What's wrong with Rapid Creek?

(Written in November but left on the shelf for about six weeks I thought I'd post this just to clear the blog)

Recently local residents and others who value Darwin's Rapid Creek gathered to challenge the  potential threat to clear mature trees and riparian vegetation by the Department of Planning and Infrastructure along the banks of Rapid Creek.

At the time people noticed that trees had been marked with pink spray paint, commonly used to indicate trees for removal.

A public meeting was held at the footbridge across rapid creek, which was attended by local residents, members of the landcare group and various other stakeholders.

See Rapid Creek Landcare website: HERE

(29.12.13 There is now a Save Rapid Creek facebook group)

https://www.facebook.com/saverapidcreek 

Many issues were raised, including zero consultation with the community, zero coordination with Landcare group, lack of scientific foundation to support removal of riparian vegetation etc...

Members of Parliament were contacted and invited to take part in the discussion but they declined. Three members of the department of Lands Planning and Infrastructure turned up to answer our questions. We were told that the markings were only part of preliminary work on the creek, that it didn't mean any trees were going to be cut down and that it's all part of a flood mitigation program. (Some of the trees were even marked PRUNE)

It is obvious that Rapid Creek is under a lot of environmental pressure. There are now massive alterations to tributary water courses and man made drainage lines. Creation of a large paved carpark at the Airport has effectively means that the land it is on is no longer able absorb water and recharge groundwater. The excess water is directed into wide open channels which feed directly into the creek an obvious contributor to increased velocity of flow. I found their answers to be contradictory and somewhat dishonest. It was obvious to everyone who was there that it was the departments full intention to cut those trees.

The conversation followed about flooding of McMillans Rd and the potential threat to property when the creek floods.

It concerns me that the Department has employed 'Engineers' to manage this delicate ecological zone, with the single objective of flood mitigation. Their linear approach to the management of a waterway borders on criminal and from an environmental perspective is insane! There are multiple contributors to flooding in Rapid Creek. The presence of trees in or around the creek is hardly one of them! Natural vegetation is fundamental to reducing erosion in waterways and reduces destructive velocity of fast flowing water. Most of the elaborate water calming devices that engineers introduce into their man made water course are poor attempts to immitate natural obstructions to water velocity such as trees and vegetation offer naturally.

During the meeting people had to explain to the Department representatives other contributing factors to flooding that absolutely dwarf any impact few trees might have on causing water to back up.

Potential contributors to flooding in Rapid Creek:

Storm surge: If there is excessive rain during a high tide it is extremely likely that fresh water will back up along the rapid creek catchment. What is the elevation of the creek? How many metres above sea level?

Siltation: The removal of vegetation along the catchment has lead to increased erosion which in turn has caused culverts to become blocked, water takes longer to flow through the culverts and so backs up in the creek and man made open drains that contribute to Rapid Creek.

Erosion at McMillans Rd drainage 5/11/13

Increased flow: Land clearing and hardening of surfaces to make carparks and increase infrastructure at the Airport causes larger amounts of water to be shed from the catchment soon after rain. This is likely to have two long term affects. One, I suspect that the incidence of flooding will increase since there will be higher quantities of water entering the creek whenever it rains. The second negative side effect of creating hardened surfaces is that it will reduce the long term flow of the creek and reduce groundwater recharge. Instead of water slowly filtering through the landscape and eventually running into the creek it is shed immediately after rain.

Mc Millans road drainage 5/11/13

Cutting trees will not address any of these issues and in the case of the second and third points is a major contributor to flooding!

At the moment what concerns me most is the excavation work taking place on the Airport side of Mc Millans Rd. A huge amount of earth has already been washed into the open drains. The immediate results of this are obvious and plain to see. Large scale siltatation of the drainage channels, blocked culverts, increased water flow. Longer term the consequences are predictable increased turbidity of the creek, siltation of the creek, blocking of culverts, potential flooding etc...

I believe that due to the storm surge factor there may be no way of mitigating against flooding... although this may not stop the departments engineers from trying to enclose the whole creek in a concrete drain. (Actually confirmed by a current Department of Infrastructure and Planning report 29/12/13)

As far as the health of the creek is concerned I believe that the irresponsible upstream developments within the catchment are the major cause for concern and will likely contribute heavily to future risk of flooding. Yet the department appear to have chosen not to address negligence of developers, instead their engineers have turned their eye to elimination of the creek's remaining natural defense against extreme hydrological conditions downstream. Our creek is already stressed and threatened by irresponsible upstream development, by removing the riparian vegetation that holds the creek bank together the Department would be responsible for delivering the death blow to our creek!

