Rockhampton Regional Council, Queensland, has recently joined forces with Healthy Land and Water to look at the environmental, ecological and social benefits of Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD).
Healthy Land and Water are a South East Queensland based organisation, which has over 20 years’ experience in working to improve the natural environment, through data analysis, ecosystem assessment, project development and land management, planning and water restoration.
Through the positive steps Council has shown in developing policies and plans around environmental sustainability and urban planning, Healthy Land and Water have selected Rockhampton as part of a 12 month pilot program that they are currently doing in other parts of the state.
Senior Infrastructure Planning Engineer Flood Plain Management, Monishaa Prasad, said, “While Healthy Land and Water have had a long term presence in Queensland, they are new to Central Queensland and have acknowledged our progression in this space.”
For their contribution to the pilot program, Council has begun incorporating WSUD, in particular Water Wise Street Tree Design and the concept of Passive Irrigation, into some upcoming civil design projects. As part of the roll out of these pilot programs, Healthy Land and Water will be gathering metrics and compiling guidelines for councils to follow.
Prasad said this would give some valuable information not only around the immediate effect on the trees but also the impact it has on waterways.
“There is a flow on effect to what we do here on the land and that of course, is the impact that we have on our waterways both near and far.
“As a Reef Guardian Council, we need to be making positive steps to ensure our policies and practices around water management are well considered and in line with our strategic objectives.”
