National

Place:   Urban Waterways

Threat: Deterioration

Significance of Place

Since 1788, Australians have settled in increasingly dense clusters along coastlines and rivers, and around harbours and foreshores. Disregard for the impact of this increasing human presence has resulted in degraded and dirty waterways, stressed and dying ecosystems and, in the last few decades, destruction or proposed destruction of many of the heritage places originally built along these waterways. While some governments have made strong clear commitments to the clean-up and better management of urban waterways, others have failed to take the necessary action.

From one side of the continent to the other, urban waterways are threatened. Perth’s life line, the Swan River, has been nominated as an Endangered Place because of increasing threats to its health through failure of government action, while the North Bank of the Brisbane River and the Pioneer River in Mackay, have been nominated because of the adverse impact of poorly considered development proposals on the heritage places along these riverbanks.

Description of Threat

Poor planning and ad-hoc management over many decades have seen the increasingly destructive impact of urbanisation and industrial development on urban waterways. The health - or poor health - of these waterways impacts on all residents and on all those who depend on the waterway for their drinking water, for transport, agriculture, food sources, recreation, indeed for all aspects of their daily lives.

Action Required

There are many substantial efforts being made to address aspects of water degradation throughout Australia. What is required, and what does not appear to be happening at the moment, is a whole of government holistic approach to the management of urban waterways.

In this International Year of Freshwater (2003), and approaching the Year of the Built Environment, the National Trust calls on governments at all levels to commit to the coordination of 10 year fully funded conservation and management programs for all urban waterways. These programs should ensure that all waterways are managed holistically, and therefore should include provision for:

◗ Catchment wide orientation with the aim of ensuring healthy eco-systems

◗ Multi disciplinary research to ensure all decisions are taken with consideration of all values - natural, Indigenous and cultural

◗ Systematic identification of heritage values and commitment to ensuring their

protection by providing for all development to be sympathetic to existing heritage

◗ Coordinated regulatory activity

◗ Active engagement of communities through consultation and participation.