Reef Alliance – Growing a Great Barrier Reef

Before (left) and after installation of a sediment trap.

With funding from the Reef Trust Phase Three Program, the Reef Alliance project aimed to improve water quality across the Great Barrier Reef by enabling landholders to change practices in sugarcane, grazing, dairy, horticulture, bananas, grains and cropping.

One success story from the project is Boolabah Banana Farms in the South Johnstone catchment who have a long-standing commitment to reducing soil loss from their farm. In 2019, with funding from the Reef Alliance project, they constructed a sediment trap that included the installation of a spillway. The sediment trap captured drainage water after a prolonged rainfall event providing a win-win for the farm and the environment.

According to Hayden Darveniza, his involvement in this project has been very rewarding: "As a result of this project, I have become a lot more inspired to do more. The silt trap captures only half of the run-off from the farm and when finances become available, I’d be keen to put another trap in to capture sediment from the other half of the farm."

This factsheet provides more information, including the results of water sampling taken in March 2020.