With over 60 kilometres of waterways, Scrubby Creek is the second largest catchment in the City of Logan. Spanning from Greenbank in the west to Meadowbrook in the east, Scrubby creek flows into Slacks Creek, which then flows to the Logan River.
Revitalisation works, corridor connections
Did you know that many of our native fish try to migrate to the estuary to spawn? Juvenile fish born in the estuary migrate up the waterway to freshwaters to live their lives as adults.
For many waterways, road and water infrastructure such as culverts and weirs built in the past are now understood to often act as barriers to fish moving to the estuary and for young fish making their way up to freshwaters. This results in reduced fish numbers over time and can even contribute to local extinctions. Council and our grant partners are committed to improving fish movement by remediating these fish movement barriers.
Key projects include:
The Gould Adams Park (Scrubby Creek) weir was constructed by Kingston Butter Factory for water extraction, thought to have occurred in early 1945. Today, the weir is no longer in use and acts as a barrier to native fish movement. Many native fish species require passage across the weir to reach the estuary to spawn, and for the juvenile fish to migrate back to freshwaters.
The Gould Adams Park (Scrubby Creek) weir remediation project will involve removal of the old weir and installation of a rock ramp fishway downstream of the footbridge across Scrubby Creek within Gould Adams Park. The rock ramp fishway will be similar to the existing fish passages at Queens Road and Paradise Road, Slacks Creek. It will consist of a series of rock ridges that are designed to slow the water and provide deep resting pools between them for fish as they move through the fishway. The change in water level from one rock ridge to the next is designed to allow native fish to pass through.
The fishway will also help maintain water levels in the upstream pool after the weir is removed. A drop in water level will still occur and Council will revegetate exposed banks with native vegetation, which will provide further habitat and food for native birds and wildlife.
Poorly connected waterways allow pest fish such as tilapia, carp and mosquito fish to flourish. Fixing barriers that prevent movement along waterways will give our native fish, like the Australian bass, a fighting chance. To learn more about responsible fishing and how to correctly dispose of pest fish, visit the Fishing in Logan page.
Removal of the weir and construction of the fishway is expected to commence in Winter 2026. Keep an eye on this page for further updates, or please contact environment@logan.qld.gov.au for further information.
The Gould Adams Park (Scrubby Creek) Weir Removal and Fishway project is jointly funded by Resilient Rivers SEQ, as part of the South East Queensland (SEQ) City Deal, and Council. Resilient Rivers SEQ is one of 29 commitments being delivered under the SEQ City Deal, a partnership between the Australian Government, Queensland Government and Council of Mayors (SEQ). The SEQ City Deal aims to improve the accessibility, prosperity and liveability of the region, which is home to more than 4 million residents. Council is providing remaining funds for the Gould Adams Park (Scrubby Creek) Weir Removal and Fishway project.
The SEQ City Deal will invest $40 million into Resilient Rivers SEQ with $10 million each from the Australian Government, Queensland Government, Council of Mayors (SEQ) and Seqwater.
Barriers like the pedestrian culvert causeway over Scrubby Creek (near the intersection of Queens Road and Loganlea Road) prevented native fish movement and would have caused a decrease in fish numbers over time.
The Queens Road Fish Passage project replaced the partly collapsed and inappropriately sized culverts with a new pedestrian footbridge and instream rock ramp fishway. This allows fish to swim further along Scrubby Creek and help them reach the estuary.
If you visit the creek, you will see a series of rock ridges next to the new footbridge. This is called a rock ramp fishway. The ridges are designed to slow the water and provide deep resting pools for fish as they move through the fishway. The change in water level from one ridge to the next is designed to allow native fish to pass through. This structure also stops erosion while still allowing fish to pass.
Poorly connected waterways also allow pest fish such as tilapia, carp and mosquito fish to flourish. Fixing barriers that prevent movement along waterways, will give our native fish, like the Australian bass, a fighting chance. To learn about responsible fishing and how to correctly dispose of pest fish, visit the Fishing in Logan page.
This project was supported by Healthy Land and Water, through funding from:
- The Australian Government’s National Landcare Program
- Logan City Council’s Environment Levy
- OzFish Unlimited.
It was also co-funded under the Queensland Recreational Fishing Grant (Qld Department of Agriculture and Fisheries).