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How are we managing our catchments?
Bankstown Council has been extremely pro-active in the development of actions to address issues such as pollution, which impact on our waterways. In 1997 Council adopted a 'Catchment Management Strategy' and in 1998 began the development of two Estuary Management Plans (for Kelso and Little Salt Pan Creek). Council has also been involved in the development of five catchment based Stormwater Management Plans (SMP).
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Estuary Management
In order to foster better management of estuaries in Bankstown, Council, together with the community and the Department of Land and Water Conservation, developed Estuary Management Plans for Kelso Creek and Little Salt Pan Creek. The primary goal of the Plans is to encourage the integrated, balanced, responsible and ecologically sustainable use of the estuaries.
The Management Plans and preceding supporting studies involved the overview of inputs of the Little Salt Pan Creek Estuary Management Committee and Kelso Creek Estuary Management Committees in order to identif issues, establish strategic directions and prioritise detailed actions.
Estuary Management Plans provides Council, other government authorities, and the community with a prioritised series of planning and management strategies and detailed actions which can be implemented over a long-term program.
For more information, or to recieve a copy of the plans, contact Council's Sustainable Development Unit on 9707 9463.
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Stormwater Management
The purpose of preparing a stormwater management plan is to improve the health and quality of the State's urban waterways using ecologically sustainable development (ESD) principles. This is to ensure that development proceeds, such that the environment and our resources are preserved for future generations. The plans include:
- Clearly defined catchment values and management objectives, for both existing and proposed urban areas.
- Identifying management problems and issues.
- Management practices - both structural and non-structural - to address the identified problems and issues.
- An implementation schedule for each organisation participating in the plan's preparation.
- A monitoring program to assess the effectiveness of the plan and identify any necessary refinements.
- A budget for recommendations.
- Allocation of responsibility for implementation.
Most importantly, the stormwater management plan (SMP) is to be prepared on a catchment basis. For many Councils this involves only one or two plans, however, due to the unique locality of Bankstown having several waterways we had to develop five separate SMPs in conjunction with surrounding Councils.
As a result, the Environment Protection Authority provided Council with an additional $30,000 to complete the plans.
Process for Developing the Plans
Officers from the various councils were responsible for the collection and compilation of a large percentage of this information. Where information was unknown, consultants were appointed to fill in the data gaps and prepare the final document. A steering committee was set up for each SMP. It was also a requirement that the plans be prepared in cooperation with other stakeholders including:
- Sydney Water
- The RTA
- Catchment committees
- National Parks (Department of Environment and Climate Change)
- The Department of Defence
Major issues identified in the Stormwater Management Plans for BCC included:
- Water pollution caused by industrial discharges
- Sewer overflow
- Litters and illegal dumping
- Poor performance in street sweeping practice
- Nutrients and weeds growth
- Erosion and sediments
- Lack of community awareness and participation in the stormwater management
- Inadequate planning and enforcement
- Lack of integration and coordination
- Poor maintenance practice
- Lack of funds and lack of serious commitments by some stakeholders.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was also concerned with the development conditions and standards being used by many Councils for new development. All SMPs were required to include suitable sets of development conditions and environmental standards for all new development.
Council's Integrated SMP
To prevent duplication of activities across all five plans, the actions specified in each have been integrated into a single Council-based SMP. The Integrated SMP addresses all the issues and responsibilities identified in the catchment-based plans, plus additional issues and management actions based on Council's existing strategic direction, operational responsibilities and priority for stormwater management. Specific Council actions not addressed by the catchment-based SMPs, such as drainage, flooding and other water quantity issues are covered in the Integrated SMP.
For more information or to obtain a copy of the Stormwater Management Plan, contact Council's Catchment Management Officer on 9707 9990.
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