LETTERS
Reef divers regularly ignore shellfish bans This time of year our family spends a lot of time on Koonya back beach near Dogs Head, especially at low tide when the rock pools are exposed. The reefs support a diverse community of algae, small fish, crustaceans, sea stars, and seabirds. Koonya is well known as an example of a pristine reef within easy reach of Melbourne. Living next to the Mornington Peninsula National Park since 1983 we consider a privilege. The tracks to the beach are not maintained and are very narrow. Yesterday there was the usual group of six men diving around the reefs for what we assumed were abalone. They are one of several groups to arrive on low tide on every day the taking of abalone is permitted, (this year from Christmas day to January 12, and several weekends in 2019). We were surprised that this group was managing to take their allowed catch of five abalone a day, until we realised that they were not taking abalone. I asked one man to show me his catch, and he opened the bag around his waist which was full of live periwinkles, or warrener shellfish. There were at least 50 in his bag. One man retrieved a large knife from his backpack when I came near. I was shocked and told them that it was illegal to take crustaceans from the reef at any time. They pretended to not understand me. The men disappeared into the dunes, each bearing a heavy bag. There is no mobile reception on the beach so I rang Fisheries Hotline 133474 when I returned home. The fisheries officer I spoke to confirmed that the taking of any shellfish (with the exception of abalone on gazetted days) is illegal. But those men will be back again today, just before low tide. Alida Burke, Sorrento
Keep cats in I do like pussycats, but down here in Balnarring beach we have a problem with a few irresponsible cat owners who are too dense, or don’t give a hoot, about our still halfway decent native bird and marsupial population. It saddens me when I see and hear from people about the carnage just one cat that isn’t kept locked up 24/7 can cause. Dead rainbow lorikeets and wattlebirds or half eaten pigmy possums and lizards are not an uncommon sight in our gardens and road verges. Please people, keep your moggie in your house or a good cat run on your property for the sake of our remnant wildlife in beautiful Balnarring Beach and anywhere on the Mornington Peninsula. It is the law. Rupert Steiner, Balnarring Beach
Pick up dog poo Are Mt Martha dog owners above picking up poo? I am constantly appalled at the number of dog droppings I see on the boardwalk at Mt Martha. Even worse are the ones that are bagged and then hung on a tree branch or thrown into the bush. Why bother? For heaven’s sake, clean up after your dogs and make walking the boardwalk a pleasurable experience for us all. Name and address supplied, Mt Martha
Hands off koala Kev the koala has taken up residency in the exclusive Kunyung Road, Mt Eliza, beyond urban growth and in green zone area. We are keeping his actual tree residency and lot number secret because there are property develop-
ers who might just do poor endangered Kev the Kunyung Road koala some mischief. We don’t see too many real indigenous animals on the Mornington Peninsula nowadays with road kill, feral cats, foxes and illegal shooters taking their toll. Now that the fairy penguins of St Kilda Foreshore have been outed and the incoming tourists will have to register, pay a fee and be guided by trained wildlife officers. Indeed, as I pen this amazing local discovery of great international significance, imagine busloads of Chinese tourists shelving up millions of yuan to be selfied photographed with Kev. This could become bigger than Kevin Dennis (used car salesman of my youth forever immortalised like Alan Bond and Ned Kelly). We are seeking a public rights manager with world syndicate portfolio to take immediate advance of this little Arthur Daley project. Any suggestions. Whot’s that youse says, send Kev packing to Phillip Island where the rest of his mob are? Instead, we are considering starting a GoFundMe campaign to get Kev established with his own eucalyptus forest, electric fencing and 24 hour GPS security systems. He’s a Kunyung Road resident and nobody, not even the kiwi’s, are going to get our Kev. Ian Morrison, Kunyung Road Action Committee, Save Kev the Koala Campaign and Mt Eliza Community Alliance
