Bushland and Foreshores Areas Management.

  Approximately one quarter of the catchment area is bushland, reserved in Garigal National Park, council managed bushland reserves and estuarine areas. There is also significant bushland in private ownership and in other state agencies' control, eg, Department of Land and Water Conservation, Roads and Traffic Authority, Sydney Water and Department of Urban Affairs and Planning, much of which adjoins publicly owned bushland. These bushlands are valuable because they conserve vegetation and fauna habitats. People also use this bushland for many recreational pursuits.

We believe it is important to manage the bushland and foreshores appropriately, because of their extent and variety; and because they are used so much This will ensure that we conserve these areas, enable recreational use in them, and retain their beauty in the long term.

The bushlands and foreshores are generally downslope of the developed urban areas. Because stormwater runoff contains seeds, plants, soils and nutrients and it increases soil moisture, it promotes weed invasion of bushland. This is a major long term problem facing much of the bushland and foreshore areas. Management strategies for each area need to identity the right measures to rehabilitate, manage and use the bushland This will either improve the degraded sites or maintain non-degraded areas. It is important that appropriate planning and development controls recognise the natural and scenic values of the bushland areas and the potential for developments within the catchment area to impact on the bushland and foreshore areas.
 

Members of Committee investigate Stormwater Drain in local Bushland.
 

 
 
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