Coast Park
Coast Park is a State Government Initiative to develop a 70km linear park right along the metropolitan Adelaide coastline, from North Haven through to Sellicks Beach. The Park is being developed in stages in partnership with local government, and will include as far as possible a continuous two- way pathway or ‘trail’ for walkers and cyclists along the coastal foreshore. Around 50% of the planned 70 kilometre trail has already been completed, with about another 15km currently under construction.
Altogether, about 60 projects across six local council areas have been identified, including environmental restoration of dunes.
Concept Plan
Concept Plan in partnership with other State Government agencies, the Department of Planning and Local Government, local councils and key stakeholder groups jointly developed the Coast Park Concept PlanThe Concept Plan brought together all of the important planning concerns to provide guidance for this wonderful recreational and natural resource, and set out a staged, 10-year framework that complemented many existing council-initiated works plans for the coastline in their own areas. The Concept Plan is based on eight discrete precincts that reflect the regional character of each section of the coast, and identifies the priority development projects. Around 60 potential Coast Park projects have been identified which aim to:
- Provide public access along the length of coast
- Provide a pedestrian and cycling-friendly foreshore environment
- Facilitate the redevelopment and enhancement of coastal centre’s
- Coordinate State and local government decision making and funding of Coast Park projects, and
- Recognise and enhance the diversity of natural and built environments along the coast.
Coast Park Vegetation Management Project
Reserves along the Adelaide metropolitan coastline have faced a range of management issues contributing to biodiversity degradation. These include pest plant and animal invasion, pedestrian and vehicular access, erosion, stormwater discharges and fire.To address this, the implementation of Coast Park includes a large-scale environmental management program called the Coast Park Vegetation Management Project, delivered through the Department of Planning and Local Government and the SA Urban Forest Biodiversity Program (Department for Environment and Heritage). This project provides coordinated and consistent management of Adelaide’s coastal vegetation and has seen the largest investment to date for coastal biodiversity management in the Adelaide Mount Lofty Ranges Natural Resource Management Region. A key element of this project is the production of a series of comprehensive Coastal Vegetation Management Plans and the provision of funding, technical advice and assistance to land managers and community groups to ensure their implementation.
Implementation highlights of the Adelaide Metropolitan Coast Park Vegetation Management Project include:
- Management Plan implementation at Semaphore South, Semaphore, Largs Bay, Taperoo, North Haven and West Beach Dune Reserves, including access path and stormwater outlet rationalisation, and weed control
- Technical advice and assistance to Adelaide Shores and the Cities of Port Adelaide Enfield, Charles Sturt, Holdfast Bay and Onkaparinga
- Revegetation of approximately 75,000 indigenous plants in accordance with management plan recommendations
- On-going photo-point monitoring and baseline plant survival data has been collected across all Coast Park sites subject to management plan implementation to record changes in reserve condition over time
- Funding acquired from numerous sources including Coast Park, land managers, the Million Trees Program, and Natural Heritage Trust (through the Mount Lofty Ranges Interim Natural Resource Management Board), with in-kind support from community groups and individuals.
The project won a 2006 World Environment Day Award from the United Nations Association of Australia for ‘excellence in marine coastal management’.
