We’re proud of what we accomplished in 2024/25. Take a look at Georges Riverkeeper’s highlights and achievements in our Annual Report.
Georges Riverkeeper Program Managers' Report
The 2024/25 financial year was one of significant transition and renewal for Georges Riverkeeper. A major milestone was the conclusion of our hosting arrangement with Sutherland Shire Council, which had supported our operations since 2020. We extend our sincere thanks to their Councillors and staff for four years of partnership. In October 2024, our move to Liverpool City Council as new Host was finalised, following months of planning and coordination.
This transition involved the transfer of staff, systems, finances, records, and operational assets. The support of Liverpool City Council’s Environment, Finance, HR,and IT teams has been invaluable in embedding our operations into the new host environment.
Staff changes also shaped the year.Two temporary Catchment Officers supported the organisation while we transitioned between Host Councils. We welcomed new Program Manager Nell Graham in late-January 2025, bringing strong experience in environmental program delivery and integrated water management.
And, after farewelling Rob Dixon in April following more than five years of service, we welcomed Phuong To, Environmental Project Officer Water Quality, in May and Felipe Moretto, Catchment Project Officer in June.
The Riverkeeper Centre remains a key base for our work. This year, the Licence of Occupation was renewed for a further five years, with the option of an additional five-year extension, thanks to ongoing support from NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS).
These structural changes and staff appointments have strengthened our capacity to deliver programs and expand our impact across the catchment. With refreshed leadership, a secure operational base, and strong Host Council support, we are well-positioned to continue advancing our mission to protect and improve the Georges River.
Kirsten Spry, Acting Program Manager
Jul. 2024 - Jan. 2025
Nell Graham, Program Manager
Feb. 2025 - jun. 2025
Catchment Actions Program
Georges Riverkeeper's Catchment Action Program aims to enhance the quality of life around the Georges River by bolstering its amenity, aesthetics, biodiversity, and ecosystem functions.
Litter Removal
Georges Riverkeeper coordinated extensive litter removal across the catchment. Through our partnership with Corrective Services NSW, teams worked weekly at 280 approved sites, expanding to include new locations in Fairfield and Campbelltown Local Government Areas (LGA). This financial year, the program contributed over 18,308 clean up hours and removed approximately 110,521 kg of litter, more than 7,000 large bags, from foreshores, creeks, and industrial areas. You can read more about that here.
Discarded plastics and other waste can entangle wildlife, introduce toxins into the food chain, and smother sensitive aquatic habitats. Our work not only removes these pollutants but also prevents further environmental harm. We also supported community clean-ups by collecting rubbish gathered by local volunteers, inspected illegal dumping sites, and addressed hotspot areas including Salt Pan Creek and Satyam Ghat, helping to restore healthier, safer waterways for people and nature.
Litter Prevention
In 2024/25, Georges Riverkeeper advanced litter prevention efforts with the development of a Litter Prevention Roadmap, funded through a $42,000 NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) grant under the NSW Government’s Waste and Sustainable Materials Strategy which was delivered in partnership with six Member Councils. The Roadmap builds on previous strategic work and will guide targeted initiatives to reduce litter entering waterways over the next five years. We worked with councils to secure formal endorsement of the strategy.
A litter prevention boat tour for the Committee was undertaken to highlight how much litter is costing councils, pinpoint problem areas and discuss solutions. We also assisted with NSW Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) and NSW EPA statewide litter monitoring at Blakehurst and piloted the use of wildlife cameras with Georges River Council to monitor litter levels in waterways.
Biodiversity
Bush regeneration programs have remained a focus, with Corrective Services NSW offenders working fortnightly at eight sites for Fairfield City Council and a newly established site for Liverpool City Council. These projects target the removal of invasive weeds, allowing native vegetation to re-establish and strengthening habitat for local wildlife.
Using our boat, we facilitated our Member Councils’ development compliance and priority weed inspections of the foreshores, creeks and rivers across the catchment, helping protect aquatic environments and riparian corridors.
