Following reports of a mass fish kill off Coogee beach and the Omeo wreck in Perth’s south, the Conservation Council of WA is calling for a full investigation and a review of emergency response procedures.
Hours after Coogee beach was closed by the WA government, eyewitness reports showed dozens of people swimming in the water and families fishing from the beach, with a handful of “Beach Closed” signs at irregular intervals on the sand insufficient to deter locals using the beach. There was no indication of the public health risk or details about the fish kill.
On Friday morning, dozens of swimmers were once again in the water inside the shark net in the midst of the affected area at Coogee Beach, with “Beach Closed” signs still on the sand but no further attempt visible from authorities apart from a single government announcement detailing the risks to beachgoers.
The case of fish kills at Coogee also sparks concerns about the adequacy of emergency procedures as WA faces the increasing presence of US and UK nuclear-powered submarines and nuclear waste storage off Perth’s coast.
Mia Pepper, the Campaign Director at the Conservation Council of WA, said this morning:
“Without any clear explanation of the risks at the site people were clearly not put off by the signage, with dozens of people still swimming and fishing at the beach on Thursday afternoon and Friday morning.
“This is cause for a rethink and review of the emergency response to fish kill incidents, which are akin to a canary in the coalmine. We need a comprehensive assessment to get to the bottom of what happened, and for the results to be made publicly available.
“Where there is uncertainty, we must have stronger protections for public health from potential contaminants.
“There were no public health warnings issued by the Department of Health and no Emergency warnings listed on the Emergency WA site.
“Most West Australians are unlikely to check the DPRID media announcements page before heading to the beach and the signage was not at all clear about the potential health risks.
“The ongoing presence of US or UK nuclear powered submarines on rotation in Cockburn Sound and radioactive waste storage at Garden Island poses a new and significant environmental and public health risk and that needs to be matched by review and improvements to emergency responses and public health warnings.
“West Australians are unaware of this risk, and it’s clear that our emergency responses are not sufficient to protect public health when there are environmental contaminants.”