By Graeme Gibson

The ill-health of the Richmond River has been well known for decades. The causes and solutions are generally well understood, as is the fact that the health of the river is declining.

In September last year, Steve Posselt and I took a tinnie trip up the river from Ballina towards Kyogle to highlight its condition. This was followed by public forums in Kyogle and Casino. We came to the view that the river needs a single authority to take responsibility for the management of the entire catchment, rather than the current fragmented approach where multiple agencies control different aspects.

In November last year, Ballina Shire Council adopted a motion calling on the state government to appoint a Richmond River Commissioner, with a statutory obligation to improve the health of the Richmond River catchment.

This is the single authority we had been speaking of. Since that time, Byron Shire Council and Rous County Council have adopted the same motion.

Kyogle Council, Lismore City Council and Richmond Valley Council have been asked to do the same. Lismore considered this and decided to defer the matter until after the CSIRO report on flood mitigation options in the coming months.

Kyogle Council and Richmond Valley Council have not taken the motion to a meeting and have not responded to our request.

Steve and I have met with the Minister for Water, Rose Jackson, who has said the proposal will be considered and that she will visit the area in the second half of this year.

Encouragingly, she said that if a commissioner is appointed, she wants to ensure the position is able to achieve results, and not just tick a box.

A very recent study completed by Griffith University has reinforced the need for a whole-of-catchment approach and identified sediment pollution sources in the Richmond River.

Minor watercourses throughout the catchment were not included in the study, which advises that a fully vegetated riparian zone is the most effective long-term erosion mitigation strategy. This will involve weed control and stock exclusion.

Importantly, the study identified that 84% of sediment deposited in the coastal zone of the river is sourced from beyond the coastal zone, primarily in the mid and upper sections of the river. Kyogle and Richmond Valley councils should take note of this and ask: is there not a moral case to support the appointment of a Richmond River Commissioner?

As one landholder in the upper Richmond said to me recently, “we’ve lost a lot of soil — it’s gone down to Ballina.”

RELATED CONTENT: Commissioner push gets more cautious response

ABOVE: Graeme Gibson and Steve Posselt pictured in before setting off on their ‘tinnie trip’ last year.

MAIN PHOTO: One of many eroded banks of the Richmond River photographed by the ‘Tinnie Men’ on their journey last year.

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