Dog owners of Port Stephens are preparing to have their voices heard as the council begins its review of the off-leash dog areas at Anna Bay/Birubi Point, Fisherman's Bay and Boat Harbour.
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As part of the much anticipated review, the council is undertaking community consultation through an online survey, which closes on December 16, and drop in sessions which will take place on Thursday, December 3, at Boat Harbour South Headland carpark from 3-4pm and at Birubi Headland (near the surf club) from 5-6pm.
"The recommendations will be reported to the council early next year. If the recommendations propose significant changes, we will conduct further engagement prior to reporting to council," a spokesperson said.
Resident spokesperson Andrew Searles, from Anna Bay, said he would be presenting to the council an evidence-based perspective on access for dog owners to walk their dogs in on- and off-leash areas, focusing on Birubi Beach.
"The council area serves a big dog owning LGA and the rate of growth in registered dogs compared to population growth suggests Port Stephens residents are adopting canine companions into their homes with vigour," Mr Searles said.
"While the growth in canine companions is strong, it is not much different to comparable LGAs, and despite the rise in the dog population, incidents involving dogs in Port Stephens has barely shifted from what were already low levels.
"The evidence suggests that people are increasingly seeking the companionship of having a dog, a trend which surged during COVID-19."
Mr Searles believes that one way of connecting members of the community was through dogs and encouraging dog walking.
"Dog walkers tend to exercise, socialise and are more connected with their community than non-dog owners/ walkers. Council has put to the community that having unleashed dog areas might negatively affect tourism. We used the evidence to investigate associations between being 'a dog friendly council area with off-leash beaches' and tourism.
"The expectation, if our council is correct, is that off-leash beaches will alienate tourists. If this is correct council should have better tourism data than other comparable coastal towns. We found that all of the comparable councils have far more resources for off-leash dog walking on beaches (and better resources for dog owners overall).
"These statistics mean that these 'dog friendly' council areas have higher visitation, more tourism related business operations and higher tourist spending (good for the economy).
"The data shows that compared to the other council areas we examined, Port Stephens provides far less access to off-leash areas for dog walkers, and it also has the weakest tourism statistics.
"More surprising is that with the Port's proximity to Sydney, it might have been expected that domestic tourism, for which Sydney is likely to be the main market, would be higher than either Port Macquarie or MidCoast. However, it appears Sydneysiders bypass Port Stephens."
Mr Searles believes that despite the huge popularity of dogs in Port Stephens, the council falls short in terms of off-leash ocean/beach walking compared to more progressive councils elsewhere.
"Port Stephens has poor access to off-leash dog walking. Some may appreciate the quite times when tourists don't visit, but much of the local economy is driven by spending from visitors on accommodation, cafes, etc. And this spending generates jobs for locals."
He said there was also substantial evidence in the medical and health literature of the benefits of dog walking, from increased physical activity, lowered risk of cardiovascular disease and increased social connectivity.
"These benefits of dog ownership should be valued by areas where the risk of heart disease is high. Evidence from the Heart Foundation indicates that residents in Port Stephens have high rates of physical inactivity (68 per cent) and a high rate of obesity (34 per cent). While council is not primarily responsible for the health of the local population, it is responsible for providing community amenities and environments that provide safe and liveable communities, encourage exercise, and promote wellbeing."
More information on the review can be found at the council website haveyoursay.portstephens.nsw.gov.au/dog-off-lead-review.
