10.1 Background
Healthy freshwater aquatic ecosystemsA biological community of interacting living and non-living things. like rivers, creeks, lakes and wetlands are essential to the ACT’s biodiversityThe variety of all life and living processes in the environment., community, and agriculture. Aquatic ecosystemsA biological community of interacting living and non-living things. and their riparianThe land and vegetation along the edges of creeks, rivers, lakes and wetlands. and floodplain lands provide many environmental benefits, and are habitat for both aquatic and terrestrial species. They also supply our water resources and are important places for culture, recreation and social interaction.
Aquatic ecosystemsA biological community of interacting living and non-living things. help to maintain clean water. RiparianThe land and vegetation along the edges of creeks, rivers, lakes and wetlands. vegetation, wetlands and lakes act as filters, cleaning the water by intercepting and taking up water pollutants. This is especially important for nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus, which can be damaging for waterways in large amounts. Microbes (tiny organisms such as bacteria) that live in the soil and water also help to keep water clean by recycling nutrients.
Our aquatic ecosystemsA biological community of interacting living and non-living things. are connected. If water quality or quantity is put at risk in one area, it is likely to affect other places too. This means that when we look after our aquatic ecosystemsA biological community of interacting living and non-living things. in the ACT, it benefits the rivers, lakes and wetlands where we live as well as the biodiversityThe variety of all life and living processes in the environment. and people that live downstream.
The ACT has five main rivers and catchmentAn area of land on which rain falls, this land then helps to channel the rainwater into rivers, lakes and wetlands. areas: the Cotter River, the Gudgenby River, the Molonglo River, the Murrumbidgee River and the Queanbeyan River. There are also numerous smaller waterways, including the urban creeks that flow through Canberra such as the Ginninderra, Tuggeranong, and Sullivans creeks.
Canberra has three constructed lakes – Lake Burley Griffin, Lake Ginninderra and Lake Tuggeranong – along with numerous other constructed ponds and wetlands. These provide habitat for biodiversityThe variety of all life and living processes in the environment., control water pollution, improve aesthetics and heat mitigation, and are sites for a range of recreational activities like swimming and kayaking.
The ACT also has the Ramsar-listed (wetlands that have been formally recognised as internationally important for the conservation of global biodiversityThe variety of all life and living processes in the environment.) Ginini Flats Wetland Complex in Namadgi National Park, and 11 nationally important wetlands listed in the Directory of Important Wetlands in Australia. High country bogs and associated areas of wet swampy land are important ecosystemsA biological community of interacting living and non-living things. in the ACT and are listed as a Threatened Ecological Community. Areas of the high country are threatened because of increasing temperatures and invasive species that destroy the fragile swamp plants.
Lifeblood of the ACT
The Murrumbidgee River is important, both environmentally and culturally. It is the largest river in the ACT, and the second-longest river in Australia. It flows through the CountryFor Aboriginal people, the term Country encompasses all living things and all aspects of the environment, as well as the knowledge, cultural practices and responsibilities connected with this. The term contains complex ideas about law, place, custom, language, spiritual belief, material sustenance, family and identity. of many Aboriginal nations. In the Wiradjuri language, Murrumbidgee means ‘big water’.
The Murrumbidgee River feeds wetlands, swamps and floodplains in the ACT and NSW. The Murrumbidgee supports lots of life, including many native plants and animal species. Some fish species, such as the Murray cod, live their whole life in the river. Bird species, such as the sharp-tailed sandpiper, breed in Siberia and then migrate every year to the wetlands of the Murrumbidgee.
The Murrumbidgee River also provides water for agriculture and is a popular recreation area for Canberrans.
All of the ACT’s rivers and creeks eventually flow into the Murrumbidgee. So, scientists can use the river as a reference to assess the overall aquatic health and water quality of the ACT area.
