Petition to remove concrete channelling from Moonee Ponds Creek
It’s been called one of Melbourne’s worst planning disasters, and now there’s a multimillion-dollar plan to remove the decades-old ugly concrete sidings marring Moonee Ponds Creek. But it all hinges on the upcoming Federal Election.
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People are being urged to help reverse one of the “worst planning disasters” in Victoria’s history.
The Planning Institute of Australia has described the concreting of major sections of Moonee Ponds Creek as one of Melbourne’s worst planning disasters.
Federal environment and water spokesman Tony Burke has proposed a program to revitalise urban rivers and wants people to tell him what waterways to focus on.
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Moonee Valley Council and Friends of Moonee Ponds Creek are urging people to sign an online petition to make the creek a priority project under the program, if Labor is elected.
Labor leader Bill Shorten has already announced $200 million in funding for urban rivers in Australia and Moonee Valley Council is now lobbying other parties to commit $6 million to remove the concrete from Moonee Ponds Creek near Brosnan Cres in Strathmore.
Friends of Moonee Ponds Creek president Kelvin Thomson said that between 1940 and 1980 the Melbourne Metropolitan Board of Works, now called Melbourne Water, concreted the creek from Strathmore to Flemington Rd, in an attempt to stop flooding.
“That was a theory without any merit,” Mr Thomson said.
Moonee Valley Mayor Narelle Sharpe encouraged residents to join in the fight to protect the creek.
“The revitalisation of the creek at Brosnan Cres was identified last year as one of the council’s top advocacy priorities,” Cr Sharpe said.
“In a city with such a fast-growing population, the creek provides an increasingly important connection to nature.”
A memorandum of understanding between Moonee Valley Council, Melbourne Water and 13 other organisations was signed in November to transform Moonee Ponds Creek into a biodiverse waterway.
Issues included poor water quality and poor stormwater management.
Sign the petition at tonyburke.com.au/victora/moonee-ponds-creek
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