Johnstons Creek Naturalisation Wins Stormwater NSW Award

A Celebratory Win for Environmental Excellence

What a way to end the year with Sydney Water’s Johnstons Creek Naturalisation project winning the Stormwater New South Wales Excellence in Asset Management Award.

Innovative Design and Construction for Ecological Enhancement

As Sydney Water’s delivery partner, Diona provided detailed design and construction services for the project which involved naturalising 610 metres of Johnstons Creek in Annandale with natural sandstone, native plantings, intertidal rock pools and saltmarsh which is an endangered ecological community.

Community and Ecological Value Recognised

“The Johnstons Creek project has set a new benchmark for stormwater channel naturalisation projects. The works have significantly improved the ecological and social value of the channel which has been transformed into a vibrant waterway that has been very well received by the local community. The award is great recognition for the hard work by many people in the project team including our key partners Thompson Berrill Landscape Design, Jacobs, City of Sydney and Diona,” said Jordan Mulhearn, Project Manager for Sydney Water.

Navigating Complex Environmental Conditions

Diona’s Senior Project Engineer, Killian McGuinness, said that this project is a perfect example of Diona’s ability to adapt to and work within any environment.

“As the project was located in the middle of a live stormwater channel, on any given day, we had upstream flows entering the site at one end, and tidal impacts from Sydney Harbour entering at the other end, not to mention the additional complexities brought about by rain events. Working within that environment required detailed planning, risk management and emergency response procedures. In saying that, with the crews and pumps working 24 hours a day and seven days a week in some cases, we managed to excavate 13,500 tonnes of material, pour over 5,000 cubic meters of concrete and lay 13,300 sandstone blocks. This was all achieved while maintaining a safe marine environment within Sydney Harbour throughout the construction phase. It’s nice to hand this naturalised historic landmark back to the community.

This award is an excellent acknowledgement of a job well done, and everyone who was part of it should be proud of what was achieved,” said Killian.

This is the second award that the project has received this year after winning the Place-based collaboration category at the 2021 Greater Sydney Planning Awards recognising the exceptional collaborative approaches to community and stakeholder engagement, planning and place making.

Congratulations to the Sydney Water, Diona, City of Sydney, Thompson Berrill Landscape Design and Jacobs teams for your outstanding work on this memorable project.