Approximately ten shipping containers worth of human-made debris have been removed from a 90-kilometre stretch of the Macquarie River-Wambuul near Warren, marking the completion of a complex flood recovery program led by the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA).
Beginning in April 2024, the clean-up works were undertaken to help clear several large debris rafts, comprising organic and human-made materials, that formed in part of the river following severe flood events in the state’s central west.
Several debris rafts were so large they spanned the entire width of the river, raising concerns among the Warren community about their potential impacts on water flow, quality, and overall river health.
NSW EPA Director of Incident Management and Environmental Health, Arminda Ryan, said that after a mammoth eight-month clean-up effort, all human-made debris had been successfully untangled from the rafts and cleared from the river.
“Crews from specialist contractor Northern Rivers Marine Services worked through challenging conditions to remove large amounts of human-made flood debris from the rafts, including a car, chemical drums, fridges and dryers, canoes and more,” Ms Ryan said.
“Severe floods have lasting, wide-spread impacts, often resulting in costly and complicated clean-ups for local communities, so we’re pleased we could deliver this clean-up program with a great result for the river and the community.”
Ms Ryan said the program’s successful outcome was made possible through collaboration.
“This was a complex clean-up effort due to its scale and the difficulty of working in a dynamic river environment. We achieved what we did by working closely with the community, expert colleagues in other agencies, the Warren Shire Council and our specialist contractor.
“In particular, the involvement of the community was vital. The people of Warren know this river inside out, and right from the get-go, they provided us with invaluable advice to ensure the works were completed with the sensitivity of the local environment in mind.”
In addition to removing human-made debris, a significant amount of woody weed debris was also cleared from the river so crews could safely access and remove the bulky human-made debris.
The program was funded under the joint Commonwealth and State Disaster Funding Recovery Arrangements. More information about previous EPA flood recovery programs can be found here.
Contact details:
EPA MEDIA | TESS GIBNEY | 0456 053 522
24-hour Media Line (02) 9995 6415 media@epa.nsw.gov.au