77-523: Coode Canal is a reach of the lower Yarra River in Melbourne , the capital city of the Australian state of Victoria . The canal was excavated in 1886, as part of harbour improvements designed by Sir John Coode to improve access for ships to Melbourne's main river docks. It created Coode Island and caused the shallow, narrow and winding Fishermans Bend to be cut off along with other sections of
154-551: A cairn on Fourth Hill in the Warrandyte State Park . The river was drained and diverted in various areas throughout the gold rush to aid gold miners. An example of this is the tunnel at Pound Bend in Warrandyte . The river was partially dammed at Pound Bend near Normans Reserve at its eastern entrance and near Bob's wetlands at its western exit. Miners then blasted a 145m long tunnel through solid rock. The river
231-420: A facility for washing down cars and chemical containers illegally leaked toxic chemicals and herbicides into Yarra River, killing trees and endangering public safety. The facility was situated inside Warrandyte State Park, from where the spillover until June 2015 flowed into the river and downstream towards Melbourne. Between 2014 and 2017, 1.3 million cigarette butts and 179 tonnes of litter were pulled out from
308-496: A minimum 14-metre draught at all times. Opposition to this project stems from potential environmental damage due to silting and loss of amenity for bayside residents due to the noise produced by the dredges. The project was subject to the strictest environmental testing and monitoring requirements in the world at the time. These activities will continue on for many years to help protect the Port Phillip Bay ecosystems. In
385-471: A post victory celebration. On the southern side of the river near exists a number of university and private school rowing clubs who use the river for recreational sports. Around 2000, the river became a focus of major government projects. Projects were proposed to connect Flinders Street station with the river and early proposals were for the Melbourne Museum to be situated on the south bank of
462-626: A set of cascades which prevented both salt water and larger ships from going further upstream. This series of rocks, originally used to cross the river, and referred to as the "Yarra Falls" was removed using explosives and divers in 1883. The final section passes through the Port of Melbourne and under the Bolte Bridge and the West Gate Bridge . The current course dates back to 1886 when a canal devised by British engineer Sir John Coode
539-424: Is colloquially known as "the upside down river", for its golden hue. The muddy brown colour is caused by the easily eroded clay soils of its catchment area. The water was clear at the time of the first European settlements, but intensive land clearing and development since the mid-19th century has resulted in the presence of microscopic clay particles. The particles are kept suspended by the turbulence in some parts of
616-800: Is roughly 50% its original flow prior to damming. It is the most westerly snow fed river in Australia. The total catchment area is approximately 4,000 square kilometres (1,500 sq mi). The Yarra's major tributaries are the Maribyrnong River , Moonee Ponds Creek , Merri Creek , Darebin Creek , Plenty River , Mullum Mullum Creek and Olinda Creek . The river hosts many geographical features such as; bends, rapids , lakes, islands, floodplains , billabongs and wetlands . Most features have been named after translated Wurundjeri phrases or have European, particularly British, origins. Some of
693-409: Is the furthest upstream point on the river visible to the general public (though the dam itself is closed off). The first settlement the still-young river passes through is the small town of Reefton, but most of the river is surrounded by hills covered temperate forest until the timber and resort town of Warburton . The Woods Point Road follows the river through this section. Downstream of Warburton,
770-583: Is the largest port for containerised and general cargo in Australia . It is located in Melbourne , Victoria , and covers an area at the mouth of the Yarra River , downstream of Bolte Bridge , which is at the head of Port Phillip , as well as several piers on the bay itself. Since 1 July 2003, the Port of Melbourne has been managed by the Port of Melbourne Corporation , a statutory corporation created by
847-498: The Capital City Trail . The river is used extensively for kayaking at Templestowe , and canoes can often be seen throughout the suburban section. Whilst the water is not particularly clear, its quality is sufficient for edible fish to swim within it. Some small hobby farms are located in the floodplain area of the river, surprisingly close to central Melbourne and almost completely surrounded by suburbs. Heidelberg formed
