Middle & Lower Yarra River - South Side
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This catchment includes:
Healthy Waterways Waterwatch Monitors in the Middle and Lower Yarra River (South)
The following Community Groups are currently involved in the Healthy Waterways Waterwatch Program in the Middle and Lower Yarra (South) Catchments
- Blackburn Lake Advisory Committee
- Wurundjeri Walk Advisory Committee
- Mullum Mullum monitors
- Friends of Ruffey Lake
- Anderson Creek Landcare
- Jumping Creek Landcare
- Friends of Warrandyte State Park
- Whitefriar’s College
- Bushy Creek
- Friends of Scotchman’s Creek and Valley Reserve
To find out how your community group can become involved in the Healthy Waterways Waterwatch Program, or to join an existing monitoring group, please contact us.
Lower and Middle Yarra
The middle and lower Yarra River catchment represents the section of the Yarra below Warrandyte, including minor tributaries such as Anderson, Jumping, Ruffeys, and Salt Creeks. The Yarra River through its lower section has a number of significant flora and fauna species including the threatened Australian grayling and Australian mudfish. The lower Yarra provides excellent facilities such as trails and receive many visitors. The river is also a popular spot for tourists and hosts a number of important events including the Moomba festival. Tributaries within the section are typically highly dominated by urban influences. As a result, their environmental values are reduced. However, many still retain important attributes such as recreational facilities. European heritage is also high due to Dights Falls and the historical flour mill. Key risks to the lower and middle Yarra River include:
- changes in hydrology
- reduced water quality (as a result of stormwater)
- partial barriers to fish migration; and
- prevalence of exotic weeds and pests
Brushy Creek
Brushy Creek is a small tributary that rises in urban Mooroolbark and passes through rural land on the urban fringe, before meeting the Yarra in the floodplains above Warrandyte. The creek has some species of native fish, including the Freshwater Catfish and Macquarie Perch. It also has some listed species of water birds. The surrounding banks and floodplain contain Aboriginal features and sites. Key risks include:
- urban stormwater run-off
- bed and bank erosion
- loss of native vegetation and aquatic habitat
- barriers to fish and fauna passage
- weed infestations; and
- increasing urban growth
Gardiners Creek
Gardiners Creek, including Scotchmans and Damper creeks, has a predominantly urban catchment. Although the system tends to rate poorly from an environmental perspective, the creeks support important species of native fish including common galaxias and climbing galaxias, water rats and the growling grass frog. Gardiners Creek has extensive network of bike paths, trails, recreation reserves and parks. Key risks include:
- stormwater
- weeds
- localised bank erosion; and
- barriers to the migration of aquatic life
Koonung Creek
Koonung Creek is a small tributary of the Yarra that arises in Blackburn North and Doncaster. Its catchment is almost entirely urban, however in some of its reaches the creek contains major parklands and consequently has high recreational value. The creek has been heavily modified by realignment and erosion control works, particularly those associated with the Eastern Freeway, however it has retained native fish species, listed water birds, the Growling Grass Frog and the floodplain contains sites of significant Aboriginal heritage. The most significant risks for the creek are:
- altered hydrology largely as a result of the urbanised catchment
- loss of vegetation in the streamside zone
- poor water quality
- loss of in-stream habitat; and
- barriers to fish movement
Mullum Mullum Creek
This is a small tributary of the Yarra River flowing from Ringwood and North Croydon through large areas of open space, before meeting the Yarra in the Yarra Valley parklands at Templestowe. There are some native plants still remaining along its banks in open space reserves close to the Yarra River, and several native fish species and the water rat still live in the creek. Works to improve habitat in the area have seen platypus return to the lower part of the creek. Mullum Mullum Creek has been affected by weeds, loss of habitat, and the impacts of changed flows, which have contributed to increased bank erosion. Water quality is degraded by urban runoff, as well as inputs from unsewered areas.
Melbourne Water has developed the Index of River Condition (IRC) program to provide an overall integrated measure of the environmental condition of rivers. To find out more about the health of these rivers and creeks visit Melbourne Water’s website or request Healthy Waterways Waterwatch data.
