Building a jetty to access private land on Mosquito Point, opposite Metung, may well be a pipe dream if the draft Marine and Coastal Policy (MCP) goes through.

Mosquito Point landowner, Peter Bate, wants to build a jetty to access his 2000-metre-square private block, but to do so means crossing Crown land to get there.

He and his neighbour originally applied to build a jetty in 2014.

“Having a jetty is not exclusivity, it’s a necessity,” Mr Bate said.

However in 2019, Page 50 of the draft MCP, point 10.4, states: ‘prohibit new private buildings or structures on marine and coastal Crown land that provide primarily private benefit (private jetties, bathing boxes, boat sheds, protective structures)’.

Victoria has more than 2500 kilometres of coastline and about 10,000 square kilometres of marine waters.

The Marine and Coastal Act 2018 has had policy drafting for the past year with public consultation opening on July 4 and closing August 15.

The final draft will be released in December.

Mr Bate made a submission to the draft policy, which reads in part ‘...private land owners become custodians and land managers of the crown land’ and ‘I would argue that the draft policy be amended to provide, where appropriate, private jetty applications being considered on a merit basis that provides a net community benefit’.

“Potentially they didn’t contemplate private land access by water,” Mr Bate said.

“Some policies have exceptions for circumstances.

“Mosquito Point is only accessible by water, we’re reliant on a jetty, we need to moor a boat to access the land. We have occupied land on Mosquito Point for more than 60 years.

“The landowners are generational and have grown up with respect for what is there,” he said.

“It’s like a village.”

Mr Bate said extending the existing jetties did not make practical sense.

“We’ve had to put everything on hold, plans to build a dwelling, pending the outcome.

“We’re waiting on tenterhooks to see whether sensible heads will prevail.”

Member for Gippsland East, Tim Bull, said this draft document raised massive concerns.

“To talk about not only no new private jetties, but removal of existing private jetties without any explanation is extremely concerning,” Mr Bull said.

“The panel on page 50 lists the types of structures ‘not appropriate to be located near or on the water’ and among the structures listed to be ‘removed / relocated as the opportunity arises’ are beach access paths and memorial plaques, which in my view is just madness.

“Think about the local families who have memorial plaques on foreshores where ashes of family members have been scattered, my father being one.

“There are many other concerns and the point I make is, the government should not have hard and fast rules, flexibility and common sense is required to assess such things on a case-by-case basis.

“For instance, the document states it will ‘Prohibit an access point from private residential land to abutting marine and coastal Crown land’. What does this mean for beach access tracks at Lake Tyers Beach, Mallacoota Lake and several Gippsland Lakes townships?

“I understand a number of submissions have been made, but the left-leaning bureaucrats who put this together and the Minister need to listen.”

PICTURED: The view towards Metung from Mosquito Point of private jetties.