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#1732773085562924-744: The Colony of New South Wales John Helder Wedge of the Port Phillip Association visited the area with two Kulin People, who pointed at the flowing water and said yarra yarra , recorded in Wedge's notebook as the phrase yarrow yarrow , in the mistaken belief that this was the name for the river in the Boonwurrung language. yarra yarra was instead what the Kulin people had referred to as
1001-520: The Docklands redevelopment. In 1991 a large fire at the Coode Island bulk liquid handling facility blanketed much of Melbourne in toxic fumes. The public outrage forced the government to investigate relocating the facility. Point Lillias near Geelong was considered. However, due to the high cost involved and local opposition the facility has remained at Coode Island. The Port of Melbourne
1078-520: The Kulin nation . The area has been occupied by various indigenous clans for at least 30,000 years. The river, known to the Wurundjeri people as Birrarung, was an important resource for the Wurundjeri people and several sites along the river and its tributaries were important meeting places where corroborees were held between Indigenous communities. The river's resources were utilised sustainably by
1155-706: The Patterson , Kororoit, Werribee , Little River , and drained directly through a narrow gap (what is now called the Rip ) into a bay of the Great Australian Bight on the west side of a prehistoric land bridge called the Bassian Plain (which later became submerged into the Bass Strait ). Between 8000 BC and 6000 BC, after the end of the most recent Ice Age , the rising sea level flooded
1232-536: The Port of Melbourne . The project was controversial and strict regulations were enacted. It was feared that dredging would disturb heavy metals and other toxic sediments mostly deposited during Melbourne's industrial era. The project was completed in November 2009. The Yarra River was an important resource for the Wurundjeri people for around 40,000 years. The river's resources were utilised sustainably by
1309-537: The Yarra Ranges , it flows 242 kilometres (150 mi) west through the Yarra Valley which opens out into plains as it winds its way through Greater Melbourne before emptying into Hobsons Bay in northernmost Port Phillip Bay . The river has been a major food source and meeting place for Indigenous Australians for thousands of years. Shortly after the arrival of European settlers , land clearing forced
1386-466: The Yarra River and Port Melbourne , including (from upstream to downstream): In Melbourne's early days, large ships were unable to navigate the Yarra River, so cargo destined for Melbourne had to be unloaded at either Hobsons Bay (now Williamstown ) or Sandridge (now Port Melbourne) and transferred either by rail or by cargo lighter to warehouses which were concentrated around King Street . This
1463-557: The Yarra Yarra River , ( Kulin languages : Berrern , Birr-arrung , Bay-ray-rung , Birarang , Birrarung , and Wongete ) is a perennial river in south-central Victoria , Australia . The lower stretches of the Yarra are where Victoria's state capital Melbourne was established in 1835, and today metropolitan Greater Melbourne dominates and influences the landscape of its lower reaches. From its source in
1540-512: The Yarra Yarra falls , which was later dynamited in 1883 as part of a series of extensive harbour improvements of the river, engineered by Sir John Coode . The word yarra translates to flowing water, Wedge later learnt of this and admitted he had mistaken the Kulin name for the falls, for the river itself, but by then the name had stuck. On his first contact with local Wurunderi people in 1835, John Wedge wrote: On arriving in sight of
1617-413: The unsustainable use of the river and surrounding resources. The river is fed by a number of small unnamed creeks and streams in the Yarra Ranges as well as 49 named tributaries, most of which are creeks . The river's lower reaches travel through central Melbourne . It is approximately 242 kilometres (150 mi) in length, with a mean annual flow of 718 gigalitres (2.54 × 10 cu ft), which
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#17327730855621694-530: The 1950s it had been completely filled and land parcels were allocated including a site for the new Fish Markets. In 1957, the Upper Yarra Reservoir was constructed, primarily to alleviate flooding downstream. This reduced the river's flow to around 50%, where it sits today. Swanson Dock was constructed between 1966 and 1972 equipped for modern container shipping. Shipping activity at Victoria Dock during this time had gone into steep decline and it
