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Response to the lead agency's fourth annual report
Melbourne Water, as lead agency, has provided their annual report detailing the progress of Burndap Birrarung burndap umarkoo implementation from July 2024 to June 2025. Progress on advice to the Minister has been assessed, including:
- The status of 40 actions set out in Part 1 of Burndap Birrarung burndap umarkoo. These are categorised as either short term (1-3), medium term (4-7 years) or long term (8-10 years) and organised under 4 performance objectives (Box 2.1).
- The status of the 189 activities (projects, maintenance, campaigns, and other initiatives) that have been listed by responsible public entities as contributing to the performance objectives. This is also known as the activities schedule.
- Progress on the 5 priority projects.
Performance objectives
A healthy river and lands – improving the water quality of the Yarra River and protecting its land, floodplains and billabongs to achieve greater biodiversity.
A culturally diverse river – acknowledging, protecting and commemorating the rich heritage of Birrarung and its stories.
Quality parklands for a growing population – improving the river’s parklands to support community wellbeing and strengthen the relationship between the Yarra River, its community and visitors.
Protecting the natural beauty of the Yarra River corridor – respecting the significance of the Yarra River’s landscapes. Where we build, we will protect and celebrate the river’s natural beauty, landscapes and views.
Progress on actions
Of the 40 actions identified in Burndap Birrarung burndap umarkoo, 12 have been delivered, 24 are in progress, and 4 remain in the planning phase. Since the last reporting period we note the delivery of 3 actions, while a further 3 actions are now in progress, but 4 actions remain to be planned.
Twenty-two short term actions were due to be delivered in this reporting period. Chart 2.1 describes the progress of the short-term actions of 1 to 3 years. However, as the lead agency noted in their annual report, short-term actions relating to stormwater awareness, litter reduction, urban greening, and climate change adaptation require continued effort and investment, necessitating a rethink of how these actions are defined.
The Birrarung Council supports the change in designation from 'delivered' to 'ongoing' reflecting the goal that Birrarung receives ongoing care and stewardship. The work of the Yarra Collaboration Committee (YCC) has led to this important shift in understanding progress within Burndap Birrarung burndap umarkoo.
As we approach the mid-point of the implementation of Burndap Birrarung burndap umarkoo (2022–2032). The Birrarung Council recognises the significant progress achieved to this point and the efforts of the YCC and responsible public entities.
In reviewing Melbourne Water’s report of progress across the 4 performance objectives in Burndap Birrarung burndap umarkoo, we highlight 4 key themes: climate change, resourcing, living entity, and land-use planning.
There are 4 performance objectives to be achieved across the 10-year implementation of Burndap Birrarung burndap umarkoo.
Performance objective 1 – A healthy river and lands
Performance objective 1: a healthy River and lands (Actions 1-23) has delivered 8 actions, while 14 are in progress and one remains at the planning stage. These actions encompass water quality, habitat, pest plants and animals and climate change. Melbourne Water is very positive about the commitment and investment of responsible public entities in these actions.
We noted in our 2024 Annual Report how implementation of commitments in the Healthy Waterways Strategy is essential to achieving a healthy River. We will be paying increased attention to the ongoing progress of implementing the Healthy Waterways Strategy.
Performance objective 2 – A culturally diverse river
The completion of actions within Performance Objective 2: a culturally diverse River corridor relies on adequate resourcing for meaningful participation and partnerships with the Bunurong Land Council and Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation. Melbourne Water highlights this in their Annual Report as an ongoing challenge.
In the last reporting period 2 actions have moved to 'in progress' and 2 remain in the planning phase. The Birrarung Parklands transformative project includes Birrarung cultural mapping and cultural narrative projects designed to empower Traditional Owners and their custodial responsibilities and aspirations. We note that other projects depend on this transformative project and attention to resourcing is vital to its completion.
Performance objective 3 – Quality parklands for a growing population
The River as a single living entity is recognised in Performance objective 3: quality parklands for a growing population (actions 29-38). Of the 10 actions in this performance objective, 7 are in progress and 3 delivered.
The performance objective is also being met through the Birrarung Parklands transformative project which continues to demonstrate how essential collaboration between responsible public entities is to embed understanding of Birrarung as a single living entity.
