Meander Catchment

Contents

1. About the catchment

2. Streamflow and Water Allocation

3. Water Quality

4. River Health

1. About the catchment The Meander catchment (area ~1,600 km 2) is a land-locked sub-catchment of the South Esk Basin which drains a large part of the central east of and discharges into the Tamar Estuary at Launceston. The is the largest river in this catchment, originating in the foothills of the (altitude 1,200 m) and flowing over 100 km to join the at Hadspen to the east. Significant tributaries to the Meander River are Western Creek, Quamby Brook and the , all three which collect runoff from the northern perimeter of the Tiers and , where average annual rainfall exceeds 1,600 mm and intense thunderstorms are generated. At the catchment outlet at Hadspen, local rainfall is about 700 mm per annum. Although there is some forestry occurring in the headwaters of the catchment, a large majority of the catchment is used for agricultural production ranging from cattle and sheep grazing to irrigated cropping and dairy farming. In the Liffey sub-catchment, additional water has been diverted from the Poatina tailrace at Brumbys Creek into the Liffey River near Bracknell to support agricultural activities.

DEPARTMENT of PRIMARY INDUSTRIES and WATER - 1 - 2. Streamflow & Water Allocation

Three streamflow monitoring 300 stations are maintained in this catchment as part of the DPIW 250 Statewide monitoring network. These are; 200

• Jackeys Creek downstream 150 Jackeys Marsh (station 18221); 100 Streamflow (Megalitres per day) per (Megalitres Streamflow

• Meander River at Strathbridge 50 (station 852); and

0 • Liffey River at Carrick (station Jan-06 Feb-06 Mar-06 Apr-06 May-06 Jun-06 Jul-06 Aug-06 Sep-06 Oct-06 Nov-06 Dec-06 164). Date Fig: Time series of streamflow in Jackeys Creek (station 18221) during 2006. Total Water Allocation

7,000 The following table shows the breakdown of water allocations in 6,000 the catchment. 5,000

4,000 Total

Allocation 3,000

Irrigation 2,000

47,366 ML day) per(MegalitresStreamflow

Stock & Domestic 1,185 ML 1,000

Water Supply 611 ML 0 Jan-06 Feb-06 Mar-06 Apr-06 May-06 Jun-06 Jul-06 Aug-06 Sep-06 Oct-06 Nov-06 Dec-06 Other 5,028 ML Date Of the total licensed water Fig: Time series of streamflow in the Meander River at allocation within this catchment, Strathbridge (station 852) during 2006. 17,791 ML is stored within 1,200 constructed storages and

35,389 ML is extracted directly 1,000 from rivers and streams.

800

Water Use Restrictions 600 Water restriction triggers have been developed for the Meander 400 Streamflow (Megalitres per day) per(MegalitresStreamflow River and Western Creek. When 200 streamflow falls to the levels indicated, water restrictions are 0 normally considered. Jan-06 Feb-06 Mar-06 Apr-06 May-06 Jun-06 Jul-06 Aug-06 Sep-06 Oct-06 Nov-06 Dec-06 Date

Meander at 25 ML/day Fig: Time series of streamflow in the Liffey River at Strathbridge Carrick (station 164) during 2006. Western Creek 1.5 ML/day

- 2 - 4 ,0 0 0 H istorical A verage C urrent Year (2006) 3 ,5 0 0

3 ,0 0 0

2 ,5 0 0

2 ,0 0 0

1 ,5 0 0 Total Discharge Total (ML) Discharge

1 ,0 0 0

5 0 0

0 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec M o n th

Fig: Comparison of the total monthly discharge with historical average monthly discharge for Jackeys Creek (station 18221).

10 0 ,0 00 H istorical A verage

9 0 ,0 0 0 C urrent Year (2006)

8 0 ,0 0 0

7 0 ,0 0 0

6 0 ,0 0 0

5 0 ,0 0 0

4 0 ,0 0 0 Total Discharge Total (ML) Discharge

3 0 ,0 0 0

2 0 ,0 0 0

1 0 ,0 0 0

0 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec M o n th

Fig: Comparison of the total monthly discharge with historical average monthly discharge for the Meander River at Strath Bridge (station 852).

