Queensland Removes Tidal Gates to Restore Ecosystems

In Queensland, Australia, Greening Australia, the Yuwi Indigenous Corporation, Catchment Solutions, and the state fisheries authority are removing tidal gates and embankments built decades ago. Rancher Christopher Rek allowed the removal of gates on his property near Mackay, opening waterways to saltwater once again. Ecologists have already observed juvenile barramundi using these reestablished channels, mirroring conditions present before settlement.

The project addresses damage from infrastructure intended to exclude seawater, which harmed native plants like mangroves. An introduced grass, Hymenachne, thrived in the absence of salt water, but the return of tidal flow through a newly dug 45-foot channel near Cape Palmerston National Park eliminated roughly 80% of it.

Approximately 500 to 600 tidal gates remain in the Mackay area alone, and thousands more exist across Queensland. While this restoration offers a positive step, significant work remains to fully recover these ecosystems and reconnect Indigenous communities with their lands.