Catchment assessment techniques to help determine priorities in river restoration

The intent is for the assessment techniques described to provide an improved rational basis for setting stream rehabilitation priorities. Focus catchments were chosen that had issues aligned with those in the project objectives. Two existing assessment techniques; SedNet (Prosser et al., 2001) and RARC (Jansen et al., 2004a), were selected to be developed for regional scale priority setting, based on the project team’s expertise with these techniques. These techniques were developed using data from the focus catchments.

The assessments were then applied at the catchment scale and tested against independent observations. Priorities for rehabilitation activities were determined from the assessments, and implementation of the priorities simulated to demonstrate the benefit of the techniques in achieving river rehabilitation goals. Specified investment scenarios were also simulated. Data were gathered on past rehabilitation projects and used to examine the effectiveness of those projects.

Aims

Through the following steps, develop and apply catchment assessment techniques to help regional catchment agencies to determine priorities for rehabilitating riverine water quality, habitat sedimentation and riparian condition:

1. Identify 3 or 4 focus catchments where the above three stream problems are issues for management agencies and where management agencies are keen to apply catchment assessment techniques to assist their river restoration and management plans
2. Determine the data available to assess those management issues, working closely with agencies and communities
3. Adapt and further develop catchment assessment techniques to data available at the regional scale and the management issues using current knowledge and test them against independent field observations
4. Undertake the assessments to identify where in the catchment (rivers or reaches) rehabilitation actions are most likely to result in significant improvement in the management issues. These actions may include erosion and pollutant control, flow management and riparian restoration. Identify the magnitude of improvement
5. In each focus region, demonstrate the use of the techniques for identifying rehabilitation priorities, given a specified management vision and investment scenario
6. Evaluate the benefits of the techniques in achieving river rehabilitation goals. Examine the effectiveness of planning of past rehabilitation projects, and how using the catchment assessment techniques developed might assist such projects 7. Prepare protocols for wider use of the techniques by agencies, catchment authorities and community groups (eg Rivercare). Explore how agencies can best routinely use the methods, through avenues such as technical consultants

More information

Download the following reports from the CSIRO website.

• Techniques for targeting erosion control and riparian protection in the Goulburn and Broken Catchments, Victoria (PDF 7.1MB)
• Techniques for targeting erosion control and riparian rehabilitation in the Mount Lofty Ranges (PDF 4MB)
• Techniques for targeting protection and rehabilitation of riparian vegetation in the middle and upper Murrumbidgee catchment (PDF 2.5MB)

Publications and Resources

None listed

Citation

Land & Water Australia. 2009. Catchment assessment techniques to help determine priorities in river restoration. [Online] (Updated July 30th, 2009)
Available at: http://lwa.gov.au/node/3653 [Accessed Tuesday 26th of April 2011 07:25:20 PM ].