Flagship Fish Habitat Rehabilitation Grants
Yeramba Lagoon Tidal Restoration – National Parks and Wildlife
The “Flagship Fish Habitat Rehabilitation Grant” program (“Flagship Grants”) is an exciting funding opportunity for coastal NSW, offering up to $400,000 for projects that significantly enhance fish habitat, water quality and fish passage opportunities within the coastal catchments of NSW.
This innovative grant program is funded by the Recreational Fishing Saltwater Trust Expenditure Committee (RFSTEC) and seeks to benefit recreational fishing opportunities by enhancing the habitats that fish need to thrive.
The program builds on the existing Habitat Action Grants program and seeks to tackle much larger scale projects that require higher levels of funding assistance.
Flagship Fish Habitat Rehabilitation Grants are closed.
The 2023 “Flagship Grants” closed on Wednesday 22 November 2023 and applications are no longer being accepted.
For further information and general enquiries, please contact James Wraith – Flagship Fish Habitat Rehabilitation Grants Coordinator via email fish.habitat@dpi.nsw.gov.au or ring 0447 286 257.
Example of on-ground outcomes include:
- rehabilitation of significant riparian lands / coastal wetlands (river banks, mangrove forests, saltmarsh), including addressing poor water quality from the disturbance of acid sulfate soils
- removal or modification of barriers to fish passage including addressing floodgates, road-crossings and construction of fishways
- re-snagging of waterways with timber structures
- environmentally sensitive bank stabilisation works, including riparian restoration where these works are identified and part of a large scale remediation program.
Projects funded through the Flagship Habitat Rehabilitation Grant Program are:
Applicant | Project | Summary | Funding (GST exclusive) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Successful 2023 Grant Recipients | |||
| Shoalhaven City Council | Crookhaven Heads Intertidal Living Shoreline (CHILS) | Complete the necessary investigations, designs and planning to implement a living shoreline including foreshore and oyster reef restorations on the Crookhaven River that has high recreational fishing value, and connections to cultural heritage. | $59,300 |
| Port Macquarie Hastings Council | Hastings River Hybrid Living Shoreline | Implementing an oyster reef, stabilising erosion area, improving shoreline vegetation, and enabling access for recreational fishers on the Hastings River estuary. | $261,275 |
| Nambucca Valley Landcare | Bowraville Connections Stage 3 extension | Improve fish habitat and water quality through riverbank restoration works, undertaking maintenance on bed controls, managing weeds, planting riparian vegetation, and engaging the community in a comprehensive effort to restore the Nambucca River's health and biodiversity. | $109,222 |
| OzFish Unlimited | Kalang River Restoration Reach | Engage recreational fishers to rehabilitate an area of critical fish habitat. Rock and log revetment and high-density planting techniques will be used to control erosion and remediate a major source of sedimentation to the river. | $169,150 |
| Rous County Council | Building the resilience of Bungawalbin Bass habitat | Address 200m of bank erosion and restore 1,600m2 of complex fish habitat on Bungawalbin Creek a high conservation value waterway and valued Australian Bass fishery. | $158,000 |
| Successful 2022 Grant Recipients | |||
| Sydney Olympic Park Authority (Withdrawn by applicant) | Badu Mangrove Forest Restoration: Protecting and rehabilitating fish habitat | The project aims to improve the hydrological functioning and ecological health of a degraded mangrove forest subject to poor drainage and tidal exchange. The works will restore the natural tidal regime, improve mangrove and saltmarsh health, and bring back fish habitat. It will provide breeding, nursery, feeding and shelter grounds for many recreational fishing species common in Parramatta River, including mullet, bream, luderick, flathead, silver trevally, etc. Out of the 28 popular fishing spots on the upper Parra River, almost every spot will benefit from restoring this degraded area. | $290,000 |
| Successful 2020 Grant Recipients | |||
| North Coast Local Land Services | Freshwater wetland remediation (Management Option 2) at Clybucca Wetlands | Implement Management Option 2 of Clybucca Wetlands Management Options Study: Model Results (WRL 2020) funded as part of Round 2 Flagship program. Reduce acidic discharge into the Macleay River by installing new infrastructure to raise the groundwater table over affected wetlands. | $304,219 |
| Successful 2019 Grant Recipients | |||
| Tweed Shire Council | Tweed Estuary Strategic Erosion Stabilisation and Fish Habitat Rehabilitation | Addressing riverbank erosion and resultant fish habitat degradation on the Tweed River by developing a strategic program of works, including developing structure designs that incorporate fish habitat values. On-ground works at one site | $180,000 |
| Mid Coast Council | Acid Sulfate Soil Remediation Project – Coopernook Swamp | Acquire and remediate Coopernook Swamp as per Lower Manning River Drainage Remediation Action Plan to reduce acidic runoff, improve water quality and reinstate a natural tidal wetland. | $250,000 |
| Nambucca Valley Landcare | Bowraville Connections Stage 3 ‐ a strategic approach to river management and fish habitat protection | Enhancing habitat for fish around the freshwater – saltwater interface at Bowraville through onground works to protect against bed level lowering and bank erosion, activities to reduce weed cover and increase native vegetation cover. | $176,000 |
| National Parks & Wildlife Service | Yeramba Lagoon Tidal Restoration | Removal of weir barrier and restoration of tidal flows to Yeramba Lagoon to improve water quality and re-create lost inter-tidal habitat. | $234,000 |
| Successful 2016 Grant Recipients | |||
Byron Shire Council | Bringing Back the Brunswick River | Addressing two large fish passage barriers on the Brunswick River, complimenting other fish passage works and providing free access to 27.4 km of waterway | $264,700 |
North Coast Local Land Services | Clybucca Wetlands Tidal Restoration | Collection of hydrological data; vegetation mapping; community and government engagement to inform flood and inundation models and develop an acid sulfate runoff restoration strategy under various floodgate management options | $365,400 |
Ozfish Unlimited, Richmond River Chapter | Tuckean Swamp Options Study | Collection of hydrological data; community and government engagement to inform hydrologic modelling and develop water quality improvement options. | $160,000 |
