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Riverhealth Monitoring Program

Riverhealth Monitoring Program

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The Riverhealth Monitoring Program is funded by a $210,000 Federal Government Caring for our Country grant and will run for two years. GRCCC’s study is the first to assess the health of the Georges River on a regional scale, and will identify priority areas for future conservation works.

The initial Spring sampling period for the Riverhealth project has just been completed. During four weeks between October 17 and November 14, a total of 42 sites were monitored with the assistance of more than 200 volunteers from Streamwatch and Bushcare groups and schools.

The monitoring focused on freshwater and estuarine environments in the Georges River catchment from the headwaters near Appin down to Botany Bay.

During the sampling, several important and interlinked areas of Riverhealth were monitored.

Throughout the catchment WATER QUALITY, RIPARIAN and ESTUARY VEGETATION and MACROINVERTEBRATES were monitored to provide us with a ‘snap-shot’ of catchment health.

Monitoring water quality allows us to understand how chemical pollutants, agricultural, industrial and urban runoff affects the structure and function of freshwater and estuarine ecosystems. Many organisms are sensitive to changes in water quality and populations of these organisms will become stressed if changes to water quality occur, often leading to reduced numbers or local extinctions.

Riparian and Estuarine vegetation are important factors in maintaining a functioning ecosystem. These vegetation communities play the role of nutrient recyclers, slowing the flow of stormwater run-off into waterways and trapping sediment. They also provide crucial habitat and food for a vast array of organisms.

By monitoring these vegetation communities we will gain an understanding of their condition and subsequent effectiveness in maintaining water quality within the Georges River catchment.

Macroinvertebrate populations provide us with valuable information on the health and quality of the aquatic ecosystem. Many macroinvertebrates are sensitive to environmental change and in particular to changes to water quality. By monitoring macroinvertebrates we will gain an understanding of populations living within the Georges River catchment and of the quality of the aquatic habitat they live in.

By combining the results of these three interlinked factors we will get a greater understanding of the integrity of the aquatic ecosystems found within the Georges River system. We will be able to identify ‘hot-spots’ of diversity that should be protected, areas where on-ground works have been effective and areas where remediation works could be carried out.

Now that the first round of data has been collected, please watch this space for the first report: ‘Snapshot of Riverhealth for the Georges River Catchment’.

For more detailed information of the project, please contact Carl Tippler on 0429 553 503 or by email riverhealth@georgesriver.org.au.

Riverhealth Presentation (Draft) (2.47MB)