In the midst of an extinction crisis, we cannot afford to lose any more precious bushland. Join ACF and the Save Manly Dam Catchment Committee to help secure the future of this amazing place.
We all love Manly Dam
There is much so love about this beautiful place, the traditional home to the Guringai people.
It acts as the green lungs for Sydney, and supports over 300 native plant species, 80 bird species and 27 different species of reptiles and frogs! And it's habitat for rare and endangered creatures like the Eastern Pygmy Possum.
The upper creeks are home to an ancient rock-climbing fish found nowhere else in the Sydney basin! It is believed to have existed here for 60 million years.
Below the dam, Manly Creek flows into Queenscliff Lagoon and Manly’s iconic surf beaches. Protecting the health of this catchment matters to us all.
But it is under threat
In 1892 the bush surrounding the dam was protected as a water catchment. But in more recent times the area has faced concerted threats from unsustainable development.
The plan to build over 3000 apartments at Frenchs Forest could involve relocating the current high school to within the park boundaries at Aquatic Reserve. The reserve is a former dump site. It is currently safely capped with sports fields, but construction on the site for the project could disturb toxic waste. This would contaminate the air and local creeks, threatening students, workers and wildlife.
The school relocation plan also potentially threatens remaining pockets of Duffys Forest - some of the rarest bushland on earth.
Further land clearing for the proposed eight-lane Northern Beaches Link tunnel threatens bushland on the edge of the park along Wakehurst Parkway. A construction entry point is also being considered at Seaforth which would destroy important wildlife corridors.
Together we can protect Manly Dam
Since 1994, the Save Manly Dam Catchment Committee has led the fight to protect and restore this bushland. In 2017 the area became a State Park, but the bushland is still not fully protected.
The Australian Conservation Foundation has now joined with the Save Manly Dam Catchment Committee and the local community to safeguard the dam and surrounding bushland. Ultimately, we want to protect, restore and connect nature across the wider Northern Beaches.
Join with us to help secure the future of this amazing place we all love and enjoy:
- Join Save Manly Dam Bushland on Facebook
