 Introduction
The Bremer River near Hartley is one of two sites on the Bremer
River (see Bremer River at Wanstead Rd).
The catchment starts near Mount Barker and flows into Lake Alexandrina.
The catchment is in the Eastern Mt lofty Ranges, starting near
Mount Barker and flows into Lake Alexandrina. A mix of native
and exotic riparian vegetation borders this brackish river. Land
use in the catchment is mainly grazing, although there is an abandoned
mine at Brukunga, which is managed by Primary Industries SA. Elevated
turbidity, heavy metal, and nutrient levels are the most likely
water quality problems. Stream
flow and electrical conductivity data for this site are available
from the Department
of Water, Land and Biodiversity Conservation. Flow data are
also available for other sites in the catchment at Mt
Barker Creek and Dawesley
Creek. >> Map (1MKB
PDF)
Water quality assessment
Water quality is assessed as being in good, moderate or poor
condition by interpreting ecological health and water chemistry
data in the context of protecting environmental values. >>
More
Ecological health is assessed in spring and autumn using the
AUSRIVAS
model. We use macroinvertebrates for this purpose because they
provide a relatively simple way to assess the health of an aquatic
ecosystem. >> More
Water chemistry is measured each month in the Bremer River. We
measure chemical indicators because when they reach a certain
level they can cause stress or toxicity to animals and plants
in an ecosystem. Some indicators can also indicate if the water
is suitable for drinking water or for activities such as swimming.
>> More
Ecological health
We collect two samples of macroinvertebrates, one from riffle
(or flowing water) habitat and one from edge (still water) habitat.
The diversity of the macroinvertebrate community is used to describe
ecological health as being in good,
moderate or poor
condition.
Go
here to find out how we classify ecological health in streams.
Ecological health assessment for June 2006
| Habitat |
Ecological health
|
| Edge |
Good
|
| Riffle |
Moderate
|
The ecological health of this site generally results in a good
rating for the edge habitat and a slightly impaired, moderate
rating for the riffle habitat.
Chironomid midge larvae from the genus Cricotopus and
oligochaete worms were the most common species in the edge habitat.
The blackfly larvae Simulium ornatipes, cnidarian Cordylophora
species and oligochaete worms were the most common species in
the riffles. The macroinvertebrate community at the site consisted
of a low number of many different families and the most notable
feature was the absence of molluscs in autumn 2006.
Download ecological health data
Water chemistry
The indicators that are measured in the Bremer River near Hartley
are nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus), turbidity, and salinity.
The concentrations of these indicators are used to classify the
water chemistry as being in good,
moderate or poor
condition, according to the needs of aquatic ecosystem protection.
Go here
to find out how we organise and classify the chemistry data.
Water chemistry classification for April to September 2006
| 
