Jump in the river!
Image: Come on in - the water's fine! Bayview Park Baths Launch, November 13. Image: Nadia Young
That’s what the Parramatta River Catchment Group (PRCG) is encouraging visitors to do at various sites along the Parramatta River including the newly launched enclosure at Bayview Park, Concord.
Through its Our Living River initiative and in partnership with various local councils, government agencies, community groups and Sydney Water, PRCG aims to revitalise the Parramatta River, making it swimmable and able to sustain a thriving natural ecosystem.
Barely larger than a creek where it officially begins in upper Parramatta, the river grows as it flows eastward, formally merging with Sydney Harbour just before Cockatoo Island.
As a major water course between the cities of Sydney and Parramatta, the river has played an integral role in post-colonial development, as well as having important historical and spiritual significance for local First Nations people.
For much of its 20 million years (give or take) the Parramatta River has teemed with life – water birds; many varieties of fish, insects, and plants; sharks, turtles, and of course, eels; literally hundreds of species of flora and fauna. It has provided food, water, recreation, transport.
After colonisation, the river became a popular destination for social and sports activities, and was a busy waterway for commercial and recreational craft. However, after years of industrialism, urbanisation, and a complete disregard for the natural environment, the Parramatta River finally succumbed to pollution and overuse.
In 1969, the baths at Bayview Park were closed, deemed unsuitable for swimming. It has taken almost five decades to rehabilitate the river and make it user-friendly again.
PCRG created its ten-point masterplan for the revitalisation of the Parramatta River in 2018. Bayview Park is one of two other locations, Putney Park (Concord) and McIlwaine Park (Rhodes East) which will host a swimming beach before 2025.
Water quality at swimming locations is monitored daily and can be checked at Our Living River and Sydney Water websites.
