MidCoast Council
Our local waterways are highly valued for recreation, fishing and enjoying nature. Last weekend MidCoast Council celebrated the release of its annual Waterway and Catchment Report Card.
Water sampling is undertaken across our six major catchments to check in on their health and allow us to greater understand the patterns, trends and cycles of our waterways.
"Each year between October and April we work with the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water to undertake monitoring in our waterways. We assess the changes to algae growth and water clarity at 21 sites, and the results are presented as a Report Card with scores from A-F." said Manager Natural Systems, Gerard Tuckerman.
The results of the Report Card are significantly influenced by what we do in our catchments, as land use, urbanisation, agriculture, and industrial practices all interact with natural water systems. They can also be heavily influenced by weather patterns as has been seen over the last 6 years with periods of drought, bushfire and flooding.
"The results of the 2025 Report Card continue to be influenced by the amount of runoff from the catchment. During the 2025 sampling season, rainfall was slightly below average. However, rainfall in January 2025 was two times higher than the long-term average which impacted the results." Said Dr Rebecca Swanson from the Department Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW).
In 2025 three sites including Browns Creek, Mid Wallamba Estuary and Wallamba Cove had improved ecological health when compared to last year's results.
The remaining 17 sites maintained the same results as last year; these results were mainly driven by reduced algal levels due to shorter residence times which is common in periods of rainfall.
No sites saw a reduction in their grade during 2025.
Sampling for the 2025 report card had already concluded prior to the May 2025 flood event, so is not included in the results. However, how our waterways react following floods was a key feature of the document. Following the 2021-2022 floods scientific research has been undertaken in our waterways, particularly the Manning River with a number of studies and their findings included in the document.
This year Council released the results at a special event on the banks of the Manning River. Attendees got the opportunity to see the results of these studies, and how they information will be utilised to inform long-term management of our waterways.
Scientists from the Fruition Environmental and DCCEEW were in attendance to talk about their cutting-edge research on the Manning River, exploring how riparian vegetation and bank assessments can help build flood resilience.
Our community also pitched in to help plant trees and riparian vegetation in the heavily flood damaged Manning Waters Reserve. Helping to regenerate the area and improve both the biodiversity and amenity of the reserve.
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