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🇦🇺 Australia /Environment & Climate

Canberra's 'green kidneys' fragile to climate change, rangers warn

From ABC Australia · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Namadgi National Park in Canberra's water catchment is showing signs of damage due to climate change.
  • The park's wetlands, crucial for filtering and storing water, are fragile and threatened by increased fire frequency and rising temperatures.
  • Rangers are implementing measures like shade cloth and leaky weirs to aid ecosystem recovery, but warn of potential extinction if climate change continues on its current trajectory.

Canberra's vital water catchment, Namadgi National Park, is facing significant threats from climate change, impacting its delicate ecosystems. The park's high country, which acts as a natural filter and reservoir for the city's water supply, is exhibiting signs of distress, mirroring global environmental crises like melting glaciers and coral bleaching.

These things aren't happening elsewhere, they're not far off, they're happening in our own backyard.

— Simon StratfordDescribing the local impact of climate change on Namadgi National Park.

Simon Stratford, from ACT Parks and Conservation, highlights the daily observations of damage within the park. He stresses that these impacts are not distant occurrences but are happening locally, directly affecting the water quality residents rely on. The scars from the 2020 Orroral Valley bushfire, which devastated 80% of Namadgi, are still visible, with burnt sediment flowing into the water system and compromising drinking water quality.

While people may not see the impacts in Namadgi National Park, they are directly linked to what happens when they turn on the tap at home.

— Simon StratfordConnecting the park's environmental health to the city's water supply.

The park's interconnected system of bogs and fens plays a critical role, functioning like a large sponge that absorbs snow and rain, slowly releasing water into Canberra's catchment. However, as bushfires intensify and temperatures rise, these fragile wetlands have diminishing recovery time. Stratford warns that these systems could face extinction if current climate change trends persist.

The dirt burnt in 2020. We could see it, stand there and watch it. When it rained, all that sediment flowed into the system, affecting drinking water quality.

— Simon StratfordRecounting the impact of the 2020 Orroral Valley bushfire on the park and water quality.

In response, rangers are employing a "light touch" approach to foster ecosystem recovery. This includes strategically placing shade cloth to help surviving sphagnum mosses regrow and installing "leaky weirs" made from coconut fibers to slow water flow, thereby maintaining moisture levels in the wetlands. Despite these efforts, the long-term survival of these unique ecosystems remains uncertain.

It's like a big sponge that soaks up the snow and rain, then slowly releases that water back into Canberra's catchment.

— Simon StratfordExplaining the function of the park's bogs and fens.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ABC Australia in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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