| RiverScience Ecological Monitoring Program |
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| The Cooks River Health Report |
The RiverScience Ecological Monitoring Program aims to increase the scientific knowledge available to the community about the Cooks River. It is an initiative of the Cooks River Foreshore Working Group and a joint project between Marrickville, Kogarah, Rockdale and Canterbury Councils.
The project has identified indicators such as:
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Area of salt marsh, mangroves and seagrass;
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Number of aquatic invertebrates such as oysters, barnacles and crabs
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Sediment characteristics
These will be measured at regular intervals at nominated sampling sites to determine the ecological health and rate of change of the River. This information will help the Councils make management decisions for the River and determine the impact of our programs to improve the health of the River.
The Cooks River Study
The Cooks River Survey (2005) documents the findings of sediment sampling and analysis along the Cooks River by A/Prof Alberto Albani and Honours student George Kollias from the School of Biological Sciences at the University of New South Wales. Samples were analysed for sediment characteristics, sediment geochemistry, and distribution of benthic fauna.
The study presents an overall assessment of the present status of the Cooks River. This information can now be used as a baseline for further monitoring. The study has produced several anomalous occurrences of sediment types and heavy metals that require further investigations. Significant sediment deposits are seen where drains enter the River and downstream from the cemented canalised sections of the River. The report identifies major and trace elements found in the sediment and potential sources.
You can download the Cooks River Study from the downloads box below as a PDF file.
Results of Round 2 RiverScience Ecological Monitoring, December 2007
Some noteworthy positive attributes of the Cooks River revealed in round 2 of the ecological monitoring include:
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an increase in crab numbers;
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mangrove forests are extensive and in good condition;
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existing saltmarsh is healthy;
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shorebirds were observed at 10 of 17 monitoring sites, often actively foraging; and
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the area of bare space on hard surfaces has decreased. Sydney Rock Oysters and barnacles have increased at two sites and algal cover has increases at all sites.
A summary of the results can be seen in the 2007 Health Report Card. Full results are found in the RiverScience Ecological Monitoring Program (Cooks River) Round 2 report and Comparsion of Hard Substrate Organisms Photographs (2005/6 - 2007).
| Downloads |
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The Cooks River Ecological Monitoring Program:
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