1771-515: The 1960s there was a growing awareness of the neglect of the Yarra amongst some residents of Melbourne, spawning various community groups and "friends of..." organisations to protect the remnants of the river's ecology. Through the 1970s and 1980s, many desirable developments alongside the river began, such as the Victorian Arts Centre , as its lower courses progressively became gentrified. Growing high density residential development in
1848-501: The 19th century and into the 20th. In 1891, the great flood caused the Yarra to swell to 305 metres (1,001 ft) in width. Initially known as "West Melbourne Dock", over 3 million cubic yards (2.3 × 10 ^ m ) of material was excavated and a new dock was eventually opened in 1892, the material that was removed was subsequently used to fill in part of the West Melbourne Swamp, it took 6 days for water from
1925-554: The Port of Melbourne in the late 19th century. It retains Melbourne's passenger terminal however, with cruise ships using Station Pier. Infrastructure Victoria estimate that the Port of Melbourne will reach its capacity in 2055. In September 2016, the port’s commercial operations were leased to the Lonsdale Consortium for a term of 50 years for more than $ 9.7 billion. The Lonsdale Consortium comprises The Port of Melbourne consists of several major man-made docks on
2002-416: The Port of Melbourne. The port handled 64.4 million tonnes of cargo, including a throughput of 1.9 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) of cargo. In 2006-07 it became the first Australian port to handle two million TEU in a year. Railway goods sidings serve both Swanson Dock East and West, permitting the transfer of shipping containers between sea and rail transport. Originally provided in
2079-593: The River. Due to damming and the lack of natural flooding, much of the surrounding vegetation is lacking in the silt and soil deposits that would otherwise be provided by the floods. The construction of the Upper Yarra Reservoir in 1957 reduced the river's flow by around 50%. This has ultimately led to a lack of healthy understory and saplings, or a lack of saplings completely, which contributes to problems such as reduced habitat, erosion and salinity , issues that ironically affect surrounding agriculture. The Yarra River
2156-537: The Riverkeeper Ian Penrose was awarded the 2010 Melbourne Award for contribution to the environment. The Yarra River has a detailed and complex geological history, see "Geology". It was utilised and managed sustainably by the Wurundjeri for around 40,000 years; however, since the European settlement and use of the river in the mid-19th century, its geography has changed substantially reflecting
2233-583: The State of Victoria. Most of the port is in the suburb of West Melbourne and should not be confused with the Melbourne suburb of Port Melbourne although Webb Dock and Station Pier , parts of the Port of Melbourne, are in Port Melbourne. Port Melbourne (or Sandridge as it was known until 1884) was a busy port early in the history of Melbourne, but declined as a cargo port with the development of
2310-511: The Wurundjeri until European settlement in the early-mid-19th century. Early industry located along the river contributed great amounts of pollution such as dangerous chemicals, grease, oil and heavy metals. Through the mid-20th century, industry was slowly relocated away from the river and since then the major pollutants have come from storm water runoff, sewerage and lasting effects of previous pollution. Gold mining cleared small areas of land of vegetation and for periods of time, drained sections of
2387-423: The Wurundjeri until the arrival of European colonists in the early-mid-19th century. The first Europeans to sail up the river was a surveying party led by Charles Grimes , Acting Surveyor General of New South Wales , who in 1803 sailed upstream to Dights Falls , where they could no longer continue due to the nature of the terrain. European explorers would not enter the river for another 30 years until, in 1835,
Coode Canal - Misplaced Pages Continue
2464-432: The Yarra River to fill the dock. The dock was later renamed Victoria Dock. In 1910, the main channel was widened and deepened (81 to 131 m or 266 to 430 ft). In 1916, the central pier at Victoria Dock was completed which provided 6 additional shipping berths and cargo sheds and creating a distinctive landmark for Melbourne ports. By 1942, 650m of the old course of the Yarra River at Coode Island had been filled in, by
2541-412: The Yarra River, which by the 1850s had become quite polluted and the cause of an epidemic of typhoid fever , which hit the city resulting in many deaths. However, people continued to swim and drink the water until Melbourne's fresh water was sourced from elsewhere. The first permanent crossing over the river was Princes Bridge , which first opened as a wooden trestle bridge in 1844. The current bridge
