What we heard from our community on Blacktown's waterways
Waterways are an important part of our City and are used and valued by the community in different ways.
In 2024, we invited the Blacktown City community to participate in a survey about our waterways. This feedback will help inform the way we manage our waterways. Here's what we found:
Our participants
- 692 participants (642 from online survey and 50 from focus groups)
- 92% live, 20% work, 5% visit, 4% study in Blacktown City
- 55% of participants were aged 18-44 years
- representation from over 10 nationalities.
87% of respondents stated they value our waterways
Of these participants:
- 86% value waterways for their local flora and fauna
- 82% value waterways as a place to experience nature
- 78% feel a sense of happiness when spending time along our waterways
- 74% like to visit local waterways with family and friends
- 73% feel a stress relief when visiting local waterways.
The most recognised places with waterways across Blacktown City
The following places with waterways were recognised by more than 50% of survey participants:
- Nurragingy Reserve
- Prospect Reservoir
- Western Sydney Parklands.
Visiting our waterways
Top 5 most visited places with waterways across Blacktown City are:
- Nurragingy Reserve
- Western Sydney Parklands
- Prospect Reservoir
- Blacktown International Sports Park
- Blacktown Showground Wetland.
Stormwater Management Service Charge
The Stormwater Management Service Charge is collected from residential and commercial property owners (through their rates notice) for improved stormwater management.
Just over half of respondents were aware that ratepayers are charged a Stormwater Management Service Charge.
Improvements to our waterways
Overwhelmingly, weed removal and litter control are the main improvements respondents want to see.
To increase satisfaction with waterways, our community said that the following was most important to them:
- enhanced maintenance and cleanliness of our waterways, with the regular removal of litter, sediment and weeds
- improving infrastructure by providing more accessible pathways, cycleways and walking tracks
- providing more education to the community to promote the importance of waterways and how we can maintain them
- providing more awareness to the community about the waterways in Blacktown City.