Catchment Management
Protecting Sydney’s Water Supply
Why Catchment
Management?
Healthy Catchments,
Quality Water
• Looking after the land is
a proactive approach to
providing healthy water
• Catchment management
identifies and rectifies
the adverse impact of
pollution sources on
water quality
Special Areas
What are they?
• Land surrounding
water storages
Why do we need
them?
• To protect water
quality
How do we manage and
protect the Catchment?
• Identify activities that have a
high negative impact
(priority pollutants)
• Develop priorities for
improvement
• Influence land use planning
• Implement control measures
and treatments
• Monitor and Review
Issues in the Catchments
• Sewage
• Pesticides, fertiliser and
manure from farm land
• Industry run off, heavy
metals or chemicals
• Damage to natural
vegetation by humans
and animals – reducing
the land’s ability to filter
Issues in the Catchments
• Contamination of used
and disused mining sites
• Accidental fuel and/or
chemical spills
• Feral animals and
introduced species
• Uncontrolled fires
Healthy Catchments Program
Strategies for
• Sewage
• Riparian
• Stormwater
• Rural lands
• SCA Managed lands
• Compliance
• Catchment Information
Healthy Catchment Program
Sewage Strategy
Why is sewage
management
important?
Catchment includes
• 11 major sewage
treatment plants – EPA
licensed
• Ageing sewers and
pump stations
• 18,500 (estimated)
onsite systems
• Medium scale unlicensed
systems
Healthy Catchment Program
Sewage Strategy
Accelerated Sewerage
Scheme
Onsite sewage system
management
Sewerage reticulation
system management
Unlicensed sewage
treatment systems
Healthy Catchment Program
Riparian Strategy
• Healthy vegetated riparian zones reduce nutrients
entering storages
• Collaboration with stakeholders to implement onground works
Healthy Catchments Program
Example of riparian
strategy at work
Coxs River Catchment
Riparian Strategy at Work –
Coxs River Catchment
Why did it happen?
• Riparian zones were choked with willows and noxious weeds
• Streambanks were eroding causing water quality impact
What happened?
• Focused on river downstream of Duddawarra Bridge
• 20 km treated, removed willows and woody weeds
What did it achieve?
• Water quality improved
• Stakeholders supportive
• Community are approaching SCA for support for further works
Riparian Strategy at Work –
Coxs River Catchment
Before treatment
- Coxs River
downstream of
Duddawarra
Bridge
Riparian Strategy at Work –
Coxs River Catchment
After treatment –
Coxs River
downstream of
Duddawarra
Bridge
Healthy Catchments Program
Rural Lands Strategy
Aims
• Promote sustainable land use
• Identify, prioritise and rectify activities that have a
negative impact on water quality
Rural Land programs
• New erosion rectification plans
• Derelict mines program
• Geographic Information System (GIS) data, land use
and active areas of stream bank and gully erosion
Rural Lands Strategy at Work –
Dairy Effluent Project
Dairy farms within the Sydney Drinking Water
Catchment were identified as a point source of
pollution under the Pollution Source Risk
Management Plan
Issues
• Threat to water quality
• Dairy shed waste management
• Poorly constructed cattle laneways, primarily crossing
water courses
• Lack of regulatory control for farmers to follow Best
Practice Guidelines
Rural Lands Strategy at Work –
Dairy Effluent Project
Dairy waste after one
milking
Rural Lands Strategy at Work –
Dairy Effluent Project
Dairy waste entering waterways
Rural Lands Strategy at Work–
Dairy Effluent Project
Project Stages
1. Model dairy developed to workshop best practice
2. On farm visits, consultation with landowners
3. Project Funding Agreement signed by dairy farmer
and SCA
4. Construction of holding/capture sites for dairy
waste
5. Ongoing monitoring, inspection and liaison by SCA
6. Follow up visits to farm to continue liaison and
assess operational procedures with farmers
Rural Lands Strategy at Work –
Dairy Effluent Project
Before work – runoff
not contained
After work – dairy waste
runoff captured onsite
Photography Copyright
The photographs in this presentation are reproduced with the kind permission of the
copyright owner: Sydney Catchment Authority.