2020 Waterways and Catchment Report Card highlights the toll

Last year and earlier this year were periods of extreme weather events, as a prolonged dry, spell bushfires followed by drought-breaking rains have combined to have a disturbing impact on rivers and lakes.

The release of the 2020 Waterways and Catchment Report Card has identified a decline of waterways in some areas.

"A total of nine sites tested dropped a grade when compared to the previous year with the remaining nine sites maintaining their grade," NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE) scientist, Peter Scanes said.

Fire is an intrinsic part of the Australian environment, and often used for ecosystem management, Dr Scanes said.

However, the 2019 fires that took place on the Mid Coast were extreme and had devastating impacts on our community, wildlife and environment, he said.

"Due to the moderate and heavy rainfall that followed the fires in January and February it is difficult to differentiate the changes in water quality due to the bushfires from the flooding that followed them, but from the results we can see they both had an effect."

Increased levels of algae in waterways had the biggest impact on the results this year, with 14 of the 18 sites sampled showing an increase in algal levels.

This result indicates there was an increase in nutrient run-off during the rains early in the year, particularly evident in the fire-affected sites of the Manning, Khappinghat and Wallamba, as well as in the Karuah and The Branch estuaries.

Many sites also saw a reduction in water clarity after the rains.

Each year, MidCoast Council partners with scientists from the DPIE to independently assess the health of waterways as part of the Waterway and Catchment Report Card.

"These results help us keep track of the effectiveness of the many water quality projects we undertake each year with our community and partners," MidCoast Council water quality and estuary co-ordinator, Prue Tucker said.

"Waterways are an important part of our region, contributing significantly to our economy and tourism, and providing us with a beautiful natural environment in which we live," she said.

"We're invested in a waterway health program and in monitoring water quality across our region to protect our important waterway assets."

This year's report card results were revealed during a free livestreamed event on Thursday, October 22 in front of more than 60 participants.

A number of scientists shared the results of studies and projects taking place across the Mid Coast region, highlighting that good science underpins management of the region's waterways.

"The evening was a great success, it was great to see so many people join us to learn more about the role scientific study plays in catchment management," Ms Tucker said.

In the coming weeks council will host a number of additional free livestreamed events to allow residents to connect with waterways and the science behind them.

To book in for these events or view the report card log on to the Waterways Report Card 2019 Results page.

Hard copies of this year's Waterway and Catchment Report Card are also available from MidCoast Council.

Snapshot view: The 2020 Waterway Report Card results

In estuaries there is always the potential for algal growth it just grows better in some conditions (high temperatures and lots of light improve the ability to utilise excessive nutrients).

Due to the changes in conditions from drought to flood during 2019-20 there was an increased ability for algae to grow particularly in lake estuaries.

Half of the tested sites (nine) dropped by a grade from the 2018-19 results, the remainder (nine) remained at the same grade as 2018-19.

The only location to receive a good, A-grade this year was Myall Lake.

Karuah River and The Branch Estuaries remained at fair, C-grades.

Khappinghat Estuary remained at a C-grade the same as in 2018/19; this is unusual though as ecological condition of the area is expected to be excellent.

Wallamba Cove dropped from a B to C; this was driven by water clarity results indicating that there is still an issue with sediment run-off coming from urban area in Tuncurry.

In the Manning, there was a drop in grade from good (B) to fair (C) in the Upper Manning and Dawson River Estuaries, while the Mid and Lower Estuaries and Farquhar Inlet retained their good (B) grade.

In Wallis Lake, the Mid Wallamba Estuary retained its fair (C) score while all other sites dropped a grade.

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