Two local residents are fed up with the constant vandalism of council and National Parks and Wildlife signs along Tura Beach.
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Liz Allen is a volunteer with South Coast Shorebirds and gives up hours of her time to erect signs alerting people to the presence of nesting critically endangered hooded plovers.
Ms Allen said almost as soon as she erects new signs asking people not to disturb the dune area and to keep dogs on leads, someone destroys them.
“Each post has been pulled out, snapped and the signs pierced or broken, it’s very frustrating to have to cope with this senseless vandalism,” Ms Allen said.
“The worst thing is not wanting to go to the beach because I don’t want to see what people have done.
“I just can’t get inside the mind of a vandal.”
Mara Roberts, a dog owner and bird lover, said she believes that the same person or people are vandalisng all the signs.
“It’s just so frequent and targeted,” Ms Roberts said. “It doesn’t make sense because the signs aren’t there to stop people from enjoying the beach.”
The signs are aimed at avoiding the destruction of nests in the dunes caused by dogs or people walking through them.
“Surely we can value our beautiful environment and biodiversity and respect our fellow ratepayers enough to leave signs alone and keep dogs out of the dunes as required under council regulations.
“We all want to live in peace together, but people need to realise that part of the beauty of this are is the biodiversity and if we don’t protect it then it’s gone,” Ms Roberts said.
If anyone sees suspicious behaviour, phone the council on 6499 2222.