Series 02: Alan Gibson Stewart papers, 1987-1989 - Page 489
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community. Irate citizens demanded immediate action.
The Daily reported that Meers was taking up the cause, reporting that:
"Mr Meers accused the Government of 'shameful neglect' of the Manly sewage problem."
Meers encouraged some of the impressionable young boardriders to form a pollution action group, to fight for a "better solution to the problem of beach pollution than the Government's planned submarine sewerage outfall." A "Wind'N'Sewerage" Boardriders Club, based in Manly, distributed T-shirts and stickers on the beaches. Their message was picked up by well-known professional surfers and sports magazines.
The leader of the protesting surfers was a young chiropracter named Michael Petrie, who was a friend of my daughter Gabby. He came into the office to tell me about the solid pieces of sewerage that he had seen floating in the water. He was clearly sincere in his alarm about the pollution, and unaware of the way in which he was being manipulated. There was no point in arguing with him about the Government's plans, or in trying to warn him about devious political tricks. He and his friends were now determined to make some kind of protest about what they saw as a threat to their way of life. They had obviously given little throught to what practical measures could be taken to alleviate the problem, but they wanted instant results.