Aquatic and Riparian Conservation Strategy

Managing our rivers - 2018 conservation strategy

Our aquatic environments supply water for our consumption, provide habitat for plants and animals, and are sought out as aesthetically beautiful places and for fishing. But they are threatened by climate change, water extraction, overfishing, erosion and sedimentation, pest plants and animals, disease, fire and other threats.

The Conservator for Fauna and Flora has prepared the 2018 Aquatic and Riparian Conservation Strategy, which outlines how we can best continue to manage and restore our waterways. It builds on the achievements of the previous 2007 strategy.

The strategy's vision is:

Healthy waterways supporting diverse aquatic and riparian flora and fauna, and providing high quality ecosystem services.

The strategy outlines:

  • proposed conservation management guidelines for the protection and enhancement of aquatic and riparian areas
  • identified threats and guidelines to manage them
  • monitoring and research objectives
  • strategies to increase community awareness and involvement
  • action plans for threatened species.

The strategy includes action plans for the following threatened fish and riparian plants:

Review of 2007 Aquatic and Riparian Zone Conservation Strategy

In 2013, a review of the Aquatic Species and Riparian Zone Conservation Strategy (the Strategy) highlighted activities that should lead to more native fish and plants, less erosion, improved water flow and fewer weeds in the longer-term.

The Murrumbidgee River, the major waterway in the ACT is in very poor condition throughout its length. The riparian floodplains in the ACT have been affected by land clearing, altered hydrological systems and water quality, major weed invasions, fire and related climatic changes. The ACT Government has undertaken two surveys to provide a clear picture of the state of the high conservation value streams in the ACT.

Technical Report 22 (16.3 MB) is a survey of vegetation and habitat in key riparian zones of the ACT Murrumbidgee River. This report identifies the extent and condition of the riverine vegetation communities along the Murrumbidgee in the ACT.

Technical Report 23 (14.1 MB) is a survey of the extent and condition of the riverine vegetation communities for the five major tributaries of the Murrumbidgee in the ACT, the Naas, Gudgenby, Paddys, Cotter and Molonglo rivers.

2007 Aquatic Species and Riparian Zone Conservation Strategy

The 2018 Aquatic and Riparian Conservation Strategy and Action Plans supersedes the 2007 ACT Aquatic Species and Riparian Zone Conservation Strategy (Action Plan No. 29).

In November 2017, the Conservator for Flora and Fauna released a Native Species Conservation Plan for the Murray Cod (Maccullochella peelii). The plan provides for the protection and appropriate management of the Murray Cod through management objectives and actions intended to maintain the sustainable recreational fishing of Murray Cod and conserve wild populations in the ACT.