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Wallan Wetland

Wetlands

We are building a wetland within Wallan Community Park, alongside Whittlesea Road in Wallan.

Wetlands improve water quality by naturally filtering stormwater and reducing the amount of pollutants flowing into waterways. This wetland will specifically improve the health of Wallan Creek and reduce the amount of nitrogen and other pollutants in the water.

The work is being done by the Waterways Alliance, on behalf of Melbourne Water.

What's happening and when?

Stage one – earthworks (late 2011 and early 2012 - completed)
  • land will be excavated to form wetland ponds, and the soil will be moved off-site by trucks Wetland ponds will be excavated and the soil moved off site by trucks
  • at peak times there will probably be one truck entering and exiting the site every five minutes
Stage two – Civil Works (late 2011 and early 2012 - completed)
  • the rock weir will be built within Wallan Creek and pipes and structures will be installed within the wetland
  • we’ll build the pedestrian path
Stage three – planting and landscaping (autumn 2012 - underway)
  • almost 35,000 native plants will be planted in the wetland and surrounding park area to complete the project
  • most of these plants are aquatic species which will be planted within the new wetland ponds

Key facts

  • The project is being completed in co-operation with Mitchell Shire Council
  • Works began in November 2011 and the final stage will end in mid 2012
  • A concept plan shows the new wetland and highlights where the wetland ponds, vegetation and path will be located within Wallan Community Park.

How will the wetland work?

  • the Wallan wetland will be made up of a deeper sediment pond, two shallow vegetated wetland pools and a rock weir within Wallan Creek
  • the rock weir will divert a portion of stormwater into the sediment pond
  • the sediment pond is designed to slow the flow of the diverted water causing dissolved sediments such as silt and organic matter to fall to the bottom
  • the water then flows slowly through the wetland pools where tens of thousands of aquatic plants remove nitrogen and other pollutants through a natural biological process
  • after about two to three days the water will re-enter the creek cleaner and with fewer pollutants

Impacts on residents

  • the works have been planned in a way that minimises the amount of soil exposed at any one time, to reduce the potential for dust water carts will also be used to reduce dust throughout the period and we will stop work during high winds
  • machinery noise is expected during project work hours – 7am–5pm Monday to Friday and 8am–3pm on Saturdays
  • the project area within Wallan Community Park will be fenced off until July 2012 to ensure the safety of our work crews and the community
  • we will do our best to keep any disruptions to a minimum but thank you in advance for your patience and co-operation

Community consultation

  • we began consulting with Council, community and key local groups in early 2008 when the planning for the Wallan wetland started
  • we’re committed to working closely with our local stakeholders during construction
  • key stakeholders and members of the community were encouraged to provide feedback on our concept design in summer 2010/11. View feedback.
  • This feedback helped us create the final design for the wetland which was presented to the council before work began

Contact us

Please contact the Waterways Alliance for more information.

Call 131 722 and ask for the Waterways Alliance team.

Contact us online.