2618-499: The Yarra Valley gradually opens out and farms begin to appear, including beef and dairy farms, and by the town of Woori Yallock and the river's turn north, increasingly large areas are covered by vineyards, forming the Yarra Valley wine region. At Healesville , the river turns west again and the stream bed becomes increasingly silty, reducing the clarity of the water, and by the commuter town of Yarra Glen it begins to take on
2695-407: The Yarra and environs. In 2007 it was fined A$ 5,000 for discharging paper pulp into the Yarra from its Alphington plant and in 2008 the company was convicted for releasing oil into the Yarra from its Alphington plant and fined A$ 80,000. Several programs are being implemented to minimise beach and river pollution, mostly organised by community groups, EPA Victoria and local councils. In 2015,
2772-433: The Yarra and supports collaborative management of the river and its lands. The river was called Birrarung by the Kulin people who occupied the Yarra Valley and much of Central Victoria prior to European colonisation. The name Birrarung is derived from a Wurundjeri word meaning 'river of mists', as the area around the waterfall tended to get misty before nightfall. At European arrival in 1835, Surveyor-General of
2849-413: The Yarra at Federation Wharf and a neighbouring park, Birrarung Marr was also built along the north bank, creating renewed interest in connecting city workers to the river. New ferry services and water taxis sprang up along the city reach, servicing as far up river as South Yarra and out to Hobsons Bay . In 2008, dredging began to deepen the mouth of the Yarra to enable large container ships to reach
2926-428: The Yarra catchment storm water runoff every day, these serve as just a small representation of the rubbish and litter that are disposed of in storm water runoff areas that eventually make their way into the river and consequently, the sea. Some industrial companies continue to use the Yarra as a dumping ground. For example, in recent years paper company Amcor has been fined several times by EPA Victoria for polluting
3003-495: The Yarra during the early years of the gold rush. In the 1840s a weir was built at Dights Falls to power a flour mill and to give some control over the river downstream from there. From the earliest years of settlement, the mid and upper reaches of the Yarra began to be used for recreation. The river was selected as the site for the Royal Botanic Gardens in 1846 and the course of the river was modified slightly for
3080-708: The Yarra. The construction of the Spencer Street Bridge in 1928 and the Charles Grimes Bridge in 1975 each closed access to docks to the east. The barque Polly Woodside lying in the old Duke and Orr drydock, the warehouses of South Wharf and the Mission to Seafarers building are now the only reminders of the maritime history of this area. Development slowed during the Great Depression and World War II but resumed after
3157-404: The area that is now central and northern Melbourne was explored by John Batman , a leading member of the Port Phillip Association , who negotiated a transaction for 600,000 acres (2,400 km ) of land from eight Wurundjeri elders. He selected a site on the northern bank of the Yarra River, declaring that "this will be the place for a village". The document, commonly called Batman's Treaty ,
Coode Canal - Misplaced Pages Continue
3234-544: The brownish colour that the lower reaches are known for. The river enters Melbourne's suburbs proper at Chirnside Park , but virtually all the river's length is surrounded by parkland, much retaining (or having been replanted with) extensive native vegetation. A bicycle and walking trail known as the Main Yarra Trail begins at Warrandyte and becomes the Yarra River Trail , and in the lower reaches,
3311-526: The course of the river in its lower reaches. The creation of new shipping channels to cope with the growing use of the Yarra by cargo ships was first tabled in the 1870s. The first major change came with the cutting of the Coode Canal between 1880 and 1886. This major infrastructure project created an island which was known as Coode Island , named after the British consultant engineer engaged to design
3388-510: The creation of a feature lake. Further upstream, the Cremorne Gardens were established in 1853. Sections of the river mouth and the area around the former West Melbourne Swamp were widened in the late 19th century, to make way for docks, harbours, bridges and other infrastructure. The increasing industrialisation of the river and the growth of the shipping industry saw the need for major infrastructure works which dramatically changed
3465-586: The destruction of the marshlands at the confluence of the Yarra and Maribyrnong Rivers in the area around Coode Island in West Melbourne . Today, the Yarra mouth including Swanson and Appleton docks are used for container shipping by the Port of Melbourne , which is the busiest on the continent. The city reach which is inaccessible to larger watercrafts, has seen increased use for both transport and recreational boating (including kayaking , canoeing , rowing and swimming ). In March 2019, it
