Cronulla Beach Erosion Management Proposal

Current Issues

The current beach erosion issues in Cronulla are massive. Cronulla beach, particularly north Cronulla has experienced very significant beach erosion problems, including the relocation of a lifeguard tower due to mass beach erosion and sand loss along the coast. Beach erosion refers to the natural or human made loss of beach and shoreline material, primarily caused from wave actions, currents and tides, this leads to shoreline retreat from the mass loss of sand and dune undermining. The NSW coast has a very long history of coastal erosion events dating back to 1857. Along with the mass sand movement and erosion from the beaches, the natural sand dunes are being eroded and stripped back. The erosion of sand dunes is increasingly driven by climate change, rising sea levels and more frequent storms. As these events are becoming more predominant it comes with the loss of native plants and habitats as they are getting destroyed. Additionally, human activities such as unauthorised access onto these areas make these problems worse, leading to further degradation and loss of vegetation.

In this image it shows an illustration of Cronulla beach currently with annotations to where the current management strategies they have put in place. Along the coast of Cronulla we are being faced with lots of erosion cutting back all the sand and destroying the natural sand dunes.

(click to enlarge image)

Drawing of North Cronulla Beach

Constructive Vs Destructive waves

Destructive waves are high- energy waves that erode beaches, stripping the sand away with a strong backwash and weak swash. In contrast constructive waves are low energy waves that build up beaches by depositing sand, they have a strong swash and weak backwash. At cronulla beach you will mostly find Constructive waves, however in stronger conditions or storms destructive waves can occur.

Erosion on Cronulla Beach

Rough waves bashing the beaches

This lifeguard tower had to move and get evacuated from the days of wild weather that had eroded the coastline and takes metres of sand off the beach crwating cliffs that are very dangerous to people who pass by.

Steep cliffs off cronulla beach

This image really brings into perspective of how bad the erosion was, most of the rocks showing had never been out before and this left very big concerns on the local house owners along the coastline.

Cronulla beach overtime

100 years ago (1925)

50 Years ago (1975)

Today (2025)

Artificial reef

An artificial reef is a human made structure that is placed into the ocean, to create and enhance the marine habitats by mimiking natural reef systems and providing areas for the ecosystems to breed and thrive. The artificial reef is made up of a variety of synthetic or natural materials and can come in infinite shapes and sizes. The goal of these reefs is to provide a stable growing area for coral, animal habitats and all other organisms you would find in a natural reef system. The biggest current artificial reef system has been growing of a naval vessel from world war ll, it is a thriving ecosystem with nearly 40 species of fish and marine life. Artificial reef was not invented by an individual person, their development has been used in ancient times dating back to the 18th century, which has then evolved over time. The large-scale use of artificial reefs started in the late 1950s with it largely being along the coast of Japan and is slowly making its way around the world.

Erosion

Artificial reef can stop the harm of beach erosion from acting as an underwater breakwaters to slow down the power of the waves on the way to the shoreline therefore stopping the waves from making their way far up the beach. Ultimately from doing this it stablises the coastline and allows the beaches to be replenished and sand dunes to restore the way they were. Another reason artificial reef is good is from the way it can deflect longshore drift and currents that move the sand from the beaches.

In this image I have added in the artificial reef into the ocean off the coast of Cronulla beach. The small circles show what the beach will look like as it blooms, and the marine life starts to make its way into these areas. The only downside to having reef along the whole coast of Cronulla is that there is no way our government could afford to put this in as it is very expensive and requires lots of people and materials to get it going. (click on image to enlarge)

Where the Artificial reef would be placed

Video of Surfing Artificial Reef

As you can see in this video artificial reefs help shape up the waves making it more ideal for surfers, then creating more tourism by people wanting to come and surf the reef break. The waves becoming better in cronulla would also be a dream for the locals and people who live in the area.

Stakeholders

Property owners

The artificial reef system being implemented in Cronulla will meet the needs of them as this system will bring in more water ecosystems including new species of fish, coral and sea life. Living in Cronulla with this new artificial reef will make them appreciate where they live more and get them out enjoying where they live. This also supports jobs and businesses through tourism and recreation. The local economies would receive LOADS of money from this reef by the rapid increase in tourism, flooding the local businesses and helping them grow. The only downside to the artificial reef on the locals in the increase in tourism will flood the area of where they live, therfore crouding the area more than it already is.

Local Government

The Artificial reef meets the needs of the local government through the influx in tourism throughout Cronulla. The local government can use the mass groups of tourists to help drive up an increase in the city's revenue in many ways including events and attractions to bring them in. The people who come to these areas to see the reef in action brings in loads of money to the businesses around Cronulla, creates more community-based events and generates revenue. It will also bring in more job opportunities in the area through the large amounts of tourism happening. The only downside to this is potential overtourism in the area creating a bad bond between the tourists and the locals, also the cost to put the reef into action.

Residents of Sutherland Council

Artificial reef will meet the needs of the Sutherland council from boosting the local economy and helping the people who live in the Shire. The Local council is a person that was democratically elected for representing the interests of the local community (Sutherland Shire). As they are based of the interests of the local community, we can infer that the artificial reef being put in was helped by this person and that it was put in to help boost the shire with its economy and create more jobs in the area. A downside to this would be that the council would put in a fair bit of money to allow this large influx in tourism with toilets, bins and cleaners.

Visitors to the Area

Visitors to the area would love the artificial reef as it has so many benefits to it that makes Cronulla beach so much better. The people coming to visit Cronulla will get to go snorkelling with the diverse ecosystems of the marine biome, learning about all the fish and coral. They would rent a board and go for a surf, the artificial reef would positively affect the break of the waves making it better for the surfers. Also, they can visit the local shops and get anything they need while supporting the local community. I can't think of a downside to this as it adds onto all the wonderful things Cronulla already has to offer.

Video of Artificial Reef

This video of artificial reef shows how much marine development can be made in just 3 years, with loads of fish swimming around this area and reef slowly forming on the seafloor. This would make it ideal for fisherman and fisheries in the cronulla area with the new species of fish.

Bibliography

The bibliography is attached in another document that has been submitted.

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