More than 800 people have signed a petition supporting the Dorset Council's maintenance works on the Bridport Foreshore, but not everyone is happy with the decision.
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The works have become a divisive issue within the Bridport community, with some residents opposed to the clearing of vegetation in front of the coastline.
The clearing of vegetation in front of the Bridport coastline:
Those in favour say the vegetation is a fire hazard and an eyesore, while those against say it is part of what makes the foreshore unique.
Louise Brooker spoke at the most recent Dorset Council meeting against the clearing.
She said that over the past two years, about nine-tenths of the vegetation along the foreshore had been cleared.
At the meeting, she said a Parks and Wildlife-supervised controlled burn would have been a more satisfactory solution to the fire concerns than removing much of the vegetation.
"The council calls us a noisy minority, but the people who are protesting about it have been in the district for years and years," she said.
Jeff Jennings is also part of the fight against the clearing, through community activism and social media posts.
In a letter to The Examiner, he described the clearing of vegetation in front of the foreshore as "criminal".
"Yes, there was cause for frustration on the council's side because of the failure of Parks and Crown services to effectively manage the growth of weeds and rubbish," he said.
"However, gone is the ambiance, shelter from winds and scenic nature of what was once a coastline in a fairly natural state.
"This is one step towards the kind of foreshore that nearly all Australian populated foreshore have become: bare, concrete, car parks and no vegetation.
"In one stroke the general manager and some councillors have taken away our special foreshore."
On the other side, the views of those in favour of the clearing have been expressed in the 800-strong online petition supporting the council's decision.
"The foreshore clean up is a long overdue project," Gillian Harris wrote. "This area has been left neglected for far too long. It is a fire hazard and a rubbish trap."
"Having spent three weeks in beautiful Bridport in the middle of last year the walk along the foreshore was lovely, however, most of the view was blocked by overgrown vegetation," Angela Brooker said. "It needs to be cleaned up."
The works have been approved by the Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment.
A successful motion at the April 15 Dorset Council meeting, raised by Cr Stein, resolved to continue the works, with Cr McLennan and Cr Powell voting against.
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