3542-506: The fish are contaminated with heavy metals including arsenic and not fit for human consumption. Dolphins have been known to venture upstream as far as South Yarra , and serve as an example of the increased salinity of the river's lower reaches. Platypus are rarely seen as far downstream as Fairfield. The river's source is a series of swamps in the upper reaches of the Yarra Ranges National Park , directly to
3619-556: The future the Victorian Government will redevelop the Port of Melbourne to better integrate it with other modes of transport. The Melbourne wholesale fruit and vegetable market was relocated to Epping in 2013. Footscray Road is planned to be raised so that port users will have improved access to the rail facilities at South Dynon. The Port of Melbourne is made up of the following: From May 2003 till May 2004, approximately 3,400 ships from 42 different lines called at
3696-697: The global Waterkeeper Alliance movement and have been involved in forums and discussions pushing for policies to ensure that "the voice" of the river is heard. The Yarra Riverkeeper Association or YRKA for short view the Yarra River as Melbourne's greatest natural asset and educate that its preservation and restoration is vital in helping Melbourne become a sustainable city. Since its establishment in 2004, YRKA has delivered hundreds of presentations and lectures, been in over 200 media appearances and provide on-water inspection tours to over 200 community leaders, business leaders, and politicians. It has had successful campaigns in pushing for great environmental flows and in 2010
3773-582: The home of the Heidelberg School , widely considered the first European painters to accurately capture the Australian landscape and its distinctive features. The walking trail features placards displaying some of their paintings at the settings they were actually painted; some features depicted remain clearly recognisable today. Below Dights Falls at Yarra Bend Park in inner Melbourne, the river becomes increasingly estuarine as it passes along
3850-535: The lower basin forming the shallow Port Phillip Bay, moving the Yarra river mouth over 50 km (31 mi) inland. A dry period combined with sand bar formation may have dried out the Bay as recently as between 800 BC and 1000 AD, temporarily re-extending the Yarra south to Bass Strait during this period. The area surrounding the Yarra River was first inhabited by the Boonwurrung and Wurundjeri peoples of
3927-472: The lower reaches in the early 1990s coincided with minor government programs such as the installation of litter traps . The riverside apartment complex Como Centre at South Yarra and the larger urban renewal of the formerly industrial Southbank precinct were both built during the late 1990s. During this era it was also commonplace for the winner of the Australian Open to bathe in the Yarra River as
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#17327730855624004-402: The lower reaches such as Merri Creek and Moonee Ponds Creek. Levels of bacteria, particularly E. coli and substances like grease, oils and heavy metals in the Yarra River and its tributaries are a major problem. High levels of E. coli, some up to 200 times the safe limit in its tributaries, are caused primarily by poorly maintained septic systems. Up to 350,000 cigarette butts enter
4081-437: The middle and lower sections of the river. When the river water combines with marine salts as it enters Port Phillip, the suspended particles clump together and sink. The presence of clay particles is not a major factor in the pollution of the river. The Yarra Riverkeeper Association is the largest of many advocacy groups dedicated to protecting the Yarra River and its environs for current and future generations. They are part of
4158-410: The northern course of the river has long since disappeared. With these works, ships were now able to sail as far up the river as Queensbridge where a turning basin was constructed. Coode also oversaw the construction of Victoria Dock in swampland to the west of the city. This opened in 1889. Over time the docks moved progressively downstream as ships became larger and road bridges were built across
4235-466: The remaining Wurundjeri people into neighbouring territories and away from the river. Originally called Birrarung by the Wurundjeri, the current name was mistranslated from another Wurundjeri term in the Boonwurrung language ; Yarro-yarro , meaning "ever-flowing". The river was utilised primarily for agriculture by early European settlers. The landscape of the river has changed dramatically since 1835. The course has been progressively disrupted and
