Blue Mountains Waterways 2019 Interim Health Report (Supplementary report in support of the 2018 and 2019 Health Snapshots) Blue Mountains City Council - Blue Mountains Waterways 1 Publication information and acknowledgements: The City of the Blue Mountains is located within the Country of the Darug and Gundungurra peoples. The Blue Mountains City Council recognises that Darug and Gundungurra Traditional Owners have a continuous and deep connection to their Country and that this is of great cultural significance to Aboriginal people, both locally and in the region. For Darug and Gundungurra People, Ngurra (Country) takes in everything within the physical, cultural and spiritual landscape—landforms, waters, air, trees, rocks, plants, animals, foods, medicines, minerals, stories and special places. It includes cultural practice, kinship, knowledge, songs, stories and art, as well as spiritual beings, and people: past, present and future. Blue Mountains City Council pays respect to Elders past and present, while recognising the strength, capacity and resilience of past and present Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the Blue Mountains region. Report: Prepared by Blue Mountains City Council’s Healthy Waterways team (Environment Branch) – Alice Blackwood, Amy St Lawrence, Emma Kennedy, Jenny Hill, Gillian Fitzgerald and Geoffrey Smith. Date: 2019 Fieldwork (2017 and 2018): Alice Blackwood, Amy St Lawrence, Christina Day, Gillian Fitzgerald. Identification of macroinvertebrate samples (2017 and 2018 samples): Alice Blackwood, Christina Day, Amy St Lawrence, Chris Madden (Freshwater Macroinvertebrates). Scientific Licences: Office of Environment & Heritage (NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service) Scientific Licence number SL101530. NSW Department of Primary Industries scientific collection permit P18/0029-1.0 Acknowledgements: For their generous contributions to Council’s aquatic monitoring programs over the years, the Healthy Waterways team thanks Ian Wright, John Gooderham, Bruce Chessman, Rob McCormack and Chris Walsh. Thank you to the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service and WaterNSW for granting access to sample within their protected areas. Image credits: photographs by Ian Brown and Amy St Lawrence. Cover image: Glenbrook Lagoon 2 Blue Mountains Waterways - Blue Mountains City Council Summary Blue Mountains City Council (Council) works to protect and improve the health of waterways within our Local Government Area (LGA) and aquatic monitoring programs are fundamental to Council’s ability to prioritise waterways and catchments and to track progress over time. Council conducts annual monitoring at over 50 sites from Lapstone to Mount Wilson, to assess the health of local waterways. This interim report presents the 2018 and 2019 waterway health ratings and water quality data for sites tested within Council’s aquatic monitoring program during autumn 2017 and 18 respectively. In 2018, seven sites were too dry to sample, due to prolonged periods of low rainfall. Of the ‘urban’ waterways that were sampled in 2018, 65% were rated as being in good or excellent health. Waterway health was rated as fair for 27% of sites, and poor for the remaining 8%. A full report will be prepared in 2020, which will include analysis of trends over time. Collecting water samples for testing from Jamison Creek, Wentworth Falls Blue Mountains City Council - Blue Mountains Waterways 3 Beautiful creeks and waterholes are great features Introduction of the Blue Mountains. These waterways sustain an enormous diversity of life, provide opportunities for recreation and contribute to local and regional This is an interim report providing drinking water supplies. Yet our waterways are at risk details of the results of Blue of degradation, especially due to stormwater runoff from urban areas. Mountains City Council’s Aquatic Council aims to protect, enhance, advocate for and Monitoring Program in autumn monitor the health of the City’s natural waterways and 2017 and autumn 2018. This report water catchments. The local community endorses this approach, with ‘looking after the environment’ and aligns with the Waterways Health ‘clean creeks and waterways’ consistently rated among Snapshots of 2018 (2017 results) the most important key directions and focus points for and 2019 (2018 results). Council during annual surveys of randomly selected Blue Mountains residents (Micromex Research, 2018). A full report with an analysis of Aquatic monitoring is fundamental to Council’s trends and issues over the sampling understanding of the condition and function of local waterways over time. Council uses the data to prioritise years of 2017-2020 will be prepared waterways, catchments and issues for protection, in 2020, in line with the State restoration