Thank you to those who attended our Meet Your State MP workshop. We have collected a few resources for you (below), to help you feel confident when meeting with your local MPs to discuss getting off-road vehicles off SA beaches.
The odds are stacked against Australia's beach-nesting birds. Every year, our coasts are becoming more crowded – packed with beach-goers, dogs, and vehicles. The more popular a beach is with people, the more pressure our birds are under.
In 2019, a South Australian Parliamentary inquiry recommended a statewide inventory of the sites most threatened off-road driving. But years later, nothing has changed – and for our coastal birds, the consequences have proved deadly.
Earlier this year, 20 Red-necked Stints were resting on Kangaroo Island’s Brownlow Beach when they were run over by a vehicle speeding along the sand. One of about 35 species of migratory shorebirds found in Australia each summer, these weary travellers were killed while conserving energy in preparation for the long journey home.
The deaths of these birds in just one incident helps highlight the need for the South Australian Government to get on the right track and identify places where off-road driving should be prohibited, either seasonally or permanently. 2022 is a State election year, so this gives us a great opportunity to talk to politicians when they’re at their most receptive.
Please make use of the resources we have below, so that we can protect our vulnerable coastal birds from harm
Photo: Hooded Plover by Glenn Ehmke