Performance objective 4 – Protecting the natural beauty of the Yarra River corridor
The Birrarung Council is pleased to see progress towards Performance Objective 4: protecting the natural beauty of the River corridor. Though Action 40 is unchanged since our last report, we note significant progress for Action 39 with the approval of planning scheme amendment VC281 in April 2025.
Resources produced by the Department of Transport and Planning (DTP) and a working group with the DTP and the YCC to develop guidance for considering the Birrarung Protection Principles in land use planning matters are important steps on the path towards achieving this performance objective.
Further details are available in the action tracker in Melbourne Water’s Annual Report.
Progress on activities
Activities contributing to the 4 performance objectives of Burndap Birrarung burndap umarkoo, undertaken and planned by responsible entities, are listed in the activities schedule.
Compiled each year by the lead agency, activities include routine business, local projects and transformative projects (including the 5 priority projects committed to in Burndap Birrarung burndap umarkoo). As of 30 June 2025, the schedule lists 189 activities (an increase of 13 from the last reporting period).
- 25 activities listed as 'in progress' last year have been delivered.
- 66% (124 activities) are currently 'in progress, an increase from 61% in the last reporting period.
- 28 activities are planned and 7 are on hold while 5 are listed as ideas requiring further scoping. (Activities on hold are dependent on budget allocation or completion of other projects before they can proceed.)
- The suburban reach has the most (60 activities), while the lower rural reach has the fewest (19 activities) listed.
Ethical food production and the living river
My family has been living and working on this apple and pear orchard and beef grazing property on Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung land since the early 1900s. Others had planted small orchards along the creek flats as early as the 1880s.
My husband and I joined the business in 1980. Orcharding was changing rapidly. Orchards were getting larger, and food production was becoming more automated and more regulated.
Water is the essential ingredient to grow apples and pears which are around 80% water. The water has always come from local rainfall and the creek. The creek is vital to our operation, and our family has always known it must be cared for and nurtured. We were taught the importance of this from childhood.
Change is a constant in food production as we respond to our natural environment and human preferences and needs. Some of the improvements in water management I have participated in are:
- Water use: Inefficient irrigation practices such as flood irrigation or overhead sprinklers have been replaced by calibrated key drippers. Melbourne Water enforces the local Streamflow Management Plan to regulate how and when we pump to our irrigation dam.
- Melbourne Water’s stream frontage management program: We have been active participants since its inception as YarraCare in the early 1990s. Cleared banks dotted with willows have been replaced with native vegetation and livestock exclusion fencing.
- Supermarkets require ethical food production certification: To supply fruit to major supermarket chains, we have to report on water efficiency, input and output water quality and biodiversity impacts.
- Chemical users must be certified: We must record chemical use, and these records are audited by Agriculture Victoria. Chemicals can only be applied under strictly defined conditions to prevent run off into waterways.
I cannot predict how food production will change in the future. But I do believe we are on the right trajectory to produce food ethically while minimising the impact on our waterways and honouring our relationship with Birrarung.
Bronwyn South, Birrarung Council member and primary producer, Yarra Valley
Progress on priority projects
Collaborative effort is necessary to achieve long term and ongoing health for the River, and this is recognised in 5 priority projects. As stated in Burndap Birrarung burndap umarkoo the projects ‘are innovative, represent a shift toward collaborative management between authorities and partnership with the Traditional Owners, and will deliver significant change across the river corridor.’ These projects each have highly visible outcomes that should enable community engagement.
The Birrarung Council is once again pleased to see progress on these important projects, especially the opportunities for Traditional Owners to be empowered as decision makers and for cultural knowledge to enrich how the River is cared for.
The Birrarung Ranger Program, led by the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation’s Narrap (Water) Unit, is now in its second year. Yering Billabongs and Biik Wurrdha have been selected as 2 pilot sites for undertaking bird and vegetation surveys to understand ecological values and collect information around cultural values. Developing a waterway assessment methodology in underway.
The Yering Billabongs Project, led by Yarra Ranges Shire Council, is testing whether former grazing land can be transformed back into a section of the Birrarung flood plains.
In our last Annual Report, the Birrarung Council were pleased to report on the demonstration cultural burn that took place in May 2024, and we are pleased to see a second cultural burn was carried out in established areas of Spadonis reserve during the reporting period.
Cultural burns, under the leadership of Traditional Owners, are one encouraging example of the ways in which traditional ecological knowledge can lead collaborative care for Country.
