A stormwater harvesting project in Dunstan Reserve, Brunswick West, is helping save water and improve the reserve for the local community. It also tells the story of a forgotten local waterway, Melville Creek.
Melville Creek once flowed freely through the Merri-bek landscape towards Moonee Moonee (Moonee Ponds Creek), supporting plants and animals along its path.
You can find it on old maps of the area, before roads and houses took over. As the area became urbanised, the creek was diverted into underground pipes. It became part of the stormwater network, disappearing from view and from public memory.
The new stormwater harvesting system respects the history of the forgotten creek by bringing water back into the landscape.
A new raingarden system has been installed in the north-eastern corner of the reserve. The plants and soil in the raingarden filter stormwater collected from surrounding streets. The water is then stored in an underground tank, treated, and used to irrigate the sports fields in the reserve. Around 10 million litres of stormwater can be harvested and reused each year.
The stormwater harvesting system significantly reduces the need for drinking water for irrigation. It also reduces the pressure on drains during storms, improves the quality of the water flowing into Moonee Ponds Creek, and can help reduce local flood risk.
It helps with biodiversity, and provides healthy green open space for local residents. A footpath, shade shelter and seating were also built as part of the project.
The raingarden is planted with native plants that provide habitat and food for local insects and birds. Overflows from the raingarden flow into a swale (dry creekbed) that meaders through the reserve, tracing the former path of Melville Creek. Once again, water is able to move slowly through Country, as it did for many thousands of years.
“Allow water to stay where it lands,” said Wurundjeri Elder Aunty Di Kerr.
Read more about the project: https://conversations.merri-bek.vic.gov.au/dunstan-reserve-water
