Koonung Creek (or Koonung Koonung Creek) is a small

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...

of the

Yarra River The Yarra River or historically, the Yarra Yarra River, (Kulin languages: ''Berrern'', ''Birr-arrung'', ''Bay-ray-rung'', ''Birarang'', ''Birrarung'', and ''Wongete'') is a perennial river in south-central Victoria, Australia. The lower stre ...

in Melbourne's east. The creek originates in

Nunawading Nunawading is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 18 km (11 miles) east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Whitehorse local government area. Nunawading recorded a population of 12,413 at the 2021 cens ...

near

Springvale Road State (Bell/Springvale) Highway, also known as Bell Street/Springvale Road State Highway (after its longest constituent parts), is the longest self-contained urban highway in Melbourne, Australia, linking Tullamarine Freeway and Nepean Highway ...

, and flows to join the Yarra at the border between Ivanhoe East,

Bulleen Bulleen ( ) is an eastern suburb in Melbourne, Australia, 13 km north-east of the Melbourne central business district, located within the City of Manningham local government area. Bulleen recorded a population of 11,219 at the 2021 census. ...

and

Balwyn North Balwyn North, also known as North Balwyn, is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 10 km east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Boroondara and Whitehorse local government areas. Balwyn North recor ...

. The place the two waterways meet forms the borders between these suburbs. Bushy Creek (now carried by an underground pipe) is a tributary to the creek, joining near Elgar Park in Mont Albert North. A shared use path follows the course of the creek (and therefore also the Freeway), known as the Koonung Creek Trail.

Melbourne Water Melbourne Water is a Victorian Government-owned statutory authority that controls and manages much of the water bodies and supplies in metropolitan Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, including the reservoirs, lakes, wetlands, canals and urban cree ...

rates the condition of the creek as 'Very Poor'. Also according to Melbourne Water, the river is the unhealthiest waterway in Melbourne. Melbourne Water's monitoring station for the creek at Bulleen Road in Bulleen, detected an average ''E. coli'' count of 1800, this is nine times the safe swimming level (200). This was the highest level of ''E. coli'' measured in all of metropolitan Melbourne's waterways. The poor condition of the creek has been evident from the earliest days of European settlement. Five species of frog call the creek home, these are the Common Eastern Froglet, the Spotted Marsh Frog, the

Striped Marsh Frog The striped marsh frog or brown-striped frog (''Limnodynastes peronii'') is a predominantly aquatic frog native to coastal Eastern Australia. It is a common species in urban habitats. Taxonomy The striped marsh frog was described by French nat ...

, the Eastern or Pobblebonk Frog and the Southern Brown or Ewing's Tree Frog. The Eastern Freeway follows the path of the creek within the band of parkland that adjoins the creek over its entire length.

Geography

The creek's headwaters meet near the borders of

and

Donvale Donvale is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Manningham local government area. It is a leafy and peaceful suburb, with the side west of Springvale Road is desc ...

, 21 km east of

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

. From here, the creek flows in a roughly westerly direction for around 11 km, before reaching the

below the Yarra Flats in southern

. The creek is joined by various gullies and creeks, the most prominent of the tributaries include; St Clems Gully, Bushy Creek and Gawler/Lungren Gully.

Geographic Features

*Boronia Grove Wetlands *

Doncaster Hill Doncaster Hill is one of the highest points in the metropolitan area of Melbourne, Australia. Located in the suburb of Doncaster, it is 120 metres above sea level and has uninterrupted views of the city, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges, the You Y ...

*Other various wetlands &

billabong Billabong ( ) is an Australian term for an oxbow lake, an isolated pond left behind after a river changes course. Billabongs are usually formed when the path of a creek or river changes, leaving the former branch with a dead end. As a result ...

Settlements

Approximately 80-90,000 people live in the creek's catchment area. Most settlements are extensions of suburban areas down the Koonung Creek Valley, with Doncaster and Balwyn North being notable exceptions. The settlements located along its course are listed below, from downstream to upstream; *Southern

- 5,000~ *

- 20,000 : Bellvue : Greythorn *

Doncaster Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...

- 18,000 * Mont Albert North - 5,000 * Box Hill North - 10,000 : Kerrimuir *Southern

Doncaster East Doncaster East is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 20 km east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Manningham local government area. Doncaster East recorded a population of 30,926 at the 2021 ...

- 7,500~ * Blackburn North - 6,800 *Southern

- 2,000~ *Northern

- 5,000~

Crossings

* Freeway Golf Course Footbridge * Bulleen Road * Thompsons Road * Eastern Freeway * Doncaster Road (creek tunnel) * Elgar Park Footbridge * Elgar Road * Tram Road * Wetherby Road * Eastern Freeway * Boronia Grove Footbridges * Blackburn Road (creek tunnel, 1995) * Koonung Creek Park Footbridges * Springvale Road * Eastern Freeway

Other information

Koonung Creek lends its name to many things, including many local streets and roads; *Koonung Park, Blackburn North and the Koonung Park Tennis Centre *Koonung Road, Blackburn North *

Koonung Creek Reserve Koonung Creek Reserve is a linear park in the suburb of Balwyn North, Melbourne, Australia. It follows the path of the Eastern Freeway (Melbourne), Eastern Freeway from Bulleen Road in the west to Doncaster Road to the east. History The area ...

*The Koonung Ward in the

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a State (administrative division), state, province, divi ...

of the

City of Manningham The City of Manningham is a local government area in Victoria, Australia in the north-eastern suburbs of Melbourne and is divided into 12 suburbs, with the largest being Doncaster and Doncaster East. It comprises an area of 113 square kilometres ...

*The Koonung Creek Trail *

Koonung Secondary College Koonung Secondary College is a secondary state school in Mont Albert North, Victoria, in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, Australia. The school takes its name from the nearby Koonung Creek. Its school catchment includes the suburbs of Mont A ...

*Koonung Heights Cricket Club

References

External links

Melbourne Water Koonung Creek page
- Article from ''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...

''. {{Authority control Rivers of Victoria (Australia) Port Phillip and Western Port catchment Rivers of Port Phillip (region) Tributaries of the Yarra River