1 8 ,0 0 0 H istorical A verage 1 6 ,0 0 0 C urrent Year (2006)

1 4 ,0 0 0

1 2 ,0 0 0

1 0 ,0 0 0

8 ,0 0 0 Total Discharge Total (ML) Discharge 6 ,0 0 0

4 ,0 0 0

2 ,0 0 0

0 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec M o n th

Fig: Comparison of the total monthly discharge with historical average monthly discharge for the Liffey River at Carrick (station 164).

- 3 - 3. Water Quality Under the DPIW Statewide baseline monitoring network, instream sensors were maintained throughout 2006 at the following locations within the catchment: • Jackeys Creek downstream Jackeys Marsh (station 18221); • Meander River at Strathbridge (station 852); and • Liffey River at Carrick (station 164). Water temperature, electrical conductivity and turbidity are monitored continuously at all three stations.

3 0

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2 0 0 S/cm) S/cm) µ µ µ µ

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0

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0 15-Jul-06 30-Jul-06 01-Apr-06 16-Apr-06 13-Oct-06 28-Oct-06 01-Jan-06 16-Jan-06 31-Jan-06 15-Jun-06 30-Jun-06 15-Feb-06 02-Mar-06 17-Mar-06 12-Nov-06 27-Nov-06 14-Aug-06 29-Aug-06 13-Sep-06 28-Sep-06 12-Dec-06 27-Dec-06 01-May-06 16-May-06 31-May-06 Fig: Continuous instream water quality for Meander River at Strathbridge (station 852) during 2006; Data quality coded as: Excellent; Good ; Fair ; or Fair Estimated Data.

- 4 - 2 5

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Turbidity (NTU) Turbidity 3

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0 1-Apr-06 1-Jan-06 2-Mar-06 15-Jul-06 30-Jul-06 1-May-06 16-Apr-06 13-Oct-06 28-Oct-06 15-Jun-06 30-Jun-06 16-Jan-06 31-Jan-06 15-Feb-06 17-Mar-06 12-Nov-06 27-Nov-06 12-Dec-06 27-Dec-06 14-Aug-06 29-Aug-06 13-Sep-06 28-Sep-06 16-May-06 31-May-06

Fig: Continuous instream water quality for Jackeys Creek downstream Jackeys Marsh (station 18221) during 2006; Data quality coded as: Excellent; Good ; Fair ; or Fair Estimated Data.

- 5 - 3 0

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WaterTemperature (DegC) 5

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S/cm) S/cm) 1 2 0 µ µ µ µ

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Electrical Conductivity ( Electrical Conductivity 2 0

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0 01-Jan-06 13-Jan-06 25-Jan-06 06-Feb-06 18-Feb-06 02-Mar-06 14-Mar-06 26-Mar-06 07-Apr-06 19-Apr-06 01-May-06 13-May-06 25-May-06 06-Jun-06 18-Jun-06 30-Jun-06 12-Jul-06 24-Jul-06 05-Aug-06 17-Aug-06 29-Aug-06 10-Sep-06 22-Sep-06 04-Oct-06 16-Oct-06 28-Oct-06 09-Nov-06 21-Nov-06 03-Dec-06 15-Dec-06 27-Dec-06

Fig: Continuous instream water quality for Liffey River at Carrick (station 164) during 2006; Data quality coded as: Excellent; Good ; Fair ; or Fair Estimated Data.

- 6 - Periodic water sampling is also conducted at four to six-weekly intervals at the following locations within the catchment: • Jackeys Creek downstream Jackeys Marsh (station 18221); • Meander River at Strathbridge (station 852); and • Liffey River at Carrick (station 164). Sampling consists of spot measurements of selected water quality parameters on-site (water temperature, turbidity, conductivity, pH and dissolved oxygen). Bottled samples of water are also collected for analyses of nutrients (collected monthly) and pesticides Fig: Liffey River at Carrick. (collected quarterly) at the Analytical Services Tasmania laboratory. Links 1. Water Information System of Tasmania 3. Surface water quality DPIW website www.water.dpiw.tas.gov.au/wist/ui www.dpiw.tas.gov.au/waterquality

