Recovery update

With the help of students from Gowrie Clare Court Kindergarten, a new frog pond area with more than 500 plants has been created at Cruickshank Park, Yarraville to encourage the return of frogs to the area and create new habitats.

This new frog pond area is part of the vision in Maribyrnong City Council’s Stony Creek Future Directions Plan 2020 and a key action of the Stony Creek Rehabilitation Plan 2019-2029 (a cross agency Plan between Melbourne Water, the Environment Protection Authority and Maribyrnong City Council), highlighting the collaborative efforts to restore habitat and biodiversity in the area for the community.

It has been installed near the pedestrian footbridge at Drew Street, Yarraville, and over time will offer a new home to frogs and insects in the area.

The area around the pond has been planted with native plants, including aquatic and semi-aquatic plants to encourage and enhance the development of local ecosystems. It has also been fenced to help protect the wildlife as they return to the area and create habitats.

The survival of native wildlife in our City depends on healthy native vegetation communities. Frogs play an important role in the waterway ecosystem and are easily affected by changes to their environment. This frog pond will provide vital habitats for a range of native animals such as the Banjo Frog and the Spotted Marsh Frog, and many bird species.

Further upcoming work along Stony Creek, as part of the Stony Creek Future Directions Plan and Stony Creek Rehabilitation Plan, includes the installation of further frog pond areas and raingardens, and amenity and facility improvements such as upgrades to the shared user path that runs along the Creek, more revegetation throughout the Park, and new toilets and a BBQ area.

Recent work in the area includes a new Stony Creek Pedestrian Footbridge, which was installed near Cala St, West Footscray in early 2020, along with 4,000 plants that were established along the Creek in collaboration with Melbourne Water in 2020 to enrich habitat in the area.

Get involved in Melbourne Water’s free Frog Census App and collect data to help manage frog populations and raise awareness of waterway health issues. Data collected in the Frog census will be used to assess frog population trends and inform waterway planning.

Stony Creek is a vital waterway in our City that flows from the west through Braybrook, Tottenham, West Footscray and Yarraville to reach the Yarra River near the West Gate Bridge.

The Stony Creek Future Directions Plan, endorsed by Council on 25 February 2020, recommends new improvements in the area to help increase community safety and accessibility.

For more information about the Stony Creek Future Directions Plan 2020, visit our website www.maribyrnong.vic.gov.au/stonycreek

For more information about the Stony Creek Rehabilitation Plan 2019-2029, please visit the website www.melbournewater.com.au/about/strategies-and-reports/stony-creek-rehabilitation-plan

Message from the Mayor, Cr Michael Clarke

Cruickshank Park is a much-loved open space in our community and I am thrilled to see the collaboration with Melbourne Water in progressing the recovery of Stony Creek.

Supporting local ecosystems and encouraging native animals to return to the area is an important part of recovery, and is just one of the many things we will be doing to restore the area for generations to come.

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