River User UPDATE

Edition 2 – September

2021

Lower Yarra River Maintenance Dredging Program

Dredging Campaign 2021/22 Maintenance dredging is conducted in the Lower Yarra River to ensure safe boating navigation and

access. The second year of dredging under the current four-year Maintenance Dredging Program,

to commence in mid-October 2021 and run for about six months, will target sites between Botanic

Gardens Landing and Burnley Harbour.

Where will dredging occur during this campaign?

Dredging will commence at the upstream end of

the project area and progress in a downstream

direction. The 2021/22 Dredging Campaign will

therefore target dredging sites upstream of the

CBD area. Sites will be dredged in the following

order:

A) Herring Island Landing & Como Landing

B) Burnley southern bank- navigational

channel

C) Burnley Harbour

D) Botanic Gardens Landing & Morell Bridge

southern arch

See attached map for location of dredging sites.

When will dredging occur?

Dredging is scheduled to start in mid-October and

be completed in March 2022. A detailed dredging

schedule will be included in the Notice to River

Users for the Yarra River and available on the

Parks Victoria website.

Will the dredging impact river traffic and river access?

During the dredging of Herring Island Landing and

Como Landing, Herring Island Meander will be

closed. This is expected to be for around 5 weeks.

For all other dredging sites, the river will remain

open for traffic during dredging operations.

However, river traffic may be restricted to one-

lane traffic past the dredging operations.

There will be no access to dredging sites during

the dredging works and exclusion zones, clearly

marked with stringline buoys, will be established.

For current river traffic conditions refer to the latest Notice to River Users or the Change of Conditions for the Yarra River on the Parks Victoria website: https://www.parks.vic.gov.au/places-to-see/parks/yarra-river.

How much sediment will be removed?

In total, around 10 000 m3 of river sediment will

be removed from the four sites. The sediment will

be pumped via a pipeline to placement areas

downstream of the dredging sites. See attached

map for location of placement areas.

Once the sites have been dredged, the water

depth at the dredging sites will be around 2

metres during low tide.

Why does the river need to be dredged?

The gradual, natural build-up of sediment in the

lower Yarra River has reduced the water depth for

some parts of the river, restricting safe navigation

and access to facilities. The Victorian Government

has invested significantly to improve commercial

and recreational access along the lower Yarra

River through dredging.

What is the Lower Yarra River Maintenance Dredging Program?

Parks Victoria conducts maintenance dredging to

ensure safer navigation and reduce the amount of

sediment in key locations, ensuring the river is

accessible for public use into the future.

The first year of dredging under the Lower Yarra

River Maintenance Dredging Program was

completed in August 2020 and mitigated the most

urgent dredging needs in the river. A total of

4,500 m3 of sediment was removed from the

Victorian Rowing Association Landing and from

underneath the floating sections of the Main

Yarra Trail.

The 2021/22 dredge campaign is the second year

of dredging under the program.

The third dredge campaign will be carried out in

the Winter months of 2022 and target dredging

sites within the CBD area.

Dredging sites to be included in the fourth and

final dredge campaign in 2023 will be determined

based on needs at the time.

Environmental Management

The maintenance dredging program is managed

under an Environmental Management and

Monitoring Plan developed for the project. The

Environmental Management and Monitoring Plan

will ensure that environmental risks are actively

managed and mitigated and that the dredging is

carried out with minimal environmental impact.

More information

If you would like more information about the

Lower Yarra River Maintenance Dredging

Program, please call 13 1963 or email

info@parks.vic.gov.au

Figure 1. Dredging and disposal sites for 2021 Dredge Campaign. Dredging sites shown in red A) Herring Island Landing and Como Landing, B) Burnley

southern bank – navigational channel, C) Burnley Harbour D) Botanic Gardens Landing and Morell Bridge southern arch. Placement areas 1 and 2 shown in

yellow. Placement area 2 is used for dredging at dredging site D) Botanic Gardens Landing and Morell Bridge southern arch. Placement area 1 is used for

remaining dredging sites A), B) and C).