Diverse Saltmarsh

Central Coast Council is actively protecting and restoring saltmarsh across our waterways to support healthy ecosystems and improve water quality.

What is saltmarsh?

Saltmarsh is a community of salt-tolerant plant that grows along the sheltered edges of lagoons, estuaries and tidal flats. Saltmarsh occurs in the intertidal zone between the water and the land, where the ground is constantly inundated by saline water from the estuary. Saltmarsh plays a vital role in keeping our waterways healthy.

Why is Saltmarsh important?

Saltmarsh provides a range of benefits and ecological services for our waterways, including:

Habitat – supports fish, crabs, insects, migratory shorebirds and other wildlife. This in-turn supports fisheries and activities like wildlife watching
Water quality – helps trap sediments and filter nutrients from the land before they enter our estuaries
Climate resilience – stores carbon in soils and helps reduce the impacts of sea level rise
Natural flood protection – slows water movement and reduces erosion along shorelines
Due to the wealth of ecological benefits saltmarsh provides Saltmarshes are listed as an Endangered Ecological Community (EEC) under the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 (NSW) and are protected under state and federal law.

What Council is doing for saltmarsh

Central Coast Council manages more than 190 hectares of saltmarsh across our waterways. Council is currently working to protect and restore saltmarsh in priority locations across the Central Coast. These actions are part of Council’s broader waterways and estuary management projects, including The Tuggerah Lakes estuary improvement project and our Estuary Management Plans (EMPs) and Coastal Zone Management Plans (CZMPs).

What can the community do?

You can help protect saltmarsh by:

Not mowing foreshore areas and keeping clippings and green waste out of waterways
Putting your rubbish in the bin and cleaning up after your pet
Do not trample, ride your bike or take your vehicle through foreshore areas
Do not construct artificial jetties or rock walls in foreshore areas
Join your local Landcare or volunteer group to learn more about local saltmarsh
View our brochure for more tips on how to help protect saltmarsh

Saltmarsh rehabilitation and wrack management

Saltmarsh and wrack (detached seagrass leaves) work together as part of a healthy, natural foreshore. In areas where natural foreshore vegetation like saltmarsh is present, wrack plays an important role in keeping waterways healthy.

Natural saltmarsh foreshores allow wrack to:

Be deposited above the waterline
Gradually dry out and break down
Return nutrients safely into the soil
Provide food and shelter for small animals and insects

Because the wrack dries and decomposes out of the water, it is far less likely to create strong smells. Learn more about Saltmarsh and wrack by watching our video on saltmarsh and wrack management.

How foreshore structure effects breakdown of wrack

no mow markers are installed around saltmarsh rehabilitation sites on the foreshore to protect them from damaged caused by mowing
planting native saltmarsh species at Long Jetty foreshore

Want to learn more?

Estuary handbooks and iBooks

Our interactive estuary handbooks and iBooks dive deeper into how Tuggerah Lakes and other local estuary's function, including wetlands, saltmarsh and seagrass habitats. They’re suitable for adults, teachers and students.
Explore our estuary handbooks and iBooks

Learn about examples of our work

Discover how Council are working to improve water quality and look after our waterways.
Learn about examples of our work

Saltmarsh factsheet

Find out how saltmarsh works, why it’s important for water quality and wildlife, and how it helps protect our foreshores with our saltmarsh factsheet below

saltmarsh factsheet