Focus Areas
There is clear evidence that a whole-of-system approach is needed to fully integrate the economic, environmental, and social aspects of waterway management in SEQ. A number of strategic focus areas are proposed to drive this intervention and achieve the vision and goals of Resilient Rivers South East Queensland.
The core work of the RRSEQ is delivering high-impact on-ground projects across all relevant local government areas. The other strategic focus areas are designed to support and enable this to occur.
Improving information and data
Objective: Up-to date, scientifically robust and integrated information is available for evidence-based decision making and informing best practice protection, management and rehabilitation of waterways and wetlands.
Effective, efficient protection, management, rehabilitation and restoration of waterways requires robust scientific information and tools.
This information includes understanding the components and processes of a system, the services it provides, how people value them and how they respond to pressures.
This information can be used to inform management action locations and activities, monitoring of management activities, targeting investment, assisting with land use planning and improving education and awareness.
Planning and governance
Objective: The region’s planning and policy frameworks and governance supports desired outcomes for waterways management.
Planning and regulatory processes directly influence activities which impact (both positive and negative) on waterway health and resilience.
In Queensland, the complex nature of managing waterways and wetlands is further exacerbated by complex statutory arrangements for waterways.
Efforts to manage, rehabilitate, protect and build resilience in waterways and wetlands must be accompanied by policy and legislative tools that support them.
Resilient Rivers provides an opportunity for Partners to develop a shared understanding of these impacts to inform the development of planning and regulatory processes that appropriately consider the health and resilience of waterways.
Investment
Objective: Attract investment from public and private sector to accelerate the rehabilitation of waterways and wetlands in SEQ.
Building the resilience of SEQ’s waterways and wetlands is an urgent challenge and meeting that challenge is likely to require significant investment.
Globally, the current level of investment in restoring ecosystems and building resilience comes predominantly from public and philanthropic investors and is considered nowhere near the scale to meet the challenge.
RRSEQ seeks to attract significant additional public and private investment, including opportunities through emerging markets, such as natural capital investment, to the region to accelerate and upscale activities that protect, manage, rehabilitate and restore waterway health and resilience.
To support ongoing investment, sharing real-life stories and showcasing the tangible impact of that investment will be a powerful way for RRSEQ to grow.
To explore opportunities for partnership with Resilient Rivers, please get in touch using the link below
On-ground activities to protect, manage, restore and rehabilitate
Objective: Implement on-ground activities that protect, manage, rehabilitate and restore the health and resilience of SEQ’s waterways and wetlands.
Actions under this theme will seek to protect, manage, rehabilitate, and restore the key ecosystem services and values identified by stakeholders via catchment management planning processes.
Management intervention options may include a mix of management interventions including, Best Management Practice and pressure reduction, systems repair, engineered solutions, and engagement extension and education.
Engagement, education, communication, advocacy and capacity building
Objective: Improved awareness of the value of waterways and wetlands enhances stewardship of our waterways by the community.
The communities of SEQ are intrinsically connected to the region’s waterways.
Most of the region’s waterways run through privately owned land.
The actions of landholders and those of the community, can positively and negatively impact the health and resilience of SEQ’s waterways and wetlands.
Engagement, education, communication, advocacy and capacity building are critical success factors to create a shared understanding of the value of our waterways and wetlands, driving innovation and action, and encouraging best practice management of waterways and wetlands.
Monitoring, evaluation, reporting
Objective: An adaptive and effective monitoring, evaluation, reporting and improvement framework is implemented to improve waterways management.
Measuring the full impact of management interventions in the natural environment is a challenging proposition as it generally takes a significant time to effect change and the natural variability of the environment leads to uncertainty of the impact.
Monitoring and evaluation are essential to determine whether management intervention is implemented correctly and performing as expected so that the intended outcomes are achieved.
This also allows for continual improvement and best practice management by feeding the learnings from this process into the overall approach, to drive focus areas for science and understanding and improve guidance and standards for delivery.