31 August 2007
STORMWATER HARVESTED TO HELP SUSTAIN ROYAL PARK
Royal Park's Australian Native Garden pond has been given a facelift, following the completion of an $85,000 project to supply up to five million litres of treated stormwater to the pond.
The project, a joint initiative of Melbourne Water and City of Melbourne, captures and treats stormwater from the roofs and road surfaces of The Avenue, Gatehouse Street and Royal Parade and then fills the garden pond.
Melbourne Water General Manager of Waterways, Chris Chesterfield, said the project meant that no drinking water would be used to maintain the pond level.
"This project not only saves drinking water, but at the same time pollutants that would otherwise be washed into rivers, creeks and the Bay are cleaned up by a natural treatment system and then reused in the pond," Mr Chesterfield said.
Lord Mayor John So said planting Australian natives around the pond helped treat the stormwater before it entered the pond.
"School students from St Joseph's College in North Melbourne have been involved in the planting phase of this project. This a fantastic opportunity for students to learn about the link between stormwater and the health of our waterways," the Lord Mayor said.
The design mimics a natural billabong. Australian natives are planted in a dense formation called a 'swale'. A series of mini wetlands within it will trap litter, sediments and pollutants such as nitrogen and phosphorous from stormwater before it enters the pond.
"When it rains, litter, motor oil, chemicals and other pollutants are washed into stormwater drains and eventually into our rivers and creeks," Mr Chesterfield said.
"This can be prevented by diverting stormwater into areas where it can be cleaned up and either returned to our water ways and bays or be harvested and reused instead of drinking water."
The Lord Mayor said the treated stormwater would help maintain a healthy water level in the Australian Native Garden pond for the benefit of the frogs, birds, dragonflies and other wetland animals that call it home.
The design features of the treatment system would be explained to the public in signage near the pond.
Melbourne Water invests around $31 million a year in projects to protect and improve the health of waterways and in creating important habitat for the variety of native animals that love living there.