Coffs Harbour Council pushes for improved water quality at popular Hearnes Lake
A spate of measures designed to get a better handle on water quality at Hearnes Lake near Woolgoolga as well as improve land management practices in the catchment have been endorsed by Coffs Harbour Council.
Coffs Harbour
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A spate of measures designed to get a better handle on water quality at Hearnes Lake near Woolgoolga as well as improve land management practices in the catchment have been endorsed by Coffs Harbour Council.
Concerns about water quality in the lake which intermittently opens to the sea have been aired for years, as the catchment has been impacted by intensive agriculture and urban development.
The popular lake has seen a notable decline in water quality and ecological condition in recent decades, possibly due to intensive plant agriculture (IPA) which consumes up to 50 per cent of the catchment area.
“Hearnes Lake is a popular recreational asset and the City together with a number of stakeholders wants to develop a sensible, science-based long-term strategy which has the potential to improve water quality,” Coffs Harbour mayor Nikki Williams said.
“A key part of that strategy is to get a reliable set of data based on consistent, fixed indicators – apples with apples – so any change in water quality can be accurately tracked.”
The region, which is known for its banana production, features farms set up on steep sloping land with the IPA activities having resulted in soil erosion and run-off of chemicals.
Adapted farming practices such as the use of poly tunnels, new chemicals and excavation works, are known to have potential impacts such as soil disturbance, alteration of stormwater flow pathways and impacts on environmental and amenity values onsite and downstream.
Furthermore, the pesticide, Chlorpyrifos, used in both farming and residential premises was found to be a contributing factor of a 2019 fish kill in the flesh of dead fish at Hearnes Lake.
The Hearnes Lake Water Quality Working Group was formed after more reports revealed the lake to be declining in health, and purposed with a focus on Intensive Plant Agriculture and water quality.
During Coffs Harbour’s final council meeting for 2024 it was resolved to endorse a new phase of actions to address the improving the health of the catchment surrounding Hearnes Lake.
These include allocating $16,200 in funding from the 2024/25 Environmental Levy to progress ‘Stage 2’ works.
“Stage 1 project acknowledged the work being undertaken by stakeholders in the catchment, but gaps and opportunities were also identified,” City Planning and Communities Acting Director Ian Fitzgibbon said.
Opportunities include supporting landholders to move towards best practice land and water management, improving water quality data and monitoring practices, and motivating change.
Improving waste management practices and communicating existing initiatives occurring within the catchment were also identified.
“Further funding for Stage 2 of the Hearnes Lake Water Quality Project will be considered as part of the Environmental Levy Program for 2025/26 and 2026/27,” Mr Fitzgibbon said.
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