Media response - Port Stanvac

Published on 04 February 2022

Response to The Advertiser.

• I'm keen to do a story on Port Stanvac. The oil refinery closed in 2003, was demolished 2014, a Site Contamination Audit Report confirmed that the foreshore is suitable for open space / recreational use in 2019. What is happening out there now? What would the council like to see? What is standing in the way?
• Staff at DEW have told me the site is a reef sanctuary zone by default. And that there are fur seals / sea lions / rare birds there, in a valuable coastal heath ecosystem. The site has huge potential, for tourism, recreation and conservation.
• Some have talked about developing the site for housing (Xenophon made that an election issue in 2018).  Would that be of interest?
• What about connecting the costal path, is that also on the agenda?  

Comments attributed to Julia Grant, Director Strategy and Engagement

The 234-hectare Port Stanvac site offers an outstanding community and economic development opportunity for the south and has been identified as a priority in council’s 2021-22 State and Federal Election Advocacy Plan.

It is one of the last remaining parcels of land in the south available for significant development, and one of the most significant land holdings in metropolitan Adelaide, so it represents a major and strategic growth opportunity for not only Onkaparinga but the state.

An environmental project is being undertaken by the landowner, ExxonMobil, to remediate the site to a standard suitable for future industrial use, which would support the growing demand for employment land in our area.

There needs to be a holistic approach to determining the best use of the site and we want to see a master planning exercise take place in partnership with the state government that delivers for the community both economically and environmentally.

From a council perspective, we would want to ensure open space and access to the coast are retained through any development.

Our community is passionate about its future and the protection of its natural features, which may not have been affected by its previous life as an oil refinery.

There’s a fantastic opportunity here to provide better connection to the foreshore, and greater amenity through car parking and trail networks, to ensure Port Stanvac becomes an integral and valuable part of our coastal network and a place for the whole community to enjoy.

There’s a lagoon near the corner of O’Sullivan Beach Road and Dyson Road, that we’ve recently highlighted as being of importance to the local community for its amenity and the local wildlife it supports (including a rare species of butterfly).

We’re not a party to any agreements regarding the site, but we – and our passionate community – have a keen interest in its future use, and we would welcome any opportunity to work collaboratively with the site owners and the state government to help achieve this.

Council completed a 700-metre shared-use coastal path at O’Sullivan Beach in late 2020, providing a continuous trail link from Moana to Mentone Parade, O’Sullivan Beach, just south of the former refinery site. There remains a three-kilometre segment north of this to reach our council boundary

To date, more than half (17.8km) of City of Onkaparinga’s 31 kilometres of Coast Park trail has been delivered, and council will continue to advocate for this shared path to be incorporated into future plans for the Port Stanvac site.

Recently, the City of Onkaparinga successfully advocated on behalf of our community to secure a shellfish reef in nearby O’Sullivan Beach, with thanks to The Nature Conservancy and the state government for their funding and delivery of that project.

Now completed, the reef only adds to the potential appeal of the area that would be enhanced by well-considered and appropriately master-planned development of the site, ensuring the community is brought along on the journey in a meaningful way.

ENDS