The Department of Water and Environmental Regulation (DWER) featured prominently at this year’s Australian Water Association’s National Awards.
After winning the State award category for Program Innovation, DWER’s Revitalising Geographe Waterways initiative was a finalist in the National Program Innovation Award competing against other great projects at the Ozwater ’19 Gala Dinner, held in Melbourne last week.
The local program was recognised for its unique collaborative approach to program management; bringing together the community, scientists and managers to improve water quality, health and better management of Geographe waterways.
DWER District Manager Regional Delivery Dr Kath Lynch, gave credit to the dedicated team of staff and project partners that make Revitalising Geographe Waterways such a successful program.
“I’m very proud of the Revitalising Geographe Waterways achievements which are leading the way in collaborative program management.”
“The program has been successful in accelerating improvements in water quality, halting and even reversing water quality declines in key waterways to protect the long term health of Geographe Bay,” said Dr Lynch.
The Vasse Taskforce is the driving force behind Revitalising Geographe Waterways and has representation from state and local government, water service providers and catchment groups.
The program was developed to address major barriers to water quality improvement in the Geographe region, including a lack of overarching coordination, unclear roles and responsibilities and limited opportunity for community input.
The award-winning program has been extended for a further year with $1.6 million allocated in the State Budget.
Enjoy some Revitalising Geographe Waterways achievements in this short video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbKaY2zCo2w&feature=youtu.be&t=1.
For more information on Revitalising Geographe Waterways visit https://rgw.dwer.wa.gov.au