The Franklin Vale Creek Catchment, bordered by the Little Liverpool Range, has high wildlife and biodiversity values, with the flats of Franklin Vale Creek also highly productive agricultural and pastoral land. Parts of Franklin Vale Creek and the waterways that feed into it have instability and bank erosion that impact on water quality and the values of the creek itself. This in turn negatively impacts both the native wildlife and the productivity of graziers who depend on the creek for watering livestock.
The Franklin Vale Creek Catchment, bordered by the Little Liverpool Range, has high wildlife and biodiversity values, with the flats of Franklin Vale Creek also highly productive agricultural and pastoral land. Parts of Franklin Vale Creek and the waterways that feed into it have instability and bank erosion that impact on water quality and the values of the creek itself. This in turn negatively impacts both the native wildlife and the productivity of graziers who depend on the creek for watering livestock.
Franklin Vale Creek Initiative
Ipswich City Council is partnering with landholders to restore and improve the catchment's waterway condition through actions such as revegetation, offline watering points and stock exclusion fencing.
Council is making a substantial investment in building a legacy of best practice land management where the productivity of the land is maintained for landholders, the community and the environment.
Funding comes from council’s stormwater quality offsets scheme which is a developer-funded program to improve water quality and waterway health.
Initiative Benefits
Works at properties participating in the Franklin Vale Creek Initiative are demonstrating the benefits of the partnership between council and landowners, including:
- Native vegetation stabilising the creek and channel, which prevents erosion and helps to reduce salinity issues;
- Slowing water and increasing infiltration which helps reduce flooding;
- Improved water quality, reduction of weed and algae species and greater ability to support aquatic and land-dwelling wildlife;
- Improved condition of livestock due to cooler areas surrounding the waterway and reduction in pollutants entering the waterway.
Landholder Information
The Franklin Vale Creek Initiative commenced in 2019 with interested landholders partnering with council to restore creek condition on their properties.
The second stage of the Franklin Vale Creek Initiative launched in 2021, delivering a further 2.8km of land and creek improvements.
As part of long-term planning for the initiative, council and the Australian River Institute (ARI) at Griffith University have developed the Franklin Vale Creek restoration plan. The plan involved input from landholders in the catchment and will ensure decisions are based on the best available science and targeted to achievable restoration objectives.
A presentation of the restoration plan will be delivered to interested landholders in the catchment in October 2021.
Landowners within the catchment are encouraged to enquire about partnering with council for future stages of the initiative. Contact council’s waterway improvement officer on (07) 3810 6666.
- Franklin Vale Catchment Condition Assessment (PDF, 5.2 MB)
- Franklin Vale Catchment Monitoring and Evaluation (PDF, 2.2 MB)
- Franklin Vale Catchment Restoration Plan (PDF, 1.9 MB)
Share your journey
Council encourages landholders to send photos of restoration work, or significant events such as drought or flood. Photos of biodiversity found in the catchment are also welcome.
Please email your images to environment@ipswich.qld.gov.au.