Working in Sydney

[bream111]

Hi Raiders

I currently working in Sydney. I am staying at Homebush Bay.

I would like to have a fish but don't know any spots at all. Where I'm staying is on the water. There are sign posts saying No Fishing Allowed because the water is contaminated.

I am am into most forms of fishing but really enjoy soft plastics.

If there are any Raiders out there that can take me fishing I would appreciate it. In particular I would like to give St George's Basement is a go.

I can reciprocate. I live at Hawks Nest and I will show Raiders where I fish. We are now starting to get some nice lizards. I have a 4.4 Estuary Tracker with a 60 Merc on the back.

[GreyNurse]

Hi Bream 111,

Welcome to Sydney. You're actually in a good area as the upper harbour is at your doorstep. The "no Fishing" sign should really be saying "no keeping for consumption". I don't see a problem fishing for contaminated fish, so long as you release them back into the system. But don't risk a fine.

Funny though, the environs around Homebush Bay were supposed to be cleaned up for the Sydney Olympics. I guess when the crowds went away, so did the efforts to keep the place clean.

Ah, I think you mean St Georges Basin, don't you? About 2hrs south of Sydney. Absolutely brilliant place to fish. wait until the school hols are over, though. The place will be crowded out for the next 6 weeks.

Are you land based while in Sydney, or did you bring the boat down with you?

[bream111]

At present I am land based. I am staying at a unit that allows for 1 parking space and I would have to push the boat in and out. I have intentions to fish Saint George's Basin. I will bring the boat down to the Basin and stay a few days and give it a try.

[Paikea]

I was told by an ex employee who lived in the area that a large number of drums filled with waste from the Monsanto plant (no longer there) were dumped in Homebush Bay.

I don't know how you can remove drums that have sunk into the silt on the bottom without at the very least damaging some. Also, any that are deep in the silt will surely leak over time.

Chemical and Oil companies have a lot to answer for in terms of polluting our waterways. And the worst is that they seem to go relatively unpunished and do not appear to do a 100% job of cleaning up their pollution. A case in point is the Caltex refinery at Kurnell who were recently reported as seeking approval to dredge a deeper channel into Botany Bay. In their application they stated that the material to be dredged was heavily contaminated and therefore they were being environmentally responsible. Never mind that the increased pollution from another 15 years operation would inevitably put back as much or more pollution than is now there.

Working in the refinery I used to dive under the refinery wharf swimming right out to the end and catching fish when the wharf was first built. At that time their were beautiful green weed beds all around the area. The fish numbers in and around the pump house grates and out the end (the Aquarium) were in huge numbers, tasty mussels growing on the piles. it was just paradise as a fish attracter. That is, until they had their first oil spill and sprayed dispersant on the water that got rid of the oil on the surface but dropped all the gunk onto the bottom.

It only took a decade or so to kill all the seagrass and make the mussels inedible. And we call that progress.

Shame

Paikea