Upcoming trial: North Central Catchment Management Authority and Goulburn-Murray Water will trial drone-spraying technology to tackle the invasive pale-yellow water lily in Gunbower Creek.
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An innovative approach to tackling invasive weeds clogging Gunbower Creek is set to reap environmental, recreational, and agricultural benefits.
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The Victorian Government’s $100,000 investment has allowed North Central Catchment Management Authority and Goulburn-Murray Water to trial drone-spraying technology to tackle the invasive pale-yellow water lily in the creek.
The water lily is an invasive weed that reduces the creek capacity for irrigation water for environment delivery and restricts sections of the creek for recreation such as boating, fishing and kayaking.
It can also impact threatened native plant and fish species, including the critically endangered silver perch, the threatened golden perch and Murray cod.
North Central CMA project manager Amy Russell said the drone could hold 40 litres of fish and frog-friendly product, enabling crews to spray weeds that are inaccessible from boats or the shore.
“The community is behind our goal to reduce the pale-yellow water lily’s impact on the creek and prevent it from entering nearby wetlands such as Reedy Lagoon,” she said.
“It’s a challenging weed to treat, and using a drone this year will be a big step forward.
“This technology could prove invaluable to the management of pale-yellow water lily in the coming years.”
North Central CMA and G-MW have begun spraying around 80 kilometres of the creek between the National Channel and Koondrook Weir, with the drone-spraying technology used in a trial area.
“Gunbower Forest is protected under the International Ramsar Convention, which makes the management of the bordering creek a key priority for us,” Ms Russell said.
“Gunbower Creek is important economically, culturally, and environmentally to this region, which is why managing pale-yellow water lily is so important.
“This drone trial will give us another important tool to tackle this invasive weed.”
Managing the weed in the creek will also prevent the water lily from spreading into the Gunbower Ramsar site.
The Gunbower Creek spraying program is part of the Victorian Government’s $248 million investment to improve the health of waterways and catchments across regional Victoria.
Innovative: North Central Catchment Management Authority and Goulburn-Murray Water will trial a new way to control the pale-yellow water lily in Gunbower Creek.
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