NSW Water Quality and River Flow Objectives About the Objectives Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water   Select from the scrolling list, statewide map or catchment list Select a catchment Barwon-Darling and Far Western Bega River Bellinger River Border Rivers Brunswick River Camden Haven and Hastings River Castlereagh River Clarence River Clyde River and Jervis Bay Cooks River Georges River Gosford and Northern Beaches Lagoons Gwydir River Hacking River Hawkesbury-Nepean River Hunter River Karuah River and Great Lakes Lachlan River Illawarra Lake Macquarie and Tuggerah Lakes Macleay River Macquarie-Bogan River Manning River Moruya River Murray River Murrumbidgee River and Lake George Nambucca River Namoi River Richmond River Shoalhaven River Sydney Harbour and Parramatta River Towamba and Genoa River Tuross River Tweed River Williams River

Tuross River
Water Quality and River Flow Objectives

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• Mainly forested areas
• Water Quality Objectives
• River Flow Objectives
• Waterways affected by urban development
• Water Quality Objectives
• River Flow Objectives
• Uncontrolled streams
• Water Quality Objectives
• River Flow Objectives
• Estuaries
• Water Quality Objectives
• River Flow Objectives

This section gives the Water Quality Objectives (WQOs) and the River Flow Objectives (RFOs) that should be used to develop plans and actions affecting water quality and river health in the Tuross River catchment. Only the priority RFOs are listed in this section, but the remaining objectives still need to be considered when developing flow management plans or dealing with particular local river conditions.

Mainly forested areas

Streams in mainly forested areas are often valued for their conservation or recreational values. They often have relatively natural flows and water quality. Many are in national parks or state forests.

Map: The objectives apply to streams running through areas coloured green on the map (state forests, national parks and nature reserves), as well as other forested areas, if any are defined locally.

Water Quality Objectives

Protection of:

	Aquatic ecosystems
	Visual amenity
	Secondary contact recreation
	Primary contact recreation
	Drinking water at point of supply-Disinfection only
	Drinking water at point of supply-Clarification and disinfection
	Drinking water at point of supply-Groundwater
	Aquatic foods (cooked)

River Flow Objectives

	Protect pools in dry times
	Protect natural low flows
	Maintain natural flow variability
	Manage groundwater for ecosystems
	Minimise effects of weirs and other structures

Supporting information

• Includes Bodalla, Badja, Dampier, Tallaganda and Wandella state forests and Deua and Wadbilliga national parks. Where streams in these areas have areas of rural land use upstream, these objectives will need to be protected.

• RFO Manage groundwater for ecosystems applies in areas of groundwater use.
• While there are few instream barriers in waterways in this category, RFO Minimise effects of weirs and other structures is included in case instream structures are proposed in future.

Waterways affected by urban development

Streams within urban areas are frequently substantially modified and carry poor quality stormwater. Many local communities are keen to see such streams returned to more natural conditions.

Map: Urban development areas are shown in orange or as orange dots on the map.

Water Quality Objectives

Protection of:

	Aquatic ecosystems
	Visual amenity
	Secondary contact recreation, as a short-term objective, within 5 years
	Primary contact recreation: assess opportunities to achieve as a longer term objective, 10 years or more

River Flow Objectives

	Mimic natural drying in temporary waterways
	Maintain natural flow variability
	Maintain natural rates of change in water levels
	Manage groundwater for ecosystems
	Minimise effects of weirs and other structures

Supporting information

• Includes the urban areas of Narooma, Tuross Heads and Bodalla.
• In some urban waterways, aquatic ecosystems are considerably modified. A return to pristine aquatic ecosystems in these areas is unlikely and impractical. However, water quality conditions for existing ecosystems can be improved greatly for the benefit of local species and broader catchment health. Data from other local aquatic ecosystems of similar type, in areas that are not urbanised, may provide achievable criteria for these modified aquatic ecosystems.
• Existing programs include the Urban Stormwater Management Program, which includes a stormwater education program, the development of stormwater plans and series of stormwater trust grants.
• In this catchment, all significant urban development drains directly to estuaries.
• Water quality impacts arising from unsewered areas and stormwater can be significant issues in urban settlements throughout the catchment.

Uncontrolled streams

Uncontrolled streams and waterbodies are those that are not in estuaries or the other categories. Their flow patterns are largely natural but may have been altered to a limited degree.

Map: Uncontrolled streams are shown as blue lines on the map.

Water Quality Objectives

Protection of:

	Aquatic ecosystems
	Visual amenity
	Secondary contact recreation
	Primary contact recreation
	Livestock water supply
	Irrigation water supply
	Homestead water supply
	Drinking water at point of supply-Disinfection only
	Drinking water at point of supply-Clarification and disinfection
	Drinking water at point of supply-Groundwater
	Aquatic foods (cooked)

River Flow Objectives

	Protect pools in dry times
	Protect natural low flows
	Protect important rises in water levels
	Maintain wetland and floodplain inundation
	Mimic natural drying in temporary waterways
	Maintain natural flow variability
	Manage groundwater for ecosystems
	Minimise effects of weirs and other structures

Supporting information

• Particular attention should be paid to maintaining suitable instream water quality in any areas that are the source of town water supplies, so that supplies can continue to be drawn from these sources and safely treated. There is a licensed town water supply offtake point at Illawambera Creek Dam, while town water for Tuross Heads is taken from Kiora in the adjoining Moruya catchment.
• Current irrigation uses from tidal but non-saline zones in these streams need to be recognised in management decisions.
• Because of the great variability in subcatchments, the Water Management Committee will need to evaluate areas where different WQOs and RFOs are priorities in terms of overall costs and benefits to the community.

Estuaries

Being dominated by saline conditions, estuaries have hydraulic and water quality characteristics, and potential problems, that are often very different from those of freshwater systems.

Map: Estuaries are coloured purple on the map.

Water Quality Objectives

Protection of:

	Aquatic ecosystems
	Visual amenity
	Secondary contact recreation
	Primary contact recreation
	Aquatic foods (cooked) and commercial shellfish production in designated estuaries

River Flow Objectives

	Maintain wetland and floodplain inundation
	Manage groundwater for ecosystems
	Minimise effects of weirs and other structures
	Maintain or rehabilitate estuarine processes and habitats

Supporting information

• Includes the Tuross Estuary and adjacent coastal lake areas, including Tilba Tilba, Coila, Brou, Mummaga, Kianga, Nangudga, Little and Corunna Lakes and Wagonga Inlet.
• The Tuross and Moruya rivers and Wagonga Inlet shellfish quality assurance programs conduct regular monitoring of estuarine water quality as part of action to support commercial shellfish production.
• Parts of the lower estuarine reaches are underlain by potential acid sulfate soils, which should not be disturbed. Dredging and disturbance of bottom sediments (i.e. those below water level) can also have major impacts in these areas.

This page was published 1 May 2006