Improving fish passage in Billabong Creek

The Billabong Creek Catchment will soon be more fish friendly, thanks to a new project being run by the NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) and the Murray Catchment Management Authority (CMA), NSW Minister for Primary Industries Ian Macdonald said today.

“The ‘Billabong Creek Aquatic Habitat Restoration Project’ will identify road crossings in Billabong Creek that block the migrations of native fish.

“DPI will work with local landholders and the community to modify or upgrade identified crossings to ensure that important fish migrations can occur,” Mr Macdonald said.

DPI Aquatic Habitat Rehabilitation Conservation Manager Jenny Fredrickson said native fish such as Murray cod and golden and silver perch migrate to feed, spawn and find shelter.

“Structures such as road crossings, dams, weirs and levee banks can prevent fish moving between habitats to complete their lifecycles.

“By modifying or removing these structures we can reinstate opportunities for fish migration and give fish a helping hand,” she said.

Works to improve fish passage may include removing obsolete road crossings or fitting existing low level road crossings with large culverts to create suitable flow conditions under the roadway.”

This project is being run in conjunction with a wider project looking to review all crossings, weirs, floodgates and other obstructions to fish passage on watercourses in the Murray Catchment.

“It is estimated that there are several hundred obstructions to fish passage within the Murray Catchment, which spans from the Snowy Mountains to Tooleybuc near Swan Hill.

“Through this assessment we will identify which crossings are priority sites for actions that can benefit both native fish and the wider community by providing improved vehicle access following floods,” Ms Fredrickson said.

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