New Advisory Panel and technology for Stockton Beach

NSW Government is continuing to deliver on its commitment to help protect and maintain Stockton Beach, with a new Stockton Special Advisory Panel and a new beach monitoring program to better understand beach use and impacts from storm erosion.

Today, the NSW Government announces that Member for Newcastle Tim Crakanthorp will Chair the Stockton Special Advisory Panel. This Panel replaces the Stockton Beach Taskforce that has now completed its goal to kickstart the process for the Stockton Beach repair project.

The Special Advisory Panel will ensure that community voices continue to be an important part of the plan for Stockton Beach and the Chair and members will be crucial in driving this project forward.

At the same time, the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) and the City of Newcastle Council have launched a camera-based beach monitoring program at Stockton Beach, following the NSW Government’s successful work with the City of Newcastle to deliver 130,000 cubic metres of sand to Stockton Beach in November 2023. This beach nourishment work was jointly funded by the Australian Government and City of Newcastle, through the Coastal and Estuarine Risk Mitigation Program (CERMP), and delivered by NSW Public Works.

The new camera-based beach monitoring program will allow everyone to understand how the Stockton shoreline changes in response to storms and other significant coastal events, as well as before and after sand is delivered through the Beach Repair Project.

It will also provide valuable information on beach visitation and how this might change with a wider beach, while protecting people’s privacy and not acting as security cameras.

Combined with the information from the monitoring program, the Panel will now provide important stakeholder perspectives to help the NSW Government engage with the community to deliver the beach repair project to ensure the beach is protected and maintained.

A dedicated webpage for the project has been established, so the community can continue to be involved and have input into the restoration process at Stockton Beach Repair Project.

Quotes attributable to Minister for the Environment Penny Sharpe

I thank Minister for the Hunter Yasmin Catley and the Stockton Beach Taskforce for helping to ensure sand was successfully delivered to nourish Stockton Beach and welcome the renewed focus on community engagement through the Stockton Special Advisory Panel Chaired by the Member for Newcastle, Tim Crakanthorp MP.

The NSW Government has been working hard to help the beach recover from erosion that has occurred over many years.

The work to repair Stockton Beach will continue to be guided by a commitment to community engagement through the new Panel, website and monitoring program.

Quotes attributable to Member for Newcastle Tim Crakanthorp

Getting sand back on Stockton Beach has been a long-time focus of mine and I’m thrilled to be part of this new and important Panel.

It’s great to see the NSW Government is delivering for Stockton with the support of the City of Newcastle Council, and with the input of our community.

“Although this is a complex, long-term project, the input of the community combined with ecological data will help preserve and enhance this place of natural beauty, significant Aboriginal heritage, and recreational and economic benefit.

For media background

• DCCEEW and the City of Newcastle Council will jointly manage the five beach-monitoring cameras.
• Signage will be provided at all Stockton Beach camera-based beach monitoring locations to inform the community when they are entering into an area where camera-monitoring technology is in operation.
• Monitoring-data captured by the Stockton Beach camera-based beach monitoring program will only be made publicly available after personal information has been removed. This will include using technology to blur people that are visible in camera feeds to protect privacy.
  • If data cannot be de-identified, it will not be used.
  • The beach-monitoring cameras are not installed as security cameras.