Silt buildup at McMillans Rd drainage 5/11/13

If the creek were a living organism it's riparian vegetation would be like it's immune system. It Absorbs the shock of extreme weather event's such as flooding, holds moisture in times of drought, prevents erosion, provides habitat and creates a micro climate which facilitates the existence of many species of plants and animals  etc... Vegetation helps the creek maintain it's form, filters water entering the system and so on. Removing riparian vegetation would be something like introducing a virus to the organism that has the capacity to destroy the creeks entire life cycle. 

To any ecologist or anyone schooled in land management this seems like madness. But I guess not so to an engineer. There are many reasons why we need the help of engineers to develop and manage our environment... However they should never have full power of decision making when it comes to natural systems!    

Clogged culvert, what happens when you let engineers design watercourses.

A short Sunday morning ride

This morning I had some time off just to cruise!

Where to go? Well I have to admit I'm in no shape to go peddling around to Mandorah or to do any heroic jaunts south of Humpty Doo. Considering my current, pathetic physical condition I can only imagine a very short, very local ride. (I've been working on a hedonistic theory for reducing my itchy feet. The theory is that if I stay up late playing computer games and watching movies I will be suitably sedated so as not to pace the house resenting domesticity... The down side is my body and mind have atrophied to a state similar what a lobotomized sea slug might look like... I'm working on a new theory... )

If you like cycling Darwin is a great place to live. OK there's only one road out of town but around town there are plenty of cycle paths and parkways where cycling is easy and very pleasant. I decide to make a loop around the Casuarina Coastal Reserve and then continue on to Rapid Creek Market for some paw-paw salad and black sticky rice. mmmmm yum!

Since the brain isn't capable of inventing anything interesting to read I thought I'd just tell you about my ride.

The beginning of the ride was a bit emotional for me. I had to cycle past a place that used to be a very healthy woodland habitat and a favorite spot for large flocks of Red Tailed Cockatoos. The pocket of bush between Leanyer and the Lee Point Caravan park on Lee Point Rd was the source of inspiration for an artist friend of mine who lived across the road from there for years. We both used to admire the health of the woodlands and the variety of species it supported, then one day the buldozers moved in and the whole lot was gone in a matter of days! I called him not long after and could hear the Black Cockatoos calling desperately in a tone neither of us have ever heard before! It was quite unnerving to hear, those birds were obviously distressed and so were we!

What was will soon be forgotten by many who used to drive past that special pocket of bush and never known by the new home owners who come to fill the newly created estate of Muirhead!

Muirhead Estate. Wildlife exterminated! Woodlands no more!

 I soon passed Darwin's latest obnoxious development and was rolling down the trail to more familiar ground. The Casuarina Coastal Reserve Stringybark Walk. (Not officially a cycle path but for cyclists this track is irresistible). The blue bike I rode today was a freebie! I rescued it from a skip on a building site. When I found it the rear wheel and cogs were worn out, the chain rusted stiff and all the cables seized up. After just a couple of hours of free time and a bunch of horded spare bits I had it on the road and rolling beautifully. I've finally learned my lessons about chain sizes and gears etc.. I managed to find a matching set of cogs and chain to suit the bikes gear shifter and it worked very nicely.

Beginning of the Stringybark Track

The Stringybark track to Lee Point has been graded and quite wide for a walking path, its like cycling on a well packed dirt road. The upper woodland section is quite flat and winds a short distance through some typical woodland habitat with occasional views of the sea. A lot of the washed out drainage lines have been re-vegetated and closed to destructive cyclist traffic.

Not too far along the way the track splits and walkers are offered a choice of continuing to Lee Point or taking the Monsoon Vine Forest track back to Casuarina beach. If you ever visit Darwin I recommend walking (or cycling respectfully) along this track. It is the most beautiful track in Darwin! All paths head toward the sea. If you follow the official path it's a fairly gentle slope... If you're a ratbag and chose to take one of the washed out informal paths it can be quite steep and slippery. Radical cyclists seem to prefer the second (non)option.