and further study. With almost twenty years of annual sampling, Council has developed one of the of the City Reporting. As such most extensive and long-running stream monitoring this report will only briefly cover programs of its kind, enabling rigorous and detailed measurement of stream ecosystem condition the background, methods, and (Wright, 2012). interpretation of results. This report is primarily focused on presenting the Waterway Health Ratings for sites tested within For a more in-depth explanation Council’s aquatic monitoring program during 2017 of methods, as well as a discussion and 2018. of work being done to protect Council monitors waterway health to meet the our waterways, see the Waterway following objectives: Health Reports from 2016 and • understand the condition and function of 2017 (BMCC, 2016, 2017). local aquatic ecosystems over time • help prioritise catchments, waterways and issues • keep our community and other stakeholders up-to-date with reliable, science-based information on our waterways 4 Blue Mountains Waterways - Blue Mountains City Council Methods Council conducts annual monitoring at over 50 sites from Lapstone to Mount Wilson, to assess the health of local waterways. This is done using aquatic macroinvertebrates (water bugs) as biological indicators, as well as a range of other indicators of water quality (pH, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, electrical conductivity, salinity, temperature, nutrients, alkalinity, faecal coliforms and enterococci). Five new sites were added to the monitoring program in 2018. Two sites were changed location slightly between years for logistical reasons (Govetts Creek and Wentworth Creek). Table 1. Details of new sites added in 2018 SITE CODE WATERWAY CATCHMENT NEAREST TOWN 76EBB Bedford creek tributary Erskine Bullaburra 77EWD Wilsons Glen Creek Grose Woodford 78GLN Bulls Creek Grose Linden 79EGK Erskine Creek Erskine Glenbrook 80BMG Back Creek Coxs Megalong Macroinvertebrates and health ratings level (Gooderham and Tsyrlin, 2002; The Waterbug Company, 2016; Murray-Darling Freshwater Sampling of macroinvertebrates is based on the Research Centre, 2015; Dean et al 2004; Hawker AUSRIVAS protocol for collecting and processing and Theischinger, 1999). Binocular stereoscopes samples in NSW (DEC, 2004). A 0.25mm mesh net are used to examine the distinguishing features of is used to sample 10 metres of edge habitat within closely related families. a pre-determined 100 metres of reach at each site. ‘Edge habitat’ includes trailing vegetation, In this report, waterway health was rated by scoring overhanging banks/bedrock/boulders, submerged each site on four factors: logs, detritus and aquatic plants. Duplicate 1. SIGNAL-SF (a ‘sensitivity score’, reflecting the macroinvertebrate samples are collected at average sensitivity of families present) reference sites (e.g. 20 metres of edge habitat, divided into two sub-samples). 2. Number of aquatic macroinvertebrate families present Two field operators ‘pick’ samples live on site for 40-60 minutes per sample per site. Invertebrates 3. Number of mayfly/stonefly/caddisfly families that are accurately identifiable to family level in the present (# EPT families) field are recorded and released; others are preserved in ethanol for laboratory identification. 4. Percentage of individual macroinvertebrates recorded that were mayflies, stoneflies or Scientific keys are used to identify laboratory caddisflies (% EPT). specimens, with most taxa identified to family Blue Mountains City Council - Blue Mountains Waterways 5 Scores for the above factors are based on comparisons Ecological water quality with other Blue Mountains urban streams and pristine local reference streams. For each factor at each site, At each site pH, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, a score between 0 and 5 was allocated, to signify temperature, electrical conductivity and salinity are how the site’s result compared with results from recorded using a Hydrolab Quanta probe (triplicate other urban sites. This process was repeated, with readings). Water samples are collected and analysed scores from 0 to 5 assigned to signify how the site’s in Council’s Laboratory for alkalinity, available result compared with reference sites. Factor scores phosphorus, nitrate-n and faecal coliforms, as per test assigned to each site were then averaged, and an kit manufacturers’ instructions. overall waterway health rating applied according To aid interpretation of water quality results, a to Table 2 below. series of local trigger values have been developed Table 2. Allocating waterway health ratings (adapted from ANZECC, 2000, 7.4.4), using the 95th/5th percentile values from Blue Mountains reference site data (2010-2015). Separate trigger AVERAGE WATERWAY values are specified