Dangerous turn I write as a member of the residents’ owners’ corporation at 40 Green Island Avenue, Mornington. Approximately 155 residents in Green Island Avenue presented a petition to Mornington Peninsula Shire Council on 15 March 2018. Council considered the petition on 24 April and officers forwarded the proposal for funding to be allocated for a left turn lane to VicRoads. The minister’s office response of 26 July dismissed the petition request as “unsuitable in the short term”. Green Island Avenue is the only thoroughfare off Nepean Highway between Bentons and Craigie roads that does not have a safe left turn lane. The three churches (all on private land) have left turn-
ing lanes, as does the gymnasium/swimming pool complex, and two multi unit development estates (with lesser traffic demand than Green Island Avenue). Ambulance Victoria’s station, nearer to the Bentons Road intersection, has been appropriately provided with provision for ambulances to clear from highway traffic. The minister’s response states that VicRoads has inspected the open drainage channel at this intersection and “observed no issues”. Presumably the visit did not follow rain and was not at night. Water regularly pools at the pavement edge, and the open culvert is poorly lit. Drivers attempting to get out of the way of accelerating vehicles behind them (as they themselves are decelerating) have to get dangerously close to the culvert (while keeping an eye on the rear vision mirrors to avoid being rear-ended). These are real safety issues and collisions do occur. Does a vehicle need to end up in the culvert and people are injured before these issues become politically “suitable”, are acknowledged as dangerous, and action is taken? Ian White, Mt Martha.
Back sport leaders I have had the privilege of working with the 2018 Grade 6 sport leaders at Rye Primary School as a parent volunteer on a student lead initiative that was started in 2016 and continued in 2017, to raise funds to resurface the school’s basketball courts - a job costing upwards of $80,000. The 2018 cohort have written letters requesting donations, hosted events, created partnerships with community organisations and lobbied their local MPs, all truly invaluable educational experiences. The project isn’t a straight resurfacing job as there is a drainage issue which means one of the courts tends to flood in any decent downpour, so any work needs to first address this problem, and costs considerably more because of it. These students have worked hard, been enthusiastic and met whatever challenges thrown at them. Even though they will not directly benefit from this project, they are a credit to the whole school community.
OBSESSION: DEVIL IN THE DETAIL OBSESSION: Devil in the detail examines our fascination with the meticulous and micro, the real and the hyperreal and brings together a range of historical and contemporary works under three broad themes of still life, portraiture and landscape. The exhibition seduces us with the power of realism and intricate detail and showcases 65 works across sculpture, painting, photography, drawing and video. Long before the onset of photography in the 19th century, painting was the means to realistically capture the world around us, with the technically brilliant artists of the Renaissance set the benchmark for realism. In the late 1960s photorealism emerged as
obsession: devil in the detail
Natasha Bieniek, Juan Ford, Sam Jinks, Audrey Flack, Jess Johnson, Patricia Piccinini, Tom Roberts, Ricky Swallow, TeamLab and others
30 NOV – 17 FEB Exclusively showing at MPRG. Obsession: Devil in the detail is supported by the Victorian Government through Creative Victoria.
Sam Jinks, Woman and Child 2010, silicone, silk, acrylic, rabbit fur, polyurethane foam, timber and nylon, Shepparton Art Museum, Acquired with funds raised by the public and Greater Shepparton City Council, Courtesy the artist and Sullivan+Strumpf
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mprg.mornpen.vic.gov.au adults $4 concession $2
a painting style characterised by its precise rendering, painstaking attention to detail, and larger than life replication of everyday objects. Soon after, the term ‘hyper-realism’ was used to describe high fidelity realism in sculpture and painting. There are free guided tours of the Obsession exhibition every Saturday and Sunday at 3pm. Enjoy a conversation with Obsession artists and the exhibition curator on Valentine’s Day. Visit mprg.mornpen.vic.gov.au to find out more about the exhibition and events, including the Gallery’s pre-schooler program Young at Art, and to listen to podcasts with artists from Obsession: Devil in the detail.