On Saturday September 22, project officers from the government departments involved in rehabilitating the badly eroded Woodwards Creek, which runs through Bungonia Village at the back of the Bungonia Hall and Rural Fire Service station, explained the project’s concept and importance and thanked the many people involved.

A grant of $100,000 was awarded in early 2015 to Bungonia Park Trust under the Environmental Trust's Restoration and Rehabilitation program. 

The aim of works was to halt stream bed and bank erosion so that stable in-stream habitat could be restored to support aquatic life.  

The works were needed to halt further degradation, promote channel recovery and enhance the habitat values of adjacent native vegetation, identified as a priority for protection (potentially endangered ecological communities tablelands grassy box gum woodland) and vulnerable due to the erosion.

The works were designed to encourage in channel storage of sediment which will then be colonised by native vegetation.

At the public viewing of the project, David Hilhorst, Senior Land Service Officer Rural Landscapes Program at South East Local Land Services, Braidwood spoke about the history of the creek and its significance.

He said it was important to re-establish the vegetation that the creek used to support and which had died out through degradation.

He explained that the creek flooded quickly during large rain events and the speed and volume of water from the surrounding land had eroded the banks and pushed the sediment and smaller rocks downstream.

Mr Hilhorst said it was critical that the creek’s rehabilitation take place to halt further damage. 

Both he and Senior Environmental Officer with the Soil Conservation Service Lyall Bogie said the community involvement and assistant from the Peppertree Quarry had been invaluable in progressing the work.

Huge boulders from the quarry had been used to create a series of drops and walls to stablise the embankment and creek bed and slow the speed of floodwaters.

The log barriers which are anchored deeply into bed will also return carbon to the creek to further support a range of aquatic organisms. 

Mr Bogie took those interested on a short walk to view the works and explain how the various intervention measures will help to improve the creek environment once water starts flowing again.

He explained how the work in the Woodward Creek in Bungonia was important to the entire catchment system’s health as well as the immediate area.

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