2. Pesticide Monitoring in Tasmania 4. ANZECC 2000 guidelines www.dpiw.tas.gov.au/ www.deh.gov.au/water/quality/nwqms pesticidemonitoring /volume1.html

Jackeys Creek downstream Minimum Median Maximum Number of Jackeys Marsh samples

Temperature (deg C) 3.8 6 16.8 11 Turbidity (NTU) 1.81 2.38 5.19 11 Electrical Conductivity ( µµµS/cm) 42 51.5 64.10 11 Field pH 5.8 6.56 7.80 11 Dissolved Oxygen (mg/L) 8.31 10.6 12.54 11 Dissolved Oxygen (percent saturation) 83.8 97.9 109.5 11 Total Nitrogen (mg/L) 0.152 0.267 0.72 11 Total Phosphorus (mg/L) <0.005 0.008 0.02 11 Dissolved Reactive Phosphorus (mg/L) <0.002 0.003 0.006 11 Nitrate-N (mg/L) 0.015 0.16 0.354 11 Nitrite-N (mg/L) <0.002 <0.002 0.002 11 Ammonia-N (mg/L) 0.004 0.01 0.015 11 All statistics derived from periodic spot samples.

- 7 - Meander River at Strathbridge Minimum Median Maximum Number of samples Temperature (deg C) 4.7 10.8 22.2 12 Turbidity (NTU) 1.87 3.08 26.3 12 Electrical Conductivity ( µµµS/cm) 56.0 93.4 178 12 Field pH 6.35 6.97 7.71 12 Dissolved Oxygen (mg/L) 5.0 11.16 12.43 11 Dissolved Oxygen (percent saturation) 54.0 94.5 102.8 11 Total Nitrogen (mg/L) 0.195 0.318 0.996 12 Total Phosphorus (mg/L) 0.007 0.013 0.078 12 Dissolved Reactive Phosphorus (mg/L) <0.002 0.003 0.013 12 Nitrate-N (mg/L) 0.003 0.052 0.399 12 Nitrite-N (mg/L) <0.002 <0.002 0.005 12 Ammonia-N (mg/L) 0.004 0.011 0.046 12 All statistics derived from periodic spot samples.

Liffey River at Carrick Minimum Median Maximum Number of samples Temperature (deg C) 5.7 10.3 20.3 12 Turbidity (NTU) 2.5 3.73 14 12 Electrical Conductivity ( µµµS/cm) 40.8 65.1 90 12 Field pH 6.33 6.85 7.40 12 Dissolved Oxygen (mg/L) 7.1 10.36 11.9 11 Dissolved Oxygen (percent saturation) 74.0 94.4 104.0 11 Total Nitrogen (mg/L) 0.125 0.272 0.55 12 Total Phosphorus (mg/L) <0.005 0.015 0.027 12 Dissolved Reactive Phosphorus (mg/L) <0.002 <0.002 0.004 12 Nitrate-N (mg/L) 0.002 0.017 0.243 12 Nitrite-N (mg/L) <0.002 <0.002 0.002 12 Ammonia-N (mg/L) 0.002 0.012 0.025 12 All statistics derived from periodic spot samples.