As the track tapers off at sea level we pass an old WWII bunker, there used to be heaps of these all along the coast around Darwin, I think there are three in tact within the coastal reserve. WWII relics are still being found from time to time, including unexploded ordinance dropped by Japanese planes. This bunker is located near a freshwater washout very close to the water's edge. On a high tide the sea gets pretty close. The trees in the background are Casuarina trees, these are native to the area but were planted to help stabilize the dunes after sand mining in the 1960s decimated the natural dunes. Casuarina's are a favorite food of Red-tailed Black Cockatoos.

After passing through the Casuarina forest, which is a bit like being in a Radiata pine forest with pine needles lining the forest floor and the whistling in the canopy when the wind blows, the track goes up hill a bit and into a very different and not so common habitat, Monsoon Vine Forest. It's always a bit cooler in here, greener, quieter and darker than the open Woodland and a huge contrast from the Casuarina forest which literally buts up against it. Monsoon Vine forests are remnant forests and as close as we get to a tropical jungle. The wildlife that lives in this habitat is very specific. Before the well watered urban gardens of Darwin suburbs evolved, Monsoon Vine Forests were the only place you would have found the Orange-footed scrub fowl. Despite my dislike for urban sprawl I have to admit the suburbs of Darwin have actually created a sanctuary for many species such as the scrub fowl, frilled lizards and once upon a time Yellow spotted monitors. Several species are probably more numerous within the city than they are in their natural habitat. On this part of the trail you can usually see a Rainbow Pitta or two and Rose Crowned Fruit Doves. The Rainbow Pittas are hard to spot from a bike, usually you'll hear them kicking the leaves around before you see them if you're walking quietly. This time I did see a Fruit Dove, (sorry no photos worth showing).

The Monsoon Vine Forest path is fairly flat but gradually winds it's way back toward the beach. Before emerging at the Darwin Free Beach (nudist beach) there's a really nice footbridge over the upper part of Sandy Creek. Now we're in the mangroves and a very different environment. On the dirt tracks before entering the mangroves are small piles of shells and ashes. A lot of aboriginal people who live in Darwin take advantage of the rich stocks of bush tucker that can be found so close to town. Shelfish are a luxury that many people can't do without. I think that for saltwater people, to live in the city and not be able to eat their favorite foods would be far too much to bear. The number of delicacies they can find in a tiny patch of mangrove is amazing. Gathering shelfish is the work of the ladies and kids. Maybe I could blog a hunting trip next time. A dhunga Balanda like me gets in the way out in the mangroves and can be more trouble than we're worth, even when hunting with kids.

Finally we're back at the beach. The Free Beach is pretty big and there's plenty of privacy for those odd sandal and socks wearing naturists.

Wide open vistas at Casuarina Beach. It's lovely. The sand is packed hard after some overnight rain and fairly easy to cycle on.

Headed back past the open paddock beside the Rapid Creek I saw heaps of birds. One favorite along this stretch are the Rainbow Bee Eaters that perch on an old wire fence. Waiting for passers by to scare up some easy tucker.

Galah

Plumed Whistling Ducks - Foreground, Corella's - Background

Magpie Geese

A quiet moment at Rapid Creek Market

Pretty soon I've crossed the Rapid Creek Bridge and I'm at the Rapid Creek markets. This is the best place in Darwin to find Asian vegetables (I'm not too sure about the chemical content of produce you'll find here). I came here especially for some paw-paw salad and black sticky rice. I grab the desert first and an extra sweet rice and casava wrapped in banana leaf and savor every mouthful. Something happened to me when I was in Indonesia years ago and I've craved this stuff ever since! Unfortunately I didn't get my paw-paw salad. I was given a free sample of some sickly sweet icy desert and felt obliged to spend my money on that instead! What a sucker!

Low tide on Nightcliff foreshore looking at a cloud

Headed home I rode back along the Nightcliff foreshore and got to see the approaching clouds of the monsoon just before the rain hit and everything became engulfed by the drenching tropical rain we've been waiting for. I cycled home in the rain feeling happy and contented and determined to change my program and go back to using early morning rides as a means of sedating my restless spirit or at least temporarily satisfying the nagging wanderlust that dominates my soul!

It's been raining fairly steadily ever since and the smell of the rain is divine!

