Burying their Heads in the River Gravel

I am tiring of the misinformation and propaganda being put out about the removal of willows from our waterways to cover up the stupidity of the NECMA works carried out on our rivers in the autumn. The article above by Neil McLeod, biodiversity assessment officer, DPI Tatura is a good example.

It is not that I am a fan of willows. The fact is that willows have effectively protected our waterways against flood level erosion of the banks for many years. The removal of these willows immediately before the winter rains has put our rivers at risk of extensive damage in the spring when runoff levels reach their peak.

Neil McLeod's propaganda against willows can be readily challenged. He states that,"Willows have the ability to spread their roots into the bed of a watercourse". That is why Peter Andrews plants them in his efforts to droughtproof Australia. Slowing the water causes seepage into the surrounding river flats eliminating the need to irrigate.

Neil suggests,"They also form thickets which divert water outside the main watercourse or channel" and rather than causing flooding and erosion where the creek banks are vulnerable, the Andrews philosophy claims this enhances the natural phenomonen of creating wetlands that have been hailed as essential by our authorities as a biodiversity necessity.

He claims, Their leaves create a flush of organic matter when they drop in autumn, reducing water quality and ... damages stream health. CSIRO expert, Kurt Cremer claims the opposite in his paper titled, "Remove Willows to conserve Water?" - that removal of willows could contribute to eutrophication. And what about England & Europe? All their trees are deciduous. Do you hear about their trees damaging stream health?

The deed has been done and in spite of protests here and by the people of Bright, there is no recognition of the severity of the works done on our rivers or remedial action taking place. Our authorities simply defend their actions and pray to God that the floods do not come this spring.