Client: Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority
Location: Goulburn catchment

Key Services Provided:

• Geographic impact assessment
• Post fire vegetation response assessment
• GIS Photo Hotlinking and mapping

Overview

The 2009 Black Saturday Victorian Bushfires affected a significant area of the upper Goulburn River catchment between Kilmore/ Wandong and Alexandra. The fire has been regarded as “Australia’s worst natural disaster” with significant loss of life, and impacts on communities, destruction of infrastructure and natural assets. A vital natural asset of concern in these areas are waterways, and in order to facilitate their recovery, an assessment of fire related damage and related ecological and erosion risks on priority river systems was required.

Water Technology collected field data from along the Steavenson, Little Steavenson, Taggerty, and Big Rivers, as well as Robertsons Gully and Island Creek. This data included burn intensity assessment; quantifying and costing the repair or replacement of fences; identifying existing or potential stream erosion, sedimentation avulsion or debris flow sites or reaches; comment on reach width, native and exotic vegetation loss and recovery, and hyperlinking field photos to a GIS for supply to the client. This data was digitised and designed to assist in the decision making process for future work and spending on waterways with the fire affected area.

Contact:

Jamie Kaye (jamie.kaye@watech.com.au)
Senior Ecologist
Phone 03 5721 2650 or 0400 873 630
PO Box 792, Wangaratta VIC 3676