Opening of replica of town jetty at Whaleworld, Albany

12/12/98

Tourism Minister Norman Moore today opened a replica of the town jetty which will next year give public access to the Cheynes IV whale chaser at Whaleworld Albany.

He also named the jetty, partly funded from the State Government's Tourim Development Fund, the Axel Christensen Dock.

Mr Christensen, who died in 1989, was the last skipper of the Cheynes IV and was represented at the opening of the jetty by his children, Donna Thomas and Mark Christensen.

The Cheynes IV is still being refurbished and will not be open to the public till next year.

Whaleworld was created from a working whaling station, the Cheynes Beach Whaling Company, which ceased operating in 1978.

In its heyday, the company's chasers took up to 850 whales a season.

"Whaleworld is an important reminder of our past when the hunting of whales, primarily for oils from their blubber, was regarded as an economic necessity," Mr Moore said.

He said that people now recognised whales as being among the world's great wonders, to be regarded with awe and respect, rather than be hunted and killed.

"Whales are still big business in Western Australia," the Minister said.

"But now it is from a history point of view and from the enjoyment it brings to the thousands of visitors each year who come to watch the whale migrations along our coastline."

Mr Moore said the Cheynes IV project demonstrated the effectiveness of partnerships between industry, regional communities and the Western Australian Tourism Commission.

He congratulated the members of the Jaycees Community Foundation for their work on the project.

"The Jaycees were one of the first groups to ask for help from the commission's newly-created Tourism Development Fund in 1997," the Minister said.

"The $42,800 grant, matched with other dollar-for-dollar funding, has been used to provide access, viewing and interpretive facilities for the Cheynes IV."

Mr Moore said the grant underlined the State Government's financial commitment to infrastructure development in the Great Southern.

During the next two years, a further $4 million would become available from the fund.

"I encourage groups in this and other regions, who are planning specific tourism capital works, to apply for a grant ," Mr Moore said.

He said that tourism was a vital component of the WA economy.

It provided direct employment for about one in 12 workers in the State and generated about $2.1 billion for the economy.

Mr Moore also said that this year, up until May, the number of new tourism jobs in WA in accommodation, cafes and restaurants, grew by about 7,300. About a quarter of these new jobs were in the southern half of the State.

"Almost a quarter of a million tourists now travel through the Great Southern each year," Mr Moore said.

"During the past three months, accommodation bookings have been so high that this region ranks third in the State after Perth and the South-West.

"Also, the last WA Travel Survey ranked Albany as the number one regional town by guest arrivals in the State."

Media contact: Hartley Joynt, Minister's office 9 321 1444,

Roger Buddrige, Corporate Communications Manager, WA Tourism Commission, 9 220 1716