Landings Road
A community consultation event was held to listen to stakeholder concerns regarding this area of endangered remnant vegetation. Access management in the form of fencing (800 m) took place through reserve areas of the Landings Road reserve (Koumala) to reduce the amount of illegal access which leads to weed spread, habitat destruction, soil erosion and bank slumping in this area. Future work, collaborating with Reef Catchments, will further this progress through revegetation and increased signage.
O’Connell River – Forbes Road Fishway
Following the construction of a rock ramp fishway at this location, maintenance was carried out during 2015 to ensure that the fishway was continuing to operate in the desired manner.
Blackrock Creek – Old Bowen Road Fishway
Detailed design has been carried out for the removal of the Old Bowen Road as a barrier to fish migration. A fabricated concrete rock ramp fishway has been proposed as the most viable solution for this site. Now a shovel-ready project.
North Mackay Waterways, Gooseponds Creek, DeMoleyns Lagoon & Sandringham Lagoon
Ongoing control of various declared waterweeds (Water Lettuce, Salvinia, Water Hyacinth and Hymenachne) occurred throughout these water bodies to ensure healthy ecosystem values were present in the waterways.
In the case of Sandringham Lagoon and North Mackay Waterways positive community engagement took place to identify neighbouring private landowners and to encourage them to work toward these desired outcomes.
DeMoleyns Lagoon
A management plan has been completed for the ongoing management of DeMoleyns Lagoon, a 160 ha site in the Pioneer Valley. Ongoing work by the Australian Government’s Green Army has seen previous revegetation and weed control efforts continue to provide valuable outcomes for the waterbody and downstream waterway (Northern branch of Sandy Creek).
Green Army
The Australian Government’s Green Army team has completed two x 26 week programmes aimed at improving riparian health in the region.
This has seen approximate totals of:
- 5 t of waste (litter etc) removed from riparian and coastal areas.
- 3000 plants propagated
- 10 kg’s of seeds collected
- 100 ha of weed control carried out
Schools
Working in conjunction with the GBRMPA, Conservation Volunteers Australia and private landowners, Council has been able to provide for 10 schools from the region to take part in educational field trips to wetland areas in North Mackay to highlight the importance of wetland areas to overall aquatic health. This equates to the education of approximately 500 children.
For further information on any of the above case studies please contact Luke Galea luke.galea@mackay.qld.gov.au
Lagoons Creek
Detailed design work has taken place for the Lagoons Creek project to help restore riparian and terrestrial habitat connection between the Mackay Regional Botanic Gardens and the Pioneer River. Ground works are aimed at taking place this financial year (2015/16).
For further information on the Lagoons Creek case study please contact Richard Brown richard.brown@mackay.qld.gov.au
Stormwater
Maintenance
Maintenance of vegetated stormwater assets under the control of MRC commenced late 2014. This totals over 5 ha of stormwater assets throughout the region.
Remediation
Some vegetated stormwater assets required major overhauls and rectification in order for them to begin functioning properly. This will provide improved asset functionality and performance in future years.
Monitoring
Monitoring of a number of stormwater assets in the Mackay region was undertaken during rain events in 2015. These monitoring activities included assessing assets ability to improve water quality and testing of filter media. This, first of its kind, study in the Mackay region provided variable results, some showed well-functioning assets while others were performing poorly. There was an interesting correlation between the quality of the filter media being used and the performance of the asset when improving water quality. However, results cannot be deemed as conclusive due to the limited nature of the testing. Future assessments are due to take place, which may prove a more formal relationship.
