Measuring the health of the Tweed’s waterways
10 December 2020
Grants available to improve river health
Council has released its 2020 Tweed Waterways Report – a summarised snapshot of water quality throughout the Shire over the past 12 months.
The Tweed’s waterways play a key role for the environment and community, and monitoring their health is an important role carried out by Council.
The 2020 report contains a water quality monitoring report card, and reveals some of the challenges in managing waterways and balancing economic activity, recreational use and environmental protection.
“The report card is an engagement tool,” Council’s Waterways Program Leader Tom Alletson said.
“We want people to take an interest in the health of our creeks and rivers, and understand the challenges we all face in maintaining their environmental and recreational values.”
In most of the Tweed’s rivers and creeks, 2020 water quality scores were similar to those of 2019, however a significant issue experienced in 2020 were fish kills that occurred in coastal creeks following flooding in February.
“Inflows of oxygen-depleted floodwaters caused serious fish kills in Cudgen, Cudgera and Mooball creeks,” Mr Alletson said.
Another area that the report card highlights for poor water quality are the creeks that flow into Cobaki and Terranora broadwaters, which have recorded a D for the third consecutive year.
With an aim of lifting this score, Council is seeking expressions of interest from rural landowners who wish to improve the health of Duroby, Bilambil, Piggabeen and Cobaki creeks.
Funding is available through Council’s River Health Grants program to address common problems including bank erosion, a lack of native vegetation and cattle impacts.
Eligible grant activities include river bank fencing, stock drinking troughs, revegetation, weed control and erosion stabilisation.
“In every catchment, we need people living upstream to be conscious of water quality downstream, and support changes that will protect the Tweed’s internationally significant environment into the future,” Mr Alletson said.
To view the 2020 Tweed Waterways Report, go to www.tweed.nsw.gov.au/NaturalEnvironment
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Caption: The 2020 Tweed Waterways Report looks at the state of the Tweed’s rivers and streams and the pressures placed on them in the past, now and into the future. Photo: Cudgera Creek.