Crowding Out Brisbane's Waterways by Ben Lobley https://padlet.com/benlob14/3f9hw4io9chv en-us 2018-06-04 09:40:25 UTC 2024-10-31 23:12:56 UTC hello@padlet.com As Walling (2006) points out, building construction that leads to sediment draining in proximity fresh water river systems creates disturbances within the various natural systems within the water, such as turbidity, salinity, and oxygenation, as well the addition of heavy metals from construction materials. These which in turn disrupts the natural cycles of the ecosystems that exist within the river through the dying off of plants and increased toxicity of the water. benlob14 https://padlet.com/benlob14/3f9hw4io9chv/wish/265337740 2018-06-04 09:44:06 UTC https://padlet.com/benlob14/3f9hw4io9chv/wish/265337740 Most Brisbanites haven't known anything but a brown, murky river snaking through the heart of their city at any point in their lifetime. For many Australians the river is an icon of the city, but for many locals the river is met with cautious ignorance and avoidance. This caution is well placed, as when the river floods, as it is prone to do approximately every 25 years (BOM, 2016), it leaves devastation in its wake. Nevertheless, construction along the edge of the Brisbane river has done nothing but accelerate as the city's population grows. The uptick in construction adjacent to the water has had consequences that are perhaps unintended, as the removal and moulding of the land dislodges dirt and other sediment that inevitably ends up in the river after rain carries it through the city's intricate system of storm water drains (CSIRO, 2000). Pictured below: Stormwater drains in West End emptying sludge in to the Brisbane River. benlob14 https://padlet.com/benlob14/3f9hw4io9chv/wish/265337784 2018-06-04 09:44:19 UTC https://padlet.com/benlob14/3f9hw4io9chv/wish/265337784 The damage done to the river from this influx of loose construction site topsoil is exacerbated by the inevitable flood cycle that the city experiences. Analysis of water quality of the Brisbane River in the days after the 2011 floods found a dramatic increase in sediment concentration as well as severe alterations to normal levels of oxygenation and turbidity (Brown, 2011). Efforts do appear to be being made to reduce the impact of flood events, such as the use of tarpaulins below, but as seen in the picture below the effectiveness of these measures seems questionable under any sort of heavy rain. benlob14 https://padlet.com/benlob14/3f9hw4io9chv/wish/265350576 2018-06-04 10:53:38 UTC https://padlet.com/benlob14/3f9hw4io9chv/wish/265350576 Construction sites for apartments accomodate the expanding population are appearing adjacent to the Brisbane river, such as the one in the photo below at Tennyson. benlob14 https://padlet.com/benlob14/3f9hw4io9chv/wish/265354344 2018-06-04 11:15:32 UTC https://padlet.com/benlob14/3f9hw4io9chv/wish/265354344 I have take these photos with the aim to allude to the ignorance that is increasingly seeming to be willfully ignorant, as our continued failure to properly address environmental damage that results from the increasing numbers of residents and increasing expectations of what our residences should entail. With demand for riverside living seemingly endless, band-aid solutions appear to be all that are being dispensed to appease the voices that call for greater care. benlob14 https://padlet.com/benlob14/3f9hw4io9chv/wish/265354988 2018-06-04 11:19:09 UTC https://padlet.com/benlob14/3f9hw4io9chv/wish/265354988 In a way it is unsurprising that we give such little attention to the big brown snake when we consider what has become of the many creeks that run throughout Brisbane. Anything more than a thin trickle covering a murky confluence is notable, and being free of rubbish and human-made debris is downright shocking. The problems for these fragile waterways and the life that they harbour, do not appear to be disappearing anytime soon, and if we don't the impacts of our desire to live near the water's edge give them an uncertain future. benlob14 https://padlet.com/benlob14/3f9hw4io9chv/wish/265356465 2018-06-04 11:28:41 UTC https://padlet.com/benlob14/3f9hw4io9chv/wish/265356465 Bibliography benlob14 https://padlet.com/benlob14/3f9hw4io9chv/wish/265358470 Bureau of Meteorology. (2016). Known Floods In the Brisbane and Bremer River Catchments. Retrieved 3 June, 2018 from http://www.bom.gov.au/qld/flood/fld_history/brisbane_history.shtml
Brown, R. (2011). Turbulence and Suspended Sediment Measures In An Urban Environment During the Brisbane River Flood of 2011. Journal of Hydraulic Engineering, 139(2)
Marsten, F. (2000). Sediment Sources, Transport and Deposition in the Moreton Bay Catchment. In CSIRO Land and Water, Technical Report 27/00. 
Walling, D. (2016). Human Impact on Land-Ocean Sediment Transfer By The World's Rivers. Geomorphology, 79(3-4). Pages 192-216.]]> 2018-06-04 11:39:24 UTC https://padlet.com/benlob14/3f9hw4io9chv/wish/265358470