Water Sensitive
Urban Design

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All Nations Park Swale

Located within the Meeting Place at All Nations Park, north of Hopetoun Street and across the footpath.

All Nations Park’s swale is a long, grassy depression that channels stormwater into All Nations Park Lake where it can be stored and used for irrigation.

All Nations Park is an important recreational green space in the heart of the suburb of Northcote. The swale at All Nations Park is a long, open, grassy channel which collects and directs stormwater towards All Nations Park Lake. Stormwater is rain water that flows over the hard surfaces of a city, such as roofs, roads, carparks and gutters. It can pick up and carry litter, silt, oil, chemicals and other pollutants with it, into our waterways. These pollutants can affect water quality in our creeks and lakes and harm aquatic wildlife.

The swale is located in the Meeting Place area of the park, on the south side near the All Nations Park Food Forest. It is not permanently filled with water, but is designed to capture stormwater during high rainfall events.

The swale has been designed to work with the topography (surface shape of the land) of the park, sloping downwards from the higher ridges, channeling water in an easterly direction. The grasses growing in the swale help to slow down the flow of stormwater, reducing the risk of erosion (loosening of soil) in the park.

Water channeled by the swale into All Nations Park Lake is stored and used to irrigate the park. It also helps keep the capping beneath the lake moist, as the park site is a former landfill. The capping is a thick layer of clay and rubber that seals all