Surf Coast Shire or other bodies such as the Great Ocean Road Coast Committee (GORCC).

Over the nearly fifty years of AIDA’s existence, the community has displayed remarkable constancy of opinion on the importance of preservation of our natural environment and the desirability of retaining and conserving the special rural-coastal character of our settlements and their environs.

In response to this robust and consistent community feedback the Surf Coast Shire has developed planning tools such as local provisions and neighbourhood character overlays, which in conjunction with current zoning regulations has largely protected the existing low key character of our residential communities and two small commercial zones, and preserved views of the pristine environment, which is of great tourism and heritage value.

The 2015 questionnaire is the latest in a series of surveys undertaken by AIDA since 1983, far-sightedly planned to include many of the same questions, so that a perspective on individual opinions over time might be obtained, and it has provided invaluable information on the values and views of our members and also the broader community. This 30 year history has permitted the development of a longitudinal analysis of local opinions, part of which is illustrated below. For this year’s results click AIDA 2015 Questionnaire Full Results 20-2-2015  and for the history of local opinions click AIDA Questionnaires – Current Views & Longitudinal Attitudes“.

Have you noticed that during the summer period, when demand for mobile phone services is at its highest, reception is often intermittent? And that when you travel half way to Anglesea the phone drops out? Summer is the time when residents need good mobile phone contact, critical for bushfire safety and the proper functioning of the FireReady app.

In February 2014 the federal government advertised two projects to improve coverage in regional areas of Australia. The $80 million Mobile Network Expansion Project is designed to improve mobile coverage along major transport routes, in small communities and in communities that are prone to natural disasters. The $20 million Mobile Black Spot Project is intended to improve mobile coverage in locations with unique coverage problems such as areas with high demand for services, for example in summer.

AIDA submitted a case for Aireys Inlet and district to be considered for improvement to existing mobile phone coverage under these projects. We also encouraged the shire to submit a proposal. Our community fits the criteria for consideration under each project. If we achieve an upgrade, we can expect widespread media coverage.

In response to AIDA’s submission to the Member for Corangamite, Sarah Henderson, requesting that Aireys Inlet and district be included in the Federal Government’s funding to address mobile black spots in Australia we learned that Ms Henderson had received nominations from nineteen areas in her electorate.

A survey by the Department of Communications found that Corangamite was among the electorates with the highest number of mobile black spots in Australia. However, only three areas from Corangamite were able to be nominated for inclusion and Aireys Inlet and district was not included in the recommendations. The communities that were included were the ones from which Ms Henderson received the most correspondence. AIDA argued, without success, that we represented hundreds of residents and that our application should be given greater weight.

More recently AIDA has been advised that the Federal Department of Communications has said locations to be included in the program would be selected based on where mobile carriers proposed to build towers after referring to the black-spot nominations. AIDA is seeking clarification about this and will continue to lobby for improvements to mobile coverage in the area.

As part of that lobbying effort, AIDA wrote to Ms Henderson (with a copy to Malcolm Turnbull, Federal Minister for Communications) noting that effective communication in our region can be a matter of life and death in the summer bushfire season, when the number of residents in Lorne, Aireys Inlet and district and Anglesea during the peak summer period is almost 40,000 not including day-trippers or those passing through the towns. The letter also noted that the only effective escape route for residents and visitors to the three towns is the Great Ocean Road so that without early warning assistance via the FireReady app and other mobile communications, not all 40,000 will escape.

Other points made in the letter were as follows:

The difference in distribution of residents between most of the year and peak summer tells the key story. The mobile system more or less copes in winter, at least in the townships, but with the summer numbers it frequently fails totally or download speeds become pathetically slow. It is the summer period that is critical in so many ways. We live in a bushfire prone area and need access to our FireReady app, to mobile bushfire alerts and to contact with relatives. Businesses need to be able to carry on and provide services. Without phone communication, so much falls into a heap and life becomes more hazardous.

The Telstra Mobile Network coverage map indicates the service should be better than locals experience. When one drives from Aireys Inlet to Lorne or to Anglesea,mobile coverage drops out repeatedly. This is the winter situation – it is far worse in summer. The western part of Anglesea along the Great Ocean Road, even in winter, often has poor or no coverage, despite what is shown Telstra’s coverage map. This occurs on even the most up-to-date phones.

Gary Johnson and Charlotte Allen

The Surf Coast Shire held the ‘Fire Up Aireys Inlet’ Resilient Communities Program event on December 6th in the Aireys Inlet Community Hall. Representatives of emergency services organisations provided important information about bushfire preparedness and invited community members to join in an interactive fire scenario exercise.

AIDA promoted the event by emailing the following notice to all members with email access: “The AIDA committee considers that fire preparedness for our district is one of the main issues of concern to our members and urges you to consider attending this briefing session being held by the Shire on Saturday 6 December. RSVPs are requested so that the size of room will be appropriate. This information was included with the last Groundswell in some areas, but not all of our area was included.”

AIDA committee members Angela Berry, Annette Comte and Gary Johnson attended the event and Gary reported that:

“The Fire Up Aireys Inlet event was a great success in attracting and hopefully educating residents. 77 people registered and at least that many attended. All relevant agencies were present so we had the opportunity to ask questions during the session or at the Shire-sponsored lunch.

I asked the organiser Lauren Watt whether she felt that the AIDA email (to members encouraging that they attend) had had an impact. At the time AIDA sent members the pdf about the event, 30 had registered. So although we can’t be sure, it is likely that many of the additional 47 attended because of AIDA’s reminder or notification. It was the largest turnout at any of the town meetings.

Of interest, at least 50% of the attendees indicated that they were not permanent residents. They are the ones that the Shire has had trouble engaging. Many attendees realised, probably for the first time, that their fates are totally dependent on their pre-existing plan and decisions made before and during a bushfire. There will be no knock on the door saying that they should get out, and no fire truck saving their home. And it could be as little as 2 hours from the time a fire breaks out until departure is not possible.”

Aireys Inlet and Fairhaven Water Supply