CLEANING UP PARRAMATTA RIVER – WE ARE READY – ARE YOU?

City of Canada Bay, as part of the Parramatta River Catchment Group (PRCG), has committed to the vision of making the River swimmable again by 2025.

“We believe this vision is quite achievable,” said Mayor Tsirekas.

“We already have a number of swimmable spots along the River in Canada Bay including Cabarita Beach and Chiswick Baths; which are monitored as part of the Beachwatch program; as well as our Pools – Cabarita and Drummoyne which use treated river water.”

There are also a number of spots that are currently being reviewed, with the potential of becoming swimmable in the nearer future, including Cabarita Beach, Bayview Park and Chiswick Baths.”

“We have, and continue to, invest in preserving our waterways and reducing pollution into the River.”

The following projects have been implemented to reduce pollution into the River:

·         The Drummoyne Oval Stormwater Harvesting and Reuse Scheme, implemented in 2010, harvests up to nine million litres of stormwater from around Drummoyne Oval (including streets, roofs and hard surfaces), and is reused for irrigation of Drummoyne Oval and Taplin Park. The system incorporates a gross pollutant trap which captures over 6 tonnes of litter, sediment and organics each year.

·         The Catchment to Cove project has improved the conditions for fragile ecosystems that exist along Sisters and Half Moon Bays in Drummoyne. Up to eight tonnes of pollutants such as leaves, sediment and litter is collected from stormwater each year by the two gross pollutants traps, preventing the pollutants from reaching the foreshore and waterways of Iron Cove. Part of the project is the bush regeneration, which included planting of over 2000 native plants in Brett Park, which has reduced the amount of overland flow that would normally enter the bay. The Catchment to Cove Initiative encourages awareness of the community to learn how the water and pollutants from their catchment affect habitats and waterways downstream.

·         The Water for the Community project, will harvest 180 million litres of stormwater each year to be reused for irrigating our parks and golf courses in Concord. This project is reducing stormwater flows and pollutant loads to the Parramatta River.

Council is currently implementing a range of litter projects which aim to assess and upgrade infrastructure in key hotspots. The current projects are raising awareness within the community about the litter problem, informing people about where their litter goes and the penalties associated with littering, with the aim to build community pride through publicised campaigns.

“As well as these projects we have over 25 gross pollutant traps in the City of Canada Bay, collecting over 150 tonnes of litter, sediment and leaf matter from reaching the Parramatta River each year,” Mayor Tsirekas said.

In celebrating life by Parramatta River and the launch of the Our Living River initiative, Canada Bay along with  the PRCG are hosting a free event at Bayview Park on Saturday, 21 March from 12-4pm.

There will be plenty of free activities for the whole family, including raft building, balloonists, face painting, live entertainment, sausage sizzle and ice cream.

“I encourage the community to come down to Bayview Park and join in the mission of making Parramatta River swimmable once again by 2025,” Mayor Tsirekas said.

As part of the Our Living River campaign, we invite the community to vote on where along the River they would like to swim. Sites include Bayview Park, Rodd Point, Henry Lawson Park and Battersea Park. To vote for your favourite spot, visit ourlivingriver.com.au and help bring the river and surrounding creeks back to their former glory.

For more information, please visit our website: www.canadabay.nsw.gov.au or phone Council on 9911 6555.