| Great Keppel Island Queensland |
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Shelving Beach on Great Keppel Island |
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Great Keppel Island
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| Time zone: | UTC+10 (UTC) |
| Location: | 15 km (9 mi) from Yeppoon (W) |
Great Keppel Island lies 15 kilometres from the coast off Yeppoon, Central Queensland, Australia.[1] The island is the largest of the eighteen islands in the Keppel Group, and covers an area of more than 14.5 square kilometres. The islands were named by Captain James Cook in 1770 after the then First Lord of the Admiralty, Admiral Augustus Keppel.[2]
The island has always been attractive to visits from people, with centuries old middens testifying to the quantity of seafood found in the surrounding waters. During its early European history, the island was used to raise sheep, however it is now a tourist destination. The tropical climate and numerous beaches attract tourists from all points, and a number of accommodation houses cater for them including Keppel Lodge and various houses. There are 17 white sandy beaches with some of the highest cover of hard coral reefs on the Great Barrier Reef. The coral diversity of these reefs matches that of the Whitsundays with clear waters most of the year around. [3] The island is served by ferries and aircraft.
Great Keppel Island once boasted a resort owned by Contiki, dedicated to making it a "backpackers' island", though has recently been taken over by Mercure Resort, making it more of a family resort.
After purchasing the lease for the resort and that of Lot 21 which covers about 80% of the island, GKI Resort Pty Ltd, a subsidiary of the privately owned Australian company Tower Holdings, closed the facility. They then unveiled a $1.15 billion revitalisation plan for the Island. The plan, which has been declared a "significant project" by the Queensland Government, includes a 300-room resort hotel, 300 resort apartments, 1700 villas, a 560-berth marina and ferry terminal, a championship golf course, yacht club, sporting ovals, childcare facilities, chapel and cultural centre. The plan includes 1300 acres (or 545 hectares) of environmental parkland on Lot 21 which is currently public land for recreation purposes. This land has already been recommended for a conservation park by the Department of Environment and Resource Management. [4]
Confusingly, Tower chairman Terry Agnew explained his motivation for the development: "Unfortunately, tourism investment in the region has fallen well behind the other coastal regions in Queensland. From the first time I stepped on the island, I was amazed by its beauty and I knew that this was probably the most outstanding island paradise in Australia. Together with the support of the residents of Central Queensland, we can transform Great Keppel Island into one of Australia's premier tourist attractions.”
Unfortunately Terry Agnew did not have the support of the residents of Central Queensland or the Environment Department. The proposal was rejected by the Federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett in October 2009 on the grounds that there would be 'unacceptable' impacts to the World Heritage Great Barrier Reef values of the island.[5] [6] Unfazed by the objections and in spite of several other Great Barrier Reef Island resorts closing [7] Tower Holdings submitted a third proposal early in 2010.[8] An joint Federal and State Environmental Impact Study is currently being prepared by the developer and is due for release to the public in December 2011. The public will have their chance to comment on this EIS document for 60 days following its release. After this period and considering all the submissions, the current Minister for the Environment Tony Burke will determine whether the project will still have unacceptable impacts on the World Heritage values of this Great Barrier Reef Island. If Minister Burke allows it the Queensland Coordinator General will then assess the EIS and project proposal and allow or disallow it. There may be significant changes required to the proposal before it can proceed. The Minister and Coordinator General must determine that the impacts, if any, can be mitigated, minimised or avoided. It is up to the proponent to show beyond reasonable doubt that this can occur.