Estuary plan to balance use and protection of Tweed River

14 September 2016

Tweed residents asked how they use the estuary

Tweed residents will be asked how they use the Tweed River Estuary and their priorities for its management, to help produce a new plan to balance the waterway’s use and preservation.

A telephone survey of randomly selected Tweed residents will be conducted this month as a first step in community engagement for a Tweed River Estuary Coastal Management Program, which will follow NSW Government guidelines for coastal management.

While the phone survey will randomly contact Tweed residents to get a statistically representative snapshot of community attitudes and uses of the Tweed River Estuary, an online questionnaire mirroring the phone survey will be conducted in October for the whole community to complete.

The Tweed River Estuary is the tidal section of the river, a 35km stretch between the Bray Park Weir at Murwillumbah and the river mouth at Tweed Heads.

“The scenic waterway and its picturesque surrounds are extremely important to the local community and are many things to many people,” Council’s Waterways Management Leader, Tom Alletson, said.

The Estuary retains a cultural connection for Aboriginal people and is a place for traditional cultural practices.

“It is also highly valued as a commercial waterway and is integral to tourism and agricultural practices on the floodplain, contributing to the local economy,” he said.

“They are used extensively for recreational activities, are highly valued as a commercial waterway and are integral to tourism and agricultural practices on the floodplain, contributing to the local economy.”

The Estuary has a diversity of habitats for a wide variety of plants and animals and is home to a number of protected flora and fauna species.

He said maintaining the river’s environmental health was essential to sustain all its beneficial uses by the community.

“It can be difficult to balance recreational, commercial and environmental priorities in a busy and popular waterway like the Tweed River, particularly in the face of population growth and rising sea levels,” he said.

“The management plan will identify actions that can be implemented by Council, government agencies and the community to achieve the right balance between the many uses and to protect nature, scenic and recreational values, livelihoods and cultural practices.”

For more information visit yoursaytweed.com.au/tweed-river-estuary