The Yarra Flats Revitalisation Program, led by Melbourne Water, includes multiple responsible public entities, a university and community group working together.
The project has to date established a long-term watering regime for Annulus and Banksia Street Billabongs; this maximises ecological, cultural and liveability outcomes while considering cultural values, recovery and potential and historical values. The Program’s works are expected to be delivered between early 2026 and late 2028.
Melbourne City Council is leading the Birrarung Floating Wetlands project which was installed in December 2022. The floating wetlands at 3 locations have become a memorable site in Birrarung’s inner city reach. The outcomes from The University of Melbourne’s wildlife monitoring program are eagerly awaited. The wetlands trial period ends in mid-2026.
The Yarra Riverkeeper Association led the Polystyrene Pollution Project which was delivered in 3 phases. The final phase has identified the need for coordinated action across the expanded polystyrene (EPS) lifecycle.
Recommendations have been made to improve practices at construction sites and advocating for the use of alternative materials. Birrarung Council looks forward to seeing how the report is used to support changes in site management by the construction sector and by government agencies with compliance and enforcement powers, especially EPA and local government.
Climate change
It has been over 30 years since both the CSIRO and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), within the United Nations, signalled major warnings about national and global climate change. Both provided governments at all levels with scientific information that they can use to develop climate policies.
In September 2025, Australia’s Climate Change Authority released its 2035 Targets Advice report. For Birrarung catchment, and Melbourne, these projected climate change risks include an overall drying of the landscape and including its river systems; increased incidents of bushfires and seasonal weather events; sea levels rises and low-lying coastal erosion and flooding; and increasing temperatures and periods of high temperature.
All of which impacts upon humans, human-support infrastructure, and the more than human community of Birrarung, including platypus, rakali, fish, turtles, frogs and birds, vegetation communities, and water flows.
Climate change will have and is having significant impacts upon the water systems and cultural flows of Birrarung. All the while, we have proliferated a tangled web of non-porous surfaces in urban areas, escalating stormwater run-off and starving soils and plant roots of moisture. We have also caused major changes in animals, birds, plants, and vegetation, including introduced species that have acclimated across the catchment and radically altered its pre-colonisation ecological and habitat systems.
In making hard choices about our future water, we must ensure that our policy processes are informed by an understanding and recognition of Birrarung as a living entity and a custodial relationship of care and reciprocity. We need to be mindful not to squander the gifts of the living rivers that sustain us.
Healthy Waterways Strategy annual summary 2024
The Birrarung Council is following the progress of the Healthy Waterways Strategy 2018-2028 (the Strategy) for its ongoing synergies with Burndap Birrarung burndap umarkoo and the 50-Year Community Vision. The strategy covers the Port Phillip and Western Port regions including Birrarung’s Yarra catchment.
To protect and improve the health of rivers, wetlands and estuaries the strategy maintains catchment scale targets. Performance objectives (10-year targets) are measured annually and help assess the short-term progress towards achieving the long-term (10 to 50 year) goals set out in the Strategy.
Birrarung Council recognises the aspirational nature of the Healthy Waterways Strategy, and commends Melbourne Water and all its partners for their ambition in setting these targets. However, we also recognise that the mid-term review highlighted a range of areas for further improvement. There does not appear to be any significant change between 2024 and 2025 in the annual data provided on the Healthy Waterways Strategy website.
Melbourne Water have signalled in their Annual Report that a priority for 2026 is improving the integration of Burndap Birrarung burndap umarkoo with the Healthy Waterways Strategy (and Port Phillip and Western Port Regional Catchment Strategy).
We see this as an important step to ensure that data collected as part of this wider strategy is also informing the implementation of Burndap Birrarung burndap umarkoo (and vice versa).
State of the Birrarung (Yarra) and Its Parklands 2023 Report
In our 2024 Annual Report, we listed the 7 recommendations from the State of the Birrarung (Yarra) and Its Parklands 2023 Report.
Three of the 6 recommendations (3, 5 & 6) refer to the Healthy Waterways Strategy as a potential management tool to address several challenges for Birrarung. However, the Victorian Government has yet to respond to the recommendations, which, in October 2025, is now a significant delay.
We look forward to seeing a response from the Victorian Government in the near future.
Download the full report
Page last updated: 21/11/25