Duck Pond

The Centennial Park ponds provide important habitat for water birds and aquatic life and are a significant feature of the formal design of Centennial Park.

The ponds also play an important role in flood mitigation, acting as a detention basin. Ten of the eleven interconnected ponds in Centennial Park are fed by stormwater runoff from the surrounding catchment area. This includes the suburbs of Paddington, Woollahra, Bondi, Waverley and Randwick.

The use of Lachlan Swamps and Busby’s Bore as a drinking water supply for Sydney ceased in 1859. Dams which had been constructed to facilitate water supply storage were destroyed by major flooding 1874. Seven new dams were subsequently constructed.

When Centennial Park was established these new dams were remodelled into the ornamental ponds seen today. They are an integral part of the park’s Victorian design. Each pond has unique features and provides habitat for an array of aquatic wildlife.

Gross Pollutant Traps are installed at stormwater entry points to reduce the amount of pollutants entering the system. Although the Gross Pollutant Traps remove gross solids very well, they do not remove the dissolved nutrients and suspended particles present in the water column. Such pollutants can cause blooms of algae and cyanobacteria.

Aquatic plants have been planted to provide improved habitat and to filter dissolved pollutants such as phosphorus in the water. Plantings and improvement works around the ponds’ edges have been carried out to assist with bank stabilisation. There are ongoing efforts to reduce numbers of invasive European carp, and a native fish called Australian bass has been introduced.

Islands and underwater berms have been constructed to ensure that water movement around the pond is maximised to prevent areas from becoming stagnant. Adjustable weirs enable control of water levels within and between the ponds in the system.