Canberra is the Bush Capital and a landlocked one at that. But we are also surrounded by plenty of water.
We have our lakes (Lake Burley Griffin, Lake Tuggeranong, Lake Ginninderra), the ancient rivers that wind their way through our region, the ponds, creeks, waterfalls, and wetlands. Water is all around us. We live beside it, we swim in it, we play on it, we walk and ride our bikes around it. Our waterways also support a diverse range of plants and animals-many of them found only in Australia-and offer refuge for some threatened species.
This is why it's vital that our waterways are and stay healthy. The
ACT Healthy Waterways Project was created to help improve long-term water quality in the ACT and further downstream in the Murrumbidgee River system. It has involved the construction of infrastructure (begun in 2017) designed to reduce the amount of nutrients, sediment and pollutants particularly from residential blocks, streets, retail and industrial areas entering our waterways.
One of these types of infrastructure is wetlands. Such as the new wetlands that are now open to the public at Holder in Weston Creek.
What are wetlands?
Basically, a wetland is an area of land that is covered or saturated by water. Wetlands attract a large diversity of wildlife, like birds and frogs, as well as providing opportunities for recreation and the enjoyment of nature. They also help remove nutrients from stormwater by providing a habitat for water-loving reeds, grasses and trees which use the nutrients to grow.
The Holder WetlandsThe Holder Wetlands are located between Dixon Drive and Cotter Road, Holder. The wetlands cover an area of some 5,600 square metres and when full, will hold approximately 2.4million litres of water.
Water is diverted from existing stormwater pipes in the area to the wetlands before flowing into Weston Creek and the Molonglo River. Each year the wetlands remove over 138,000 kilograms of nitrogen, phosphorus and suspended sediment from stormwater runoff before it flows into the Molonglo River.
Even though the Holder Wetlands are still in development, you can enjoy a stroll or bike ride through it. The popular
Centenary Trail runs through the wetlands.
And there are places to pause, rest, relax, reflect and listen to the wonderful songs of the wetlands' resident birds and frogs.
The Holder Wetlands is a very welcome addition to Weston Creek and will one day grow to be an important habitat for the area's wildlife as well as being a major recreational and educational space for the community.
Other Waterways ProjectsHolder Wetlands is just one of many projects that have been created to protect and improve long-term water quality in the ACT. There are also the new Evatt Wetlands, the Narrabundah Wetlands, the wetlands at Monash, as well as new ponds, rain gardens and restoring existing waterways. If you'd like to find out more about the ACT Healthy Waterways Project, then please go
here. And read
here for tips on how we can all help to keep our waterways healthy.
"We never know the worth of water till the well is dry."
Thomas Fuller
