This Report summarises the CRC’s research into approaches aimed at restoring the ecological health of urban streams. Section 2 provides a well referenced summary of the impacts of urbanisation on urban streams (as of 2004). Section 3 compares three particular approaches to urban stream restoration:
1/ Improving the physical habitat in streams (such as introducing riffles or woody debris to streams that have been channelised or have eroded);
2/ Retrofitting a retarding basin to attenuate flow (primarily designed for greater than the 2 ARI events); and
3/ Stormwater treatment wetlands (to improve water quality).
The overall finding (based on a review of information available at 2004) was that none of the standard small-scale approaches to urban stream restoration examined were likely to meet with success. Instead, the team proposed a ‘catchment scale’ treatments (based on research undertaken by the CRC for Freshwater Ecology – the next reference).