5 Mile Creek, Moonee Ponds Creek

The Moonee Ponds Creek derived its name from being a winding chain of waterholes, which during heavy rains swelled into a fast flowing temporary stream through what are now Melbourne’s north-western suburbs. Given the largely urbanised environment that has developed around it, the creek was considerably altered in the 1950s for flood protection and redirected for dock developments. This included the removal of bank vegetation, concrete lining of much of the lower reaches and connection to Melbourne’s stormwater drain system. Subsequently, only the very upper reaches in rural parklands resemble its original state. The modifications to the creek have caused a dramatic decline in its ecological state, with Melbourne Water, the Victorian government’s statutory water body, classifying its condition as very poor. Due to flood protection upstream and stormwater run-off entering the creek downstream (as noted above) water quality and flows are rated poor. The stability of the creek bed is, on the other hand, rated as good. However, the concreting of the lower reaches means vegetation and aquatic life are categorized as very poor (Melbourne Water 2007). Furthermore, past industries positioned along the creek, such as foundries and tanneries, have left residual pollution in the creek bed. Given the significant urban area, the creek has a high social importance for passive recreation, with sections of the lower reaches undergoing some rehabilitation; this is part of the construction of a nearby toll road. Therefore, detailed water monitoring has been undertaken, with high readings observed for conductivity, phosphorus, E.Coli, copper, lead and zinc (Melbourne Water 2006).

The SSF Australia and MPCCC joint project has been focused on 5 Mile creek, a small tributary that joins the Moonee Ponds creek in Essendon. The creek is little more than a drain for the surrounding suburb that the MPCCC is in the process of rehabilitating. The long term goal is to restore the creek into a healthy water way in which swimming and other water recreation is possible. The rehabilitation time frame is 20 years and has the following stages:

• Initial creek clean-up and assessment: removal of rubbish and debris that has accumulated in the creek, along with appraisal of inflow sources and their potential to introduce pollution into the creek. Includes the installation of debris traps on these inflow sources.
• Revegetation and weed control: removal of invasive exotic flora from the creek bank and planting of native flora that matches as close as possible the pre-urbanisation state. This includes improvement of surrounding parklands for recreational activities.
• Creek bed rejuvenation: removal of the concrete lining in sections and converting the creek bed to a state which resembles its original condition; i.e. pools with a shallow stream connecting.
• Pollution prevention: locating all sources of potential pollution in the surrounding area and through consultation with the local community and the support of statutory authorities undertaking the necessary actions to minimise their impact on the creek system.

Students learning about water monitoring.

Over the course of this rehabilitation project water and soil monitoring will be undertaken to provide evidence of changes in the creek conditions, as well as locate sources of pollution and ensure any toxic residues within the creek bed are not disturbed.

Report on initial study of Five Mile Creek will be released early March 2009

An example of land degradation around the creek.