Wollongong - Environment

The City of Wollongong has a magnificent coastal setting that provides an exceptional cultural, recreational and environmental resource for the city. The two major coastal areas bordering central Wollongong to the east are Wollongong Beach and the Stuart Park and North Wollongong Beach Reserve.

Wollongong City Beach

Extends from Flagstaff Point in the north to the Coal Loader adjacent to Port Kembla Harbour in the South. The beach consists of a sandy foreshore and frontal dune. The major ecological feature of the area is the frontal dune that spans the length of the beach in varying degrees of its modified state. Stabilisation of the dunes has been an issue for some time and is considered important for protecting land uses beyond the dunes and also for the protection of bird habitats. Wollongong City Beach is considered to have potential as a breeding site for the Little Tern, an endangered migratory species of bird that breeds along the Illawarra Coast.

The environment of the area has been altered so much that few reptiles and mammals now inhabit this coastal zone. It is believed that the area could be improved for native fauna by reinstating native vegetation and removing and controlling Bitou Bush.

[Wollongong City Beach plan of management, Plan No. 95/87, 1995 ]

Stuart Park and North Beach reserve

This area covers the coastal strip and parkland between Wollongong Harbour and Fairy Creek and includes Stuart Park, JP Galvin Park, North Beach Reserve and Battery Park. The area has substantial ecological importance with a number of important habitats being located over a small geographical area. Four types of habitat have been identified, rocky intertidal shores, sandy beaches, creek and lagoon and coastal vegetation.

Southern sections of the area are composed of sandstone, siltstone and shale. The northern section consists of alluvium, gravels and sand dunes. The northern end consists of marine sands on the coastal edge with alluviums in the areas immediately behind the beach.

Much of the natural vegetation of the area has been extensively modified to suit the recreational needs of visitors. Most of the original vegetation occurs in the northerwestern section of Stuart Park. The tree canopy in this area consists of Casuarina glauca and Glochidion ferdinandi var. ferdinandi. Much of the understorey consists of exotic weeds including lantana and privet. The western edge of Stuart Park has a significant continuous band of vegetation with a canopy consisting mainly of Casuarina glauca interspersed with bangalay Eucalyptus botryoides.

[Plan of management for Stuart Park & North Beach Reserve North Wollongong, 2000]