- 8 - 4. River Health Meander River at Birralee Rd The Australian River Assessment System (AUSRIVAS) is a This site is located in the Meander River standardised national system for approximately 2.5 kilometres upstream of the assessment of river condition that confluence with Quamby Brook. The surrounding uses benthic macroinvertebrates. land is used primarily for agriculture (grazing) although a picnic area is located on the right-hand The AUSRIVAS models predict the bank immediately upstream of Egmont Bridge. aquatic macroinvertebrate fauna Riparian vegetation is sparse and modified by the that would be expected to occur intrusion of exotic species such as willows, gorse at a site in the absence of and blackberries. environmental stress such as pollution, habitat degradation or The river at this point is 22-28 metres wide and is flow regulation. A comparison of characterised by fast flowing riffles over boulder the macroinvertebrates expected substrate except for a deeper, slower flowing to occur at the test site with those section which is used as a swimming hole. Water actually collected (O/E ratio) quality was generally good. provides a site specific measure of Combined season AUSRIVAS assessments of the the biological impairment of the riffle habitat have classed this site as significantly test site. Further details about impaired with losses between 20 and 35% of AUSRIVAS can be found at: predicted taxa. The edgewater habitat is in better www.ausrivas.canberra.edu.a condition, with most assessments resulting in an u/ausrivas equivalent to reference condition (Band A) rating. However a loss of predicted taxa resulted in this AUSRIVAS assessments are site being classed as significantly impaired (Band carried out at two locations on the B) in the spring 2003/ autumn 2004 assessment. Meander River mainstream: at Birralee Road and at Falls Road Season O/E Taxa Band O/E Taxa Band and on two tributaries: Jackeys Riffle Edgewater Spr94/ Au95 0.78 B 0.94 A Creek and Liffey River. Spr95/ Au96 0.8 B 0.9 A Au99/ Spr99 0.65 B 0.87 A Spr03/ Au04 0.74 B 0.76 B Spr04/ Au05 0.68 B 0.87 A Spr05/ Au06 0.65 B 0.93 A

1.4

1.2

1

0.8

0.6 O/E Taxa O/E 0.4 Riffle Fig: Meander River at Birralee Edgewater 0.2 Road. 0 Spr94/ Au95 Spr95/ Au96 Au99/ Spr99 Spr03/ Au04 Spr04/ Au05 Spr05/ Au06 Season

Fig: Combined season AUSRIVAS O/E Taxa scores for the Meander River at Birralee Road.

- 9 - Meander River at Falls Road This site is located about 400 metres above Mother Cummings Rivulet in the upper reaches of the Meander River, within the Meander State Forest. The site is surrounded by native forest and the riparian zone appears to be in an undisturbed state with the exception of a small area on the left bank, which has been cleared as a picnic area. The river at this site is 7-10 metres wide and consists of shallow riffles and runs flowing Fig: Meander River at Falls Rd. between large, exposed boulders. Water quality is high with low turbidity, conductivity and Season O/E Taxa Band O/E Taxa Band Riffle Edgewater nutrients. Spr94/ Au95 1.01 A 1.08 A This site has been monitored Spr95/ Au96 1.18 X 1.07 A Au97/ Spr97 1.04 A 0.92 A continuously since spring 1994. Au98/ Spr98 1.04 A 1 A Single and combined season Au99/ Spr99 0.93 A 0.8 B assessments of the riffle habitat Au00/ Spr00 1.09 A 0.96 A indicate the richness of Au01/ Spr01 1.04 A 0.94 A macroinvertebrate families is Au02/ Spr02 1.05 A NS Au03/ Spr03 1.03 A 1 A similar to that expected at a Spr03/ Au04 1.04 A 1.07 A reference condition site. Similarly, Spr04/ Au05 0.95 A 0.99 A assessments for the edgewater Spr05/ Au06 1.04 A 1.08 A habitat indicate an essentially undisturbed site.

1.4

1.2

1

0.8

0.6 Riffle

O/E Taxa 0.4 Edgewater

0.2

0 Spr94/ Spr95/ Au97/ Au98/ Au99/ Au00/ Au01/ Au02/ Au03/ Spr03/ Spr04/ Spr05/ Au95 Au96 Spr97 Spr98 Spr99 Spr00 Spr01 Spr02 Spr03 Au04 Au05 Au06 Season

Fig: Combined season AUSRIVAS O/E Taxa scores for the Meander River at Falls Road.

