Looking after your catchment

Everyone lives in a catchment whether it drains to a nearby wetland, a stream, river, the ocean or an inland sea. And everyone can make sure they do what they can at home and in their neighbourhood to look after their catchment.

What can an individual do?

All of our activities have an impact on the environment, from fertilising our front lawn, dropping a cigarette butt, sweeping dirt into the street or washing the car on the road. There are simple things we all can do to reduce pollution in our local waterways.

• Use a broom to sweep up
  Sweep up leaves and litter so they can’t be washed into the drain. Cover piles of sand or mulch so they don’t wash into drains.

• Use less fertiliser on the garden
  Fertiliser you put on your garden can feed algal blooms if it gets into the river. Give plants only what they need, use slow release fertilisers and never exceed the recommended rate.

• Clean up after the dog
  Dog droppings left on footpaths can wash into stormwater drains, polluting lakes with bacteria and nutrients. Always pick up after your dog.

• Don't feed ducks or wildlife
  Feeding wildlife causes more harm than good. Animals can become dependant on the "free" diet, which is likely to be nutrient deficient and young animals may never learn to forage for themselves. The young then risk starvation.

• Put cigarette butts and rubbish into the bin
  Rubbish can block drains and pollute waterways. Always put rubbish in bins, keep a rubbish bag in your car and help out on Clean Up days.

• Wash your car on the grass
  Wash your car on the lawn or go to a carwash. Use a phosphorus free detergent.

• Wash paint brushes in a container
  Clean water based paints over grass. Re-use turps once the paint has settled. Never dispose of paint, turps or solvents down a stormwater drain.

• Get involved
  Join your local catchment group. Contact us to join our emailing list and receive regular updates on our activities.

Download our Stormwater brochure (pdf) for more ideas.

Tie pet poo bags to your dog's leash or collar so they are ready when you need then.

Dino the "catchment friendly" dog always has a pet poo bag handy just in case.

Feeding ducks causes more harm than good. Print out our "Please don't feed us"(pdf) poster to put up at your school, playgroup or workplace.

Report dirty building sites to your local council. Piles of building sand on verges can easily wash into stormwater drains during downpours. Sediment is a major pollutant of wetlands and rivers.

Change to a catchment friendly garden and reduce the nutrient impact from your garden.

Download our Stormwater brochure (pdf) for more ideas on how to help maintain water quality in your catchment.