An administrative oversight that could reduce the amount of leash-free area for dogs on Redhead Beach has been pounced on by concerned dog owners.

The Belmont Wetlands State Park Draft Plan of Management states on page 60 that dogs will only be allowed in the park on the sand and beach zones and only when leashed by their owners.

The draft plan also clearly outlines the border of the state park on several pages, including 43, 46 and 55, which some dog owners have said intrudes upon their designated leash-free area.

Dog owners are currently allowed to exercise their pets within a 700-metre area between Second and Third Creek.

However, concerned dog owner Linda Berry, from Whitebridge, said the draft plan showed the state park border to fall somewhere in the middle of the leash-free zone.

She said if the draft plan was accepted as it was being displayed, people walking their dogs could loose about 250m of leash-free area and would have no clear indication of where the area finished.

Penelope Adamson, who regularly exercises her dog Hegel on the beach, said the leash-free area was the primary reason she chose to live in Redhead after moving from the UK.

“This is enjoyed by hundreds of people from all over because there aren’t many facilities for dogs,” she said.

“We all think the state park plan is a fantastic idea but it has to be inclusive.

“I think you would find that dog owners on the whole are pretty respectful of the environment.

“Coming down here and exercising the dogs is a way for people to get out in the environment and be active.”

The draft plan of management was designed by Andrews Neil Urban Design in consultation with the Belmont Wetlands State Park Trust.

A landscape architect who worked on the plan, Zoe Cooke, said she did not expect the dog exercise area would be reduced when the draft plan was revised.

A statement from Andrews Neil said the company and state park trust were considering extending the leash-free area north of Third Creek, following feedback from public consultation.

The draft plan of management for the Belmont Wetlands State Park is on public exhibition until this Friday, October 30.

Public submissions can be emailed to landscape@andrwewsneil.com.au or mailed to Andrews Neil Pty Ltd, PO Box 1476, Gosford, 2250, by 4pm.