Restoring our rivulets and reducing flood risks
The City of Hobart has started work on an ambitious three-year project to rid Hobart's rivulets and catchments of the highly invasive environmental weed crack willow (Salix fragils).
The $1.1 million project is equally funded by the City of Hobart and the Australian Government through the Disaster Ready Fund. It is administered by the Tasmanian Government Department of Premier and Cabinet.
We have made great progress removing crack willows from the Hobart Rivulet, and are moving into phase two of the project, removing these weedy trees from the Sandy Bay Rivulet.
Why is this project important?
Crack willows are environmentally harmful and pose a real risk to Hobart’s stormwater infrastructure.
This project aims to:
1. Rewild our rivulets by removing environmentally destructive crack willows and replacing them with native habitat.
2. Reduce the risk of fallen willow branches blocking critical stormwater channels and increasing the risk of flood damage to residents and businesses.
Crack willows growing on private and public land along the Sandy Bay Rivulet choke the waterway, forming impenetrable thickets that can lead to flooding and bank erosion, increasing the risks to people, homes, businesses and infrastructure during major flood events.
They are also a highly invasive environmental weed. Their roots spread throughout waterways, pushing out native trees and shrubs, reducing oxygen available for fish and other aquatic wildlife, and making it hard for platypus to forage for food and create burrows.
What you can do to help
Unlike the Hobart Rivulet most of the crack willows marked for removal along the Sandy Bay Rivulet are on private property – in total 319 crack willows have been mapped for removal.
To remove many of the crack willows contractors will need to access private land.
The terrain is also steep and challenging, and parts of the Sandy Bay Rivulet Track will need to be closed temporarily to allow for safe work operations.
You can help by working with the City of Hobart and our contractors to safely remove crack willows from your property.
You can also help by letting us know which tree species you would like planted on your property to replace the willow trees we are removing.
You are entitled to minimum of two and up to five free trees for every willow tree removed from your property.
This project will reduce the risk and harm from major flood events to people, nature, built infrastructure and businesses near the Sandy Bay Rivulet. It will also lead to a more resilient Sandy Bay and Dynnyrne community, better prepared for and protected from major flood events.
Project timeline
As a resident affected by this project, you should have received a letter outlining the staged removal of crack willow trees from your property.
- July 2025: Contractors will safely treat crack willows along the Sandy Bay Rivulet.
- October 2025: Contractors are scheduled to remove the dead trees.
For updates on this project, follow the City on Facebook and Instagram. Project updates will also be posted to the City of Hobart website.
Sandy Bay Rivulet crack willow information session
Join us at Waterworks Reserve to hear all about this project from our waterways team. Come along if you would like to learn more or have any questions for the team.
- When: 5 July 2025, 2pm to 4pm.
- Where: Site 9 - Waterworks Reserve.
- Book your place via the humanatix website.
Sandy Bay Rivulet Resident Form
Please complete the online registration form to assist in the removal of crack willow/s from your property. Additionally, through the form, please share any feedback or concerns you have about the project, and select the free trees or plants you would like to replace the willows.
