The following projects were delivered by two research partnerships:

• Melbourne Waterways Research Practice Partnership (MWRPP), with The University of Melbourne
• Aquatic Pollution Prevention Partnership (A3P), with RMIT University.

Aquatic Pollution Prevention Partnership

Assessment of the pollutant risks and the need for management interventions at environmentally sensitive sites

This project aimed to determine the risk of pollution to environmentally sensitive sites within the Port Phillip and Westernport region. This includes Melbourne Water’s Sites of Biodiversity Significance (SoBS) and Ramsar sites of international significance. It will identify areas where pollution mitigation strategies and management plans for these areas may be required. For more details, visit the partnership project webpage and see the factsheet.

Melbourne Waterways Research Practice Partnership

Improving stream management using ecological modelling and DNA metabarcoding

Aquatic macroinvertebrates are a key environmental value in the Healthy Waterways Strategy. Current monitoring programs identify animals to family-level under a microscope, however, this is likely to be less sensitive than species-level identification for understanding condition of, and threats to, waterways and also not accurately reflecting the biodiversity of particular sites. To overcome cost constraints for species-level identification, this project aims to harness new DNA-based techniques to identify macroinvertebrates to species-level, and ultimately improving Melbourne Water's ability to assess waterway health across Greater Melbourne, model the likely benefits of waterway health improvement works, and identify biodiversity hotspots for aquatic macroinvertebrates. .

Taxonomy and distribution of threated Austrogammarus amphipods

This project uses genetic and morphological approaches to improve understanding of the taxonomy, distribution and conservation status of Austrogammarus haasei, A. australis and other Austrogammarus species in the Port Phillip and Westernport region. It will help to identify the species and populations most at risk and provide management recommendations to mitigate risks.