A South West city is giving a major waterway a breath of fresh air to combat seasonal algal blooms

A South West city is giving a major waterway a breath of fresh air to combat seasonal algal blooms.

The city of Busselton is aiming to trial a new aeration project in the Lower Vasse River in its ongoing bid to improve the waterway’s health.

Hotter summers have led to decreased streamflow which can stagnate, making it the perfect environment for algae to flourish.

The city has been actively trying to reduce algae growth since 2021, with the most recent project — which involves pumping air into the waterway to keep the water moving — being implemented by the Waterways Management Committee established earlier this year.

Since its formation, the committee has been working on several methods to reduce algal blooms in the waterway — which are caused by an excess of nutrients such as fertiliser running into the river from urban and rural catchments.

Busselton mayor Phill Cronin said the city’s long-term solution was to reduce nutrients entering waterways, but in the interim it was looking at a range of approaches to reduce algal blooms.

“The State Government is the owner of the river, but in recent years the city has agreed to take on the role of interim asset manager to enable a more responsive approach to ensuring its health,” he said.

“Investigating an aeration trial is the next step in our ongoing work to care for the river on behalf of the community.”

According to officer estimates presented to the council last month, it will cost about $50,000 to undertake the trial.

The trial will be assessed by the Vasse taskforce’s water quality decision support framework and will require endorsement through the Vasse ministerial taskforce.

Alongside the aeration project, the city is looking to enter stage three of its sediment removal program in an effort to remove nutrient-rich sediment which has accumulated along the riverbed.

Through stages one and two of the program, more than 1200 tonnes of nutrient-rich sediment has been removed.

The city has secured $407,964 of funding required from the State Natural Resource Management Office’s community stewardship grant program, and the work will start once environmental approvals have been granted.