4312-427: The river and tributaries such as Merri Creek as landfill and for harmful chemical dumps for substances like grease and oils. The disposal of sewerage in Melbourne was very basic in the early days. The majority of waste from homes and industries flowed into street channels and on to local rivers and creeks which became open sewers. The first City Baths were opened in 1860. The objective was to stop people bathing in
4389-446: The river including Humbug Reach and the original junction with the Maribyrnong River (or Saltwater River). Coode Canal and Victoria Dock received an Engineering Heritage Marker from Engineers Australia as part of its Engineering Heritage Recognition Program . 37°48′55″S 144°54′26″E / 37.81528°S 144.90722°E / -37.81528; 144.90722 Yarra River The Yarra River or historically,
4466-755: The river widened in places. The first of many crossings of the Yarra River to facilitate transport was built in Princes Bridge . Beginning with the Victorian gold rush it was extensively mined, creating the Pound Bend Tunnel in Warrandyte , and the Big and Little Peninsula Tunnels above Warburton . Widening and dams, like the Upper Yarra Reservoir have helped protect Melbourne from major flooding. The catchment's upper reaches are also affected by logging . Industrialisation ultimately led to
4543-513: The river's more prominent features include; Coode Island and Fishermans Bend, Victoria Harbour , Herring Island , Yarra Bend , Dights Falls, Upper Yarra Dam and Reservoir and many river flats and billabongs. The river is home to several species of fish. In the lower reaches of the Yarra mainly southern black bream and jellyfish and in the upper reaches smaller quantities of European perch (redfin), Macquarie perch , brown trout , Murray cod and freshwater catfish . However almost all of
4620-479: The river, the two natives who were with me, pointing to the river, called out, Yarra Yarra , which at the time I imagined to be its name; but I afterwards learnt that the words were what they used to designate a waterfall, as they afterwards gave the same designation to a small fall in the river Werribee, as we crossed it on our way back to Indented Head . Before 8000 BC, the Yarra River probably joined course with other present-day Port Phillip Bay tributaries such as
4697-447: The river, train their rowing crews on it. The lower reaches feature a number of boat cruises, using especially low-roof boats to go under the many bridges across this section of the Yarra. Herring Island is a small island at South Yarra which has a punt which takes people on to the park. The area in front of old Customs House is a former turning basin for ships. It is the point which was once known as "Freshwater Place" and once had
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#17327730855624774-455: The river, yet depriving the river banks of soil and silt deposits and causing other problems such as erosion and salinity . Gold was first discovered in Victoria near the Yarra River in Warrandyte . The find was made by Louis Michel in 1851 at a tributary of the river, Andersons Creek and marked the start of the Victorian gold rush . The approximate location of the site is marked by
4851-480: The river; however the Crown Melbourne and Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre were built in its place. The Melbourne Docklands urban renewal project began in 2000, comprising mixed use residential and commercial land and recreational boating moors along the river at the disused Victoria Dock and on the south bank of the Yarra. Federation Square was proposed to connect the spine of Melbourne to
4928-561: The river; however, when compared to land clearing and industrial pollutants, the effects of gold mining on the river were quite low. Heavy metals deposited into the river throughout the late 19th and early 20th centuries settled to the bottom of the river bed, particularly in the lower reaches through the city and Port Melbourne, and due to the increased artificial depth of the river through here, heavy metals have not been carried further, although some have been deposited out into Port Phillip . Oils and grease remain today in several tributaries in
5005-555: The southern side of the central business district. This area forms the venue for the annual " Moomba " festival, which notably features an annual water skiing competition which attracts a huge crowd. The lower stretch of the river from Docklands to the Melbourne Cricket Ground was part of the final path of the Queen's Baton Relay of the 2006 Commonwealth Games . Many of Melbourne's private schools, located close to
5082-480: The town and a convenient sewer. In the city's early days the Yarra was one of two major ports, the other being Sandridge (now Port Melbourne ), but the Yarra was preferred due to the direct access to the town's main streets and was the location of Customs House (now the Immigration Museum ). Early industries grew along the banks of the river, rapidly degrading the water quality. Industries then began using