Major highlights this year included the successful installation of a custom-built Osprey nesting platform at Lime Kiln Bay, Lugarno, in partnership with Georges River Council and with support from Crown Lands and Maritime Services, providing a safe, permanent breeding site for a vulnerable osprey pair that had previously nested on a construction crane. $899,190 in grant funding was also secured from the Australian Government’s Natural Heritage Trust under the Urban Rivers and Catchments Program to undertake large-scale riparian restoration across Liverpool, Georges River, Fairfield, and Bayside LGAs. Actions at the four project sites over the three-year project include extensive weed removal, Indigenous-led cultural burns including fencing for protection, and habitat revegetation.
Shorebird conservation efforts continued via bimonthly monitoring with the Australian Waders Studies Group and National Parks and Wildlife Service across Sutherland Shire, Bayside and Towra Point.
Collectively, these initiatives are restoring ecological function, enhancing biodiversity resilience, and offering our catchment’s fauna renewed opportunities to thrive in a healthier landscape.
River Health and Research
Ongoing data collection strengthens our understanding of trends, informs on-the-ground restoration, and helps build resilience within the catchment’s waterways.
Our River Health and Research Program continues to deliver vital, evidence-based insights into the ecological condition of the Georges River. Using scientifically rigorous framework that assesses riparian vegetation, water quality, and macroinvertebrate populations, the program evaluates both freshwater creeks and the estuary. Field teams completed sampling at 51 sites across the catchment, from tidal estuarine waters to urban and bushland freshwater reaches during 2023/24 and the data was analysed and released in 2024/25
The latest 2023/24 River Health Report Card for the Georges River presents a nuanced environmental picture. The estuary’s overall ecological rating rose to A–, up from a B in 2021/22, largely driven by reduced turbidity and low rainfall during the sampling period, which resulted in clear and healthy conditions. In contrast, the freshwater reaches dipped slightly to C+ (from B–), reflecting lower macroinvertebrate diversity and degraded water quality following unusually heavy rainfall and flooding. Notably, even relatively untouched bushland areas, including O’Hares Creek, Mill Creek, and Woronora River, saw declines. These appear to be linked to sediment run-off and displaced aquatic organisms during the wet season. Highly urbanised subcatchments, such as Cabramatta Creek and Prospect Creek also faced pressures from polluted runoff and altered riparian health.
In 2024/25, Georges Riverkeeper supported several research initiatives to deepen understanding of the river’s ecology and inform restoration work. We assisted a PhD project examining nutrient enrichment in a saltmarsh rehabilitation site, contributing to fieldwork and data collection on vegetation cover and invertebrate abundance. Collaboration with Macquarie University expanded through a postgraduate project using satellite imagery to analyse water quality in the lower Georges River, with Georges Riverkeeper providing feedback on research design. We also assisted in collating data for NSW Department of Primary Industries’ Estuary Asset and Protection Program (NEAP) which focuses on the condition of the estuary and environmental assets with the aim of improving them following 2022 flooding events.
Field-based investigations included sampling to assess mangrove dieback at Picnic Point for NPWS and at the Ampol spill site in Kurnell as part of investigations with NSW EPA and NSW Fisheries, algae monitoring with Liverpool City Council near Chipping Norton for WaterNSW, and ongoing microplastics monitoring using Australian Microplastics Assesment Project (AUSMAP) methodology at ten sites across the catchment. We also worked with Campbelltown City Council to assess microplastic dispersal from synthetic turf during an upgrade at Lynwood Park. These activities enhance the evidence base for management decisions, build partnerships with academic and government agencies, and ensure that restoration strategies are underpinned by robust science.
Stormwater and Sewage
By fostering collaboration, targeting pollution sources, and securing funding for long-term estuary planning, the S&SP addresses one of the catchment’s most significant environmental pressures. These coordinated actions help protect aquatic habitats, safeguard water quality, and reduce pollutant loads before they reach the Georges River.
