Central region << BACK TO CONTENTS The Werribee River received a boost in late 2016 — its largest ever single environmental flow — in a bid to encourage native fish to breed. Melbourne Water Senior Environmental Water Planner Bill Moulden said the larger flow this year aimed to encourage migratory fish to move into the river from the estuary. “Water for the environment gives nature a boost. We use it to replicate the conditions native fish, frogs and platypus require to reproduce, and it helps to flush out sediment and improve water quality,” Bill said. “A sign of the improved river health was the discovery of an Australian grayling – a nationally-threatened fish – for the first time ever in the Werribee River. In June 2017, a young Australian grayling adult was sighted upstream near the town centre. Its age and location implied that it would have migrated during the previous spring.” Bill said the installation of a fish ladder in 2015 was also enabling Australian grayling and other fish species to migrate and breed. Monitoring funded through the Victorian Government’s Water for Victoria plan, which underpins a major investment in catchment and waterway health, found large numbers of common galaxias moving into the river after water for the environment was released. This was another sign of improved waterway health. The 1,122 megalitres of environmental water delivered to the Werribee River in 2016–17 is helping to bring the river back to optimum health. Waterway manager: Melbourne Water Storage manager: Southern Rural Water Site Werribee River Pyrites Creek Volume delivered in 2016–17 (ML) 1,122 1, 2 954 1 Deliveries to the Werribee River included some reuse of return flows. 2 Includes use of 896.4 ML of allocation made available for use by Melbourne Water. Australian grayling, by Arthur Rylah Institute 33 | Victorian Environmental Water Holder
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