- 10 - Jackeys Creek downstream of Jackeys Marsh This site, located within the Meander State Forest is in the lower reaches of Jackeys Creek, approximately 1.2 kilometres upstream of the confluence of Jackeys Creek and the Meander River and 1.5 kilometres downstream of DPIW’s streamflow monitoring station. The site is surrounded by dense riparian vegetation, which provides extensive shading. Intrusion by exotic species is minor. Jackeys Creek at this point is 7-10 metres wide and consists of Fig: Jackeys Creek downstream of Jackeys Marsh. shallow riffle /run sequences. The substrate is predominantly boulder and bedrock. Season O/E Taxa Band O/E Taxa Band Riffle Edgewater Water quality is generally good Spr94/ Au95 1.03 A 0.88 A with low conductivity and Spr95/ Au96 0.97 A 1.02 A turbidity. Au97/ Spr97 1.01 A 1.13 A Au98/ Spr98 1.06 A 1.01 A This site has been sampled Au99/ Spr99 0.99 A 1.05 A continuously since spring 1994. Au00/ Spr00 1.09 A 1.02 A All AUSRIVAS assessments for Au01/ Spr01 1.05 A 1.01 A this site indicate high Au02/ Spr02 1.04 A 1 A Au03/ Spr03 1.02 A 1.01 A macroinvertebrate richness. All 24 Spr03/ Au04 1.03 A 1.11 A combined season assessments for Spr04/ Au05 1.08 A 1.18 X edgewater and riffle habitats have Spr05/ Au06 1.02 A 1.09 A yielded O/E taxa values greater than 0.88 with most values over 1. Similarly, all single season 1.4 assessments indicate the macroinvertebrate community is 1.2 similar to that expected at a 1 reference site. 0.8

0.6 Riffle O/E Taxa 0.4 Edgewater

0.2

0 Spr94/ Spr95/ Au97/ Au98/ Au99/ Au00/ Au01/ Au02/ Au03/ Spr03/ Spr04/ Spr05/ Au95 Au96 Spr97 Spr98 Spr99 Spr00 Spr01 Spr02 Spr03 Au04 Au05 Au06 Season

Fig: Combined season AUSRIVAS O/E Taxa scores for Jackeys Creek downstream of Jackeys Marsh.

- 11 - Liffey River Upstream of Liffey This site is within the Liffey Falls Scenic Reserve and approximately 7 kilometres upstream from the town of Liffey. The site is surrounded by native forest however a large section of the right-hand bank has been partly cleared for a camping/ picnic area. The land outside the reserve is used for forestry activities. The river at this point consists of a single 6-8 metre wide channel, although the river splits into multiple channels above the sampling site. The confined valley, Fig: Liffey river upstream of Liffey. relatively steep gradient and moderate discharges, means that small substrate (sand, gravel, Season O/E Taxa Band O/E Taxa Band Riffle Edgewater pebbles) are readily transported Spr94/ Au95 0.99 A 0.92 A through this reach, causing the Spr95/ Au96 1.13 X 1.04 A streambed to be dominated by Au97/ Spr97 0.99 A 1 A boulders and large cobbles. Au98/ Spr98 1.09 A 1 A Au99/ Spr99 1.09 A 0.98 A Water quality is very good with Au00/ Spr00 1.09 A 0.92 A low turbidity and nutrient Au01/ Spr01 1.02 A 0.95 A concentrations and with all other Au02/ Spr02 0.94 A 1.06 A Au03/ Spr03 0.98 A 0.93 A physico-chemical variables within Spr03/ Au04 1.06 A 1.12 A expected ranges. Spr04/ Au05 1.1 A 0.92 A Spr05/ Au06 1.1 A 0.99 A Single and combined season assessments of the riffle and edgewater habitats have classed this site as equivalent to reference 1.4

(Band A) or above (Band X) on 1.2 the majority of sampling 1 occasions. However single season 0.8 edgewater assessments were 0.6 Riffle

highly variable with O/E scores Taxa O/E 0.4 Edgewater ranging from 0.78 to 1.24. The 0.2 low scores are a reflection of the 0 limited amount of edgewater Spr94/ Spr95/ Au97/ Au98/ Au99/ Au00/ Au01/ Au02/ Au03/ Spr03/ Spr04/ Spr05/ habitat available for sampling in a Au95 Au96 Spr97 Spr98 Spr99 Spr00 Spr01 Spr02 Spr03 Au04 Au05 Au06 high gradient stream such as this. Season

Fig: Combined season AUSRIVAS O/E Taxa scores for the Liffey River upstream of Liffey.

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