A wide tidal breakthrough at an island off the Sunshine Coast could fill in with sand.
The Department of Environment has revealed to Sunshine Coast News that the prominent split in Bribie Island might close.
The breakthrough, which occurred in early 2022, was dubbed the Bribie Bar and replaced the nearby sand-clogged Caloundra Bar as the dominant gateway for boaties to go between the Pumicestone Passage and the Pacific Ocean.
It is about 1.5km wide but only a small section of it is now navigable by boats.
A DES spokesperson said it could shut.
“While it is too early to confirm whether the entrance will close completely, this remains a possibility,” they said.
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The spokesperson said a 200m-wide second breakthrough, which recently formed at Lions Park, 500m to the south, was likely impacting the first breakthrough.
“As this southern entrance expands, a corresponding reduction in the size of the northern entrance is likely,” they said.
“Tidal movements continue to reshape the area, shifting sand and forming new sandbars, both seaward of the entrance and within the passage itself.”
Coast Guard Caloundra deputy commander Jerry Jurcaz said the Bribie Bar was difficult to navigate and there was only a 100m-wide window for boaties to get through.
“We used to go to the bar and head straight out to the ocean,” he said.
“But it is sanding over to the point where you can’t go (straight out), you’ve got to run along the face of it to avoid a big sand bank.
“You must do a dogleg to get out.”
He said the bar was “sanding over” like the Caloundra Bar did and he believed it would close as well.
“I’m not an expert on bars and sand but it looks like that’s how it’s heading,” he said.
Doug Bazley, of Bluey’s Photography, has documented changes in the area for the past few years – see his video above. He said the bar appeared to be shutting.
“The channel, where the boats go out, is slowly narrowing and the sand is closing in,” he said.
“The sand is building. I think it’s building a bigger and wider Bribie Island than previously. The whole northern end of the island could be one big sand bank.”
Mr Bazley also said the smaller second breakthrough could get wider.
“It hasn’t really developed as quickly as the first breakthrough did, probably because water is still going in and out of the first one,” he said.
“But once the sand fills in at the Bribie Bar you will probably see the other one open more”.
The first breakthrough and its impacts have sparked concerns from coastal communities that led to an ongoing Bribie Island breakthrough review.
The impacts of the first breakthrough potentially closing and the second breakthrough possibly expanding are unknown.
“Give it three to six months and we’ll notice a hell of a change: whether it’s good or bad I don’t know,” Mr Bazley said.
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Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie said the state government was focused on the entire area, where he said waves had washed on to roads at Golden Beach and sand banks had hampered the Coast Guard.
“We are very concerned about this. That’s why we had to do the review,” he said.
“We’ve had over 1000 submissions to the review from residents expressing concern. The sand is changing so much daily.
“The original bar (at Caloundra) is all but closed. The (Bribie Bar) opened and it provided a safer passage for boats but now that’s getting a bit hairy and dicey.
“The sand movement is changing day by day, particularly as the high tides come in. We saw, with ex-tropical Cyclone Alfred, extra issues.
“That’s why it’s important that we let the independent experts look at the data over the last 20 or 30 years and see how it’s changed.
“Because, when we make investment decisions, we’ve got to make sure that we’re doing it on the best available advice and evidence, not just temporary solutions.”
A spokesperson for the Department of Transport and Main Roads, which manages waterway travel, urged boaties to be vigilant at the Bribie Bar.
“Maritime Safety Queensland advises that all coastal bar crossings can be dangerous and should be approached with caution,” they said.
“Conditions on a bar can change quickly and without warning.”
The spokesperson said boaties should also avoid travelling through the second breakthrough at the now-destroyed Lions Park.
“(It) is not recommended due to it being unstable, with sand bars constantly moving and the presence of debris and other potential hazards to navigation,” they said.
