Monday, December 11, 2017

Georges River - River Health Report Card 2016-2017 Released

Georges River Health

The latest River Health Report Card has been released providing an assessment of the ecological health of waterways across the Georges River Catchment in 2016-2017. 

The report card presents the findings of 12 months of data collection based on monitoring that has taken place across the Georges River catchment, in both freshwater creeks and the Georges River estuary which feeds into Botany Bay.

The River Health Monitoring Program is coordinated by the Georges River Combined Councils’ Committee Inc. (GRCCC) and is funded by the GRCCC’s member councils.

Member councils use the River Health Report Cards to guide management actions aimed at countering the negative impacts of urbanisation on waterways. Stormwater is a major issue in urban waterways. During storms, runoff from our streets carries large amounts of pollutants, that flows into our creeks and river with minimal filtration and this runoff can also cause severe erosion. GRCCC member councils across the Georges River Catchment are investing in waterway management to reduce the volume of unfiltered stormwater flows that enter waterways and rehabilitating damaged waterways.

The public can assist in improving the condition of local waterways by: putting litter in bins rather than gutters; never tipping oils or paints down drains; washing cars on lawns; sweeping leaves and dirt from driveways and gutters to use as garden mulch; and, cleaning up after dogs.