Stormwater is a major pathway for pollutants entering the Georges River, carrying sediment, litter, nutrients, and other contaminants from urban areas into our waterways. Through the Stormwater & Sewage Program (S&SP), Georges Riverkeeper partners with councils, agencies, and Sydney Water to improve catchment management, share expertise, and identify opportunities for water quality improvement.
A key initiative is Get the Site Right (GTSR), a multi-agency compliance and education campaign targeting erosion and sediment control on building sites. Two major campaigns were delivered during the year: the October 2024 blitz involved 20 agencies inspecting 748 sites, with $357,410 in fines issued, and the March 2025 blitz which engaged 21 agencies, inspected 867 sites and resulted in fines of $404,780.
Georges Riverkeeper is also facilitating the development of the Georges River Estuary Coastal Management Program (CMP), which will enhance the ecological health and resilience of the estuary. In February 2025, Liverpool City Council with assistance from Georges Riverkeeper secured $665,000 in funding from the NSW Government’s Coastal and Estuary Grants Program to support the development of CMP Stages 2–4 over three years. This work will identify risks, evaluate management options, and develop a certified plan for coordinated estuary management.
Our partnership with Sydney Water continues through technical meetings, field visits, and information exchange to ensure better integration of council and utility projects. Sydney Water presented updates to the Committee and facilitated site tours for the Georges Riverkeeper team to highlight infrastructure and planning initiatives.
Education and Capacity Building Program
This Program fosters community stewardship of the Georges River by creating opportunities for people to connect with, learn about, and help the river. In 2024/25, Georges Riverkeeper delivered and supported campaigns, events and partnerships that encouraged practical action for a healthy river.
Highlights included a Plastic Free July Author Talk with Louise Williams, co-author of "Quitting Plastic", hosted by Sutherland Libraries and livestreamed. In partnership with councils and Greater Sydney Landcare, we joined National Tree Day in Liverpool and the Bushcare Fair in Sutherland Shire. We contributed to the Hawkesbury Nepean Waterkeepers Annual Forum panel and led guided paddle tours at Towra Point for Sutherland Shire Bushcare volunteers and from Lambeth Reserve to Fitzpatrick Park with City of Canterbury Bankstown. For World Water Day,a Yeramba Lagoon Walk and Talk highlighted wetland ecology.
Hands-on litter education featured strongly, with December clean-ups alongside Oatley Bay Sea Scouts and an April Canoe and Clean-Up at Chipping Norton with Liverpool City Council that removed 355 kg of rubbish, a record haul for our annual Clean Up Australia Event.
We supported and promoted the Get the Site Right campaigns in October and March and held a June Litter Prevention River Tour for councillors and stakeholders. Internal communications showcased Georges Riverkeeper’s work at Liverpool City Council.
Education materials and updates were delivered through the publication of the 2023/24 River Health Report Card and Annual Report, our website, and social media. We responded to community enquiries on diverse topics, from litter and debris removal to water quality, erosion, fishing, and school assignments.
Operations Management
The Operations Management Program (OMP) underpins all aspects of Georges Riverkeeper’s work, ensuring effective governance, compliance, and operational delivery.
In 2024/25, the Executive Group met regularly to oversee strategy, finance, and performance, while General Committee meetings provided a forum for Member Councils to contribute to decision-making.
Advocacy remained central,with submissions made on key environmental issues, including plastics regulation, PFAS contamination, and catchment management reforms. Targeted engagement with Ministers, agencies, and industry partners helped promote the role of multi-council collaborations in delivering catchment-scale solutions.
Staff training focused on compliance, safety, and professional development, with sessions covering manual handling, workplace conduct, privacy, risk management, cultural engagement, and cyber security.
Policy review was a priority, leading to the adoption of a new Vehicle Use Policy and Agile Working Policy, alongside a major update to the Code of Conduct to align with best-practice governance standards.
Community consultations included engaging with the Aboriginal Advisory groups at Fairfield and Georges River Councils about our Urban Rivers and Catchments programs, regularly contributing to Liverpool Environment Committee meetings and participating in Liverpool City Council’s Satyam Ghat stakeholder forums.