Red-tailed Black Cockatoo in the Casuarina

Actually I forgot to mention the smells. Every part of this journey contained it's on particular smells. Riding past the housing estate I sensed dust and oil and an unholy lack of life.

The woodlands had a combination of fresh new wet leaves, sweet oxygen and just a touch of fowers.

The Casuarina forest smelt like the sea and the resin of half chewed casuarina nuts.

Monsoon Vine Forest smelt damp and heavy but fresh

Mangrove was a heady slightly fermented smell like warm beer

The smells at Rapid Creek market are like a free trip back to South East Asia! Spices, fruit even the occasional smell of clove cigarettes if you're really lucky. I love the food here but I have to admit sometimes even the scent is enough. Sometimes when I'm squeezing through the tightly packed walkways the smells convince me that I am somewhere else entirely.

A sweeter life I have never know. Peace.

Sell out at Little Mindil!

It's been planned and argued for several years now but while I was busy raising a family and my trips into town have become minimal they managed to sell off the Little Mindil Beach area and turn it into a Parking Lot! Worse still the beautiful treed escarpment has now been laid to waste and nothing is left but bare rock and tree stumps!

Ironically I noticed the decimated escarpment while attending Marnie Jay's art exhibition "No Place Like Home" at Burnett House on Myilli Point. It's Ironic because Marnie's art celebrates the culture and atmosphere of old Darwin Town.

As I approached the Heritage Listed venue I was struck by the distinct lack of greenness where once there was a lush and thick canopy of Monsoon Vine Forrest!


(Land Care - On The Edge.... or is it over the edge?)


(Tree stumps and parking lots - Can Greed and beauty exist in the same place?)

Another Wild and Beautiful place in Darwin has been stolen from us!
It is obvious to many of us that the NT is a classic example of Machiavellian State!


(Government Shame - Beauty defiled, Habitat destroyed.... access denied!)

Despite the lack of respect shown for the intrinsic natural value of the escarpment as habitat or as simply shade or at bare minimum screening, the act of defoliating the entire cliff face defies logic when you hear what the new land owners next move was... and I don't quite know what form of madness describes this act.

Apparently at a recent entertainment event held at the Casino, security guards stood at the fence line above the cliff and prevented people from gazing down on the Casino Lawns... a view they would never have had if the forest had been left in tact!

Here's a recent comment about this matter from an Opposition Party member.

Ephemoral Stream dreaming

A follow up on my last post which was a kind of screaming rant about the destruction of habitat loosely disguised as some kind of cryptic rant about academia...

Well they're still at it! Instead of improving road safety and building us shared bike path or cycle lane on Lee Point Road a certain Government department who for the sake of this post I am calling: The 'Suppression of Tranquility and Usurpers of Public Inclusion Department'. (STUPID) of the NT'. Have chosen to continue their assault on all living things the happen to find along the roadways.


Continuation of destruction from Yesterday.

Besides creating greater erosion and reducing habitat the removal of these trees has also removed a critical amount of shade... Of course this makes it less pleasant for humans to sit around, or ride through; but what it also does is leave the entire watercourse vulnerable to invasive weeds like Gamba and Mission Grass! These two species are highly invasive and highly flammable. Bad move STUPID! Both weeds are present in the area but had failed to colonize the shaded area in my previous post and you can now see in the image above.

There's something going on in this town and it Sucks! Like Billy Colony predicted... 'The Beige People want to taking over the world' (or something like that!)

I've ridden by that way so many times, delighting in the shade, the green the cool. A secret place functioning beautifully without interference, overlooked by the agents of the machine and loved... One more beautiful place defiled.
Without the cover of a row of trees so many Long Grass camps are exposed, vulnerable to the prying eyes of drivers and 9 to 5ers. Bush campers creeping a little further from the road trapped between the bitumen and a cyclone wire fence... Soon Old Darwin will be sterilized of all imperfections, sanitized of colour of every kind!

All around Darwin right now trees are being felled; cut down to the ground and their roots chewed out of the earth! The attack is not just on trees and greenery either... When I arrived in Darwin there were murals on all of the bus stops, Casuarina Library and a bunch of other places that may have already slipped by without being noticed. The murals are being painted over with some neutral uninspiring anti-colour!
WHAT ARE THEY DOING TO THIS TOWN?

So what's next?





Look what they're doing