5159-415: The war with construction of Appleton Dock (1956), Webb Dock (1960) at the mouth of the Yarra and Swanson Dock, the first container terminal, on what was Coode Island. Eventually Victoria Dock became too small to handle large container ships and was closed. Its fate was permanently sealed by the construction of the Bolte Bridge , part of CityLink , across its entrance in 1999. It now forms the centrepiece of
5236-536: The west of the Mount Baw Baw plateau, a thickly forested subalpine park, which is entirely closed-off to all except the employees of Melbourne Water . The park features extensive stands of mountain ash , a very tall eucalypt , tree ferns , as well as patches of remnant rainforest. The Upper Yarra Dam , one of a number of dams in the Yarra Catchment that supply a large part of Melbourne 's water,
5313-420: The works, Sir John Coode . This also included widening and deepening, and in some cases, vast areas of land were excavated, such as Victoria Dock , in order to give ease of access for cargo and later container ships. Abattoirs , smelters and even mortuaries were to use the river as a means of waste disposal in its lower reaches. This industrialisation also led to a steady deterioration in water quality during
5390-454: Was almost disused by the mid-1970s. In February 1972, the CBD was flooded as the natural watercourse of Elizabeth Street became a raging torrent. This was due mostly to previous storm water drainage works which utilised Elizabeth street as a watercourse during times of intense rain creating flash floods. Prior to settlements, the area now occupied by Elizabeth street was a gully off the river. By
5467-495: Was also the scene of a watershed industrial battle in 1998 between Patrick and the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA). Recently further controversy has resulted from plans to dredge Port Phillip to deepen shipping channels to allow larger ships into the Port of Melbourne. This process commenced in 2008 and was completed in November 2009. It involved removing more than 22 million cubic metres of sand and silt to provide
5544-410: Was an expensive and inefficient process. In 1877, Victoria's government resolved to make the Yarra more navigable and engaged English engineer John Coode to devise a solution. His solution was to change the course of the river by cutting a canal south of the original course of the river. This shortened it by a mile and made it much wider. It also created Coode Island , a name still used today although
5621-416: Was constructed in 1888. In the early days, the river would frequently flood. While this was not considered a problem in the floodplains near Yarra Glen and Coldstream , the floodings caused much trouble further downstream in settlements such as Warrandyte , Templestowe , Bulleen , Heidelberg and Ivanhoe . The Upper Yarra Dam was later constructed to alleviate the flooding, protecting settlements along
5698-501: Was cut from west of Flinders Street to below its junction with the Maribyrnong. The resulting island between the new and old courses of the river was named Coode Island , and is now part of the mainland with the former course to the north filled in. The river flows into Port Phillip , the site being extensively altered as part of the Port of Melbourne, Australia's busiest seaport . Port of Melbourne The Port of Melbourne
5775-499: Was declared void by the Governor of New South Wales , Richard Bourke . The Port Phillip settlement, that would become Melbourne , was established along the lower banks of the Yarra in 1835. The new settlement's main port was sited just downstream of Yarra Falls west of modern-day Queen's Bridge, the place where saltwater met freshwater . Ships would use one side of the falls while the other side provided fresh drinking water for
5852-480: Was reported that the river's environmental health is at risk due to litter, pollution, pets and urban development. The annual Moomba festival celebrates the Yarra River's increasing cultural significance to Melbourne. Melbourne Water is the lead agency for implementing the Yarra Strategic Plan (Burndap Birrarung Burndap Unmarkoo) 2022-32. The plan gives effect to the community's long-term vision for
5929-588: Was then fully dammed at the entrance and exit to the tunnel and water was diverted through 145m and out the other side leaving a 3.85 km of riverbed around Pound Bend exposed to the sun and the miners picks. Other diversions include The Island cutting in Warrandyte and the Little Peninsula Tunnel and Big Peninsula Tunnel near McMahons Creek . The Gold Rush saw increased development in Melbourne and "tent cities" of new migrants lined
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