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The Health of Streams in the Wimmera Basin

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The Health of Streams in the Wimmera Basin ENVIRONMENT REPORT THE HEALTH OF STREAMS IN THE WIMMERA BASIN A REPORT BY EPA VICTORIA AND WIMMERA CMA Publication 1233 June 2008 1 THE HEALTH OF STREAMS IN THE WIMMERA BASIN TABLE OF CONTENTS Summary ............................................................................................................................................................ 3 Broadscale snapshot of condition ................................................................................................................. 3 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................... 3 The basin............................................................................................................................................................ 4 Description of the catchments ...................................................................................................................... 4 Rainfall and stream flows .............................................................................................................................. 4 Assessment methods ......................................................................................................................................... 5 Rapid bioassessment (RBA)........................................................................................................................... 5 Data sources.................................................................................................................................................. 6 Analysis methods........................................................................................................................................... 6 Broadscale snapshot of condition...................................................................................................................... 8 Wimmera River reach 1: Lake Hindmarsh to Antwerp .................................................................................... 8 Wimmera River reach 2: Antwerp to Dimboola.............................................................................................. 8 Wimmera River reach 3: Dimboola to MacKenzie River ................................................................................. 8 Wimmera River reach 4: MacKenzie River to Mt William Creek .................................................................... 10 Wimmera River reach 5: Mt William Creek to Glenorchy................................................................................11 Wimmera River reach 6: Upstream of Glenorchy weir...................................................................................11 Concongella Creek......................................................................................................................................... 11 Six Mile Creek ................................................................................................................................................ 11 MacKenzie River: below Distribution Heads ................................................................................................. 12 MacKenzie River: Distribution Heads to Dad and Dave Weir......................................................................... 12 MacKenzie River: upstream of Dad and Dave Weir ....................................................................................... 12 Fyans Creek .................................................................................................................................................. 13 Mt William Creek........................................................................................................................................... 13 Other small Wimmera River tributaries ........................................................................................................ 13 Avon—Richardson River system.................................................................................................................... 13 Snapshot summary............................................................................................................................................ 14 References........................................................................................................................................................ 14 2 THE HEALTH OF STREAMS IN THE WIMMERA BASIN SUMMARY Health Strategy (NRE, 2002) provides the statewide framework for communities to work with government This is a joint report by EPA Victoria and Wimmera to manage and restore rivers over the long term. At a Catchment Management Authority (CMA) on the regional level, CMAs have developed river health condition of streams in the Wimmera basin. It presents strategies that provide detailed actions and plans for a broadscale snapshot of river health and attempts to the management of each individual catchment. State relate this to the impacts of drought, environmental environment protection policies (SEPP’s) developed by flows or other factors affecting streams in the basin. EPA Victoria establish objectives and attainment Macroinvertebrates are the primary indicator of river measures for the environmental values that the health used in this report and assessments are based community wishes to protect. on biotic indices specified in the State Environment Community groups take an active interest in the Protection Policy (Waters of Victoria). condition of their own local waterways and community The snapshot used data collected from spring 2004 to education about river health reaches many spring 2005. The region has been experiencing landholders. These strategies and programs drought for many years, beginning in 1997—98, periodically need to assess the health of streams in although varying in intensity during this time. The order to know whether management actions have period of sampling does not include 2006, when the been effective, or if further environmental condition drought intensified and many streams either dried up improvement actions are needed. or were greatly reduced. Data from this time period This joint report from EPA and Wimmera CMA was not available when this report was being prepared. presents a broadscale snapshot of aquatic condition, Broadscale snapshot of condition and attempts to relate this to the impacts of drought, environmental flows or other factors affecting streams Many sites within the Wimmera basin rated poorly due within the Wimmera basin. The Avon—Richardson River to a lack of flow or an absence of water over the system is included in the Wimmera basin and the summer to autumn period. While many streams in this snapshot assessment. region are naturally intermittent, this would have been The report has been done for this basin at this time exacerbated by the long-term drought. because a broadscale snapshot assessment of stream Significant flow diversions in the middle reaches of the health has not been done here before. The report Wimmera River are increasing the effects of the makes use of existing resources by utilising data drought in the lower Wimmera. The impact is mainly collected for other purposes. This basin also has some apparent downstream of Antwerp, where the majority known serious threats to freshwater environmental of ratings were ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’. health. Common problems found in the Wimmera that The snapshot of stream health used data collected influenced the quality of macroinvertebrate from spring 2004 to spring 2005.This assessment is communities were high salinity levels, low (or largely concerned with the effects of drought on unnaturally high) dissolved oxygen (DO) levels, poor stream health. The region has been experiencing riparian condition and land degradation. drought for many years, beginning in 1997—98, More than half of the sites assessed in this period were although varying in intensity during this time. The rated ‘good’ or ‘very good’, with less than a third rated period of sampling does not include 2006, when the ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’. However, many sites originally drought intensified and many streams either dried up selected for sampling were dry in both seasons and or were greatly reduced. could not be sampled. This must influence the results, Factors other than drought that may affect aquatic as many streams within the basin could not be health in the Wimmera include the positive effects of assessed. This will have artificially increased the ratio environmental flows, and the negative effects of of ‘good’ or ‘very good’ sites compared to the poorer increasing salinity and eutrophication. Some factors quality sites. Unfortunately, the exact number of dry may also occur simultaneously (for example, drought sites was not recorded. conditions causing increased salinity). The further contraction of the stream network due to The rapid bioassessment (RBA) of macroinvertebrate the increased severity of drought in 2006 and 2007 is community composition has been used in this report. certain to have reduced the overall health of streams This approach is well established and incorporated into in the basin to less than that found in this assessment. state (such as Index of Stream Condition (ISC)) and national (for example, National Land and Water Audit) INTRODUCTION programs. Specific regional indicators and objectives have also been defined for macroinvertebrates in the Rivers and streams are important to our economic and SEPP (Waters of Victoria). social wellbeing, as well as being
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