We, at Still Creek Landcare, have been testing the quality of some of our Galston, Arcadia and Berrilee creek waters for the last 9 years. We test for pollution and ability to bear life, salts, phosphorous, oxygen, acidity, turbidity and E.coli. More recently, we have been measuring the presence of biological indicator species such as stoneflies, mayflies and caddis flies.
In general, our creeks are in fairly good condition, but the closer to people’s houses, the worse they are. We can help keep our creeks clean and encourage life in them by:
• Using nil or low phosphorus detergents
• Maintaining our septic systems in good condition and pump them out when required
• Keeping grazing animals away from waterways to prevent erosion and
• Using fertilisers sparingly and collecting livestock manure
This work is funded and supported by The Australian Museum via the Streamwatch program. For more information on local water quality, results and trends for the last 9 years, follow this link: http://www.stillcreeklandcare.com.au/our-catchment/water-quality/
Interested in doing some testing yourself? Then contact us on via our website http://www.stillcreeklandcare.com.au/ or phone 9653 3870 / 9653 2056. Come and join us, it’s interesting, scientific and not hard to do.
