A load of old rubbish!

Recently I have been getting out on the river to paddle as often as I can while the weather holds and several of my recent posts reflect this. What they do not reflect however, is the amount of rubbish I see floating in the river.
I looked at the topic of pollution in this post over three years ago but at that stage I didn't have the kayak and so was only able to view from the bank. Now however, I can get out amongst it and see for myself. In general, it doesn't look too bad - especially out of town, however there is still a significant amount of junk which seems to be ending up (either deliberately or by chance) in the Barwon.

Near Princes Bridge, 2013. I doubt this was unintentional

Recently, when I do paddle, I have taken as I am heading back to my starting point (I usually paddle out and back), to grabbing a few pieces of rubbish and tossing them in the back of the kayak to be disposed of in a handy bin once I am back on land. It's not much, but I figure it's better than nothing and it has occurred to me recently to wonder whether others could be convinced to do likewise, either on the water or along the riverbanks as they walk, ride or paddle.
Nor is it only the Barwon which suffers. The photo below is an example of rubbish collected from the banks of the Moorabool River at Fyansford over the space of an hour or so by a couple of dozen enthusiastic geocachers in late 2013.

Junk collected from the banks of the Moorabool River at Fyansford

The type and size of the rubbish seems to depend to some extent on where on the river I am. Through town - particularly at the bottom of the rowing mile, plastic water bottles and reusable drink bottles are quite common whilst up towards Queen's Park, balls and plastic bottles are the thing. I can only assume that some of the Newtown/Highton fur babies are not quite as keen to retrieve balls from the river as their owners feel they should be.
Above Baum's Weir, the junk takes on a slightly differTent composition. The area around Merrawarp Road Bridge can at various times be a hangout for drug users (as the graffiti attests). Perhaps it is not surprising then that the junk around this area and further downstream often includes glass bottles - generally beer or spirits. Somewhat strangely, it also seems to be a collecting point for lone shoes. I've found several up to now.

Bottles, shoes and plastic

I am unsure whether there is a direct connection between the bottles and the shoes - perhaps, once the bottles are empty, the owners become less concerned about the welfare of their shoes, resulting in several shoe drownings. There are also a few larger items up this way which are too big for me to dispose of using the kayak. These include a milk crate, a bed roll/yoga mat, several 44 gallon drums (which used to belong to a raft which featured on an earlier post in this blog) and somewhat strangely, a large gas bottle of the type used to supply houses not connected to the mains. The latter I was pleased to note on Sunday, had been removed onto the bank at the bottom of Gully Road.

44 gallon drums, once part of a raft

Currently, back near the weir are a pillow and a child's foam couch. On one occasion I spotted a metallic suitcase on the bottom of the river. It has since disappeared.
On my most recent paddle, I was feeling enthusiastic, so came back with quite a load. This time it included the usual bottles - both plastic and glass -, polystyrene chunks, a waterlogged soccer ball, a tennis ball and a large wad of Target catalogues which it seems were delivered en masse into the Barwon instead of their intended destination.

Sunday's haul

I also noticed during a recent ride that several large pieces of rubbish have been dumped at the Breakwater and at that time, the only action taken was to put tape across the various items declaring that they were illegally dumped rubbish. I have also noticed in recent years since the authorities removed several smaller bins and replaced them with more centrally-located larger bins that a number of dog-walkers deem it okay to bag their dog's droppings and leave the bags in a pile where the old bins used to be. I suspect this act of rebellion - if that is what it is - is lost on the authorities.
Meanwhile, I will continue to grab what I can and who knows, maybe the idea will catch on...

Eeewwww!!

Up to now I haven't really looked at the environmental issues which affect the Barwon River, however with Saturday's deluge of rain, pollution has suddenly become a hot topic - well, for the next few days. The Geelong Advertiser informs me that for several days it will be unsafe to swim in either the river or Corio Bay. The reason for this is that the recent downpour caused the sewage system to overflow into the stormwater drains as well as sending a great deal of rubbish into the drains,  meaning that output from the stormwater drains may be contaminated. Not only is this bad news for humans who can suffer a range of unpleasant symptoms, but it is also a problem for the river environment in general.

Stormwater drain near Queen's Park

Large influxes of "nutrients" combined with the right weather and low water levels create ideal conditions for outbreaks of blue green algae along the course of the river. So what is blue green algae? It is actually a type of cyanobacteria, which as a group may well be the most successful micro-organisms on the planet. These tiny bacteria are thought to have given rise to the process of aerobic metabolism used by all higher life forms as well as forming the basis of chloroplasts - the part of a plant which it uses to make food. Cyanobacteria convert water into oxygen and energy by photosynthesis and it is through their actions some 3.8-2.5 billion years ago that Earth's oxygen-rich atmosphere developed. Cyanobacteria are also able to "fix" nitrogen and carbon. That is, they use the nitrogen found in nitrates, nitrites, ammonia and urea as well as carbon as part of their growth cycle.

Jerringot Wetlands

Whilst these effects are vital for the planet as a whole, contributing significantly to a reduction in greenhouse gasses, in a river system such as the Barwon, they can have negative effects. This is because the cyanobacteria use the chemicals which wash into our waterways to multiply. The result is an algal bloom which can result in a reduction in the amount of oxygen available in the water (eutrophication), which harms fish and other fauna. At the same time, cyanotoxins are produced which are toxic to humans and animals which live in and along the river.
Symptoms of poisoning in humans can include skin irritation, dizziness, numbness around the mouth, tingling in fingers and toes (produced by neurotoxins). Longer-term effects can include nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and liver dysfunction. Animals can experience weakness, staggering, difficulty breathing and ultimately death.
So what are the "nutrients" in question and where do they come from? The primary chemical culprits are nitrogen and phosphorous. In urban areas they can be found in pollutants such as leaf litter from exotic trees (particularly in autumn), human sewage, animal waste, grass clippings, paper, detergent and industrial byproducts while in rural areas crop fertilizers can also impact on the levels of nitrogen and phosphorous in the water.

Pollutants on the surface of water at Jerringot Wetlands

...at Jerringot Wetlands

Other threats to river health and to its flora and fauna come from various sources. Pesticides used to control weeds or insect infestations in crops can be carcinogenic to humans if allowed to build up in drinking water supplies whilst non-biodegradable rubbish can cause physical harm or poison river users and wildlife.

Rubbish in the Barwon near Breakwater

Grass and other rubbish washed up during the recent rain

There are some factors however, which work to counteract the effects of pollution on the river system and one of the most important is the reed beds which filter stormwater runoff before it reaches the river. In the case of the Barwon, this includes not only the reeds and other aquatic plants which line the riverbanks themselves, but also the plant life in the wetlands adjacent to the river.

Reed beds at Balyang Sanctuary

Aquatic plants at Jerringot Wetlands

I have looked at a number of these in previous posts. Much of the stormwater from Belmont is collected by Jerringot Wetlands, whilst that from Newtown flows into Balyang Sanctuary. Most of Leopold's runoff drains into Gateway Sanctuary and Ocean Grove's into Blue Waters Lake. All of these wetlands ultimately drain into the Barwon River. In many places however, Geelong's stormwater flows directly into the Barwon with no intervening wetland to reduce the level of pollutants entering the river.