A Bouvard resident has expressed his concern at the growing amount of seaweed being washed up on the shores of the Peel-Harvey Estuary and has called for action from the authorities.
Long-term Estuary Road resident Brian Toussaint said the situation was as bad as he had seen it since the implementation of the Dawesville Cut.
"In the last few years there's been a massive amount of weed and algae growth," he said.
"It seems to be getting worse as time goes on.
"It cleared up after the Bouvard Channel was put through but the weed growth this year is massive around the edges.
"They used to have two harvesters working on the Estuary before the opening of the Dawesville Cut because it got that bad.
"There's massive amounts of weed growth.
"They sort of solved the problem with the Dawesville Channel but that only cleaned the water up and it's caused further damage because of the high saltwater tides.
"I've been here 79 years and seen a lot of changes.
"People don't see how it is deteriorating and no-one seems interested in doing anything about it."
City of Mandurah chief executive Mark Newman said it was a natural occurrence.
"The City does not remove weed from the estuary foreshore, as it is a natural, annual occurrence of a temporary nature," he said.
"The weed also has a number of environmental benefits including excellent erosion protection, and providing a habitat for macroinvertebrates and feeding grounds for migratory bird species."
Mr Toussaint said plans for a marina at Point Grey and the associated potential navigation channel earmarked in the project were "really concerning".
Gareth McKnight
Gareth McKnight is Mandurah Mail's editor.
Gareth McKnight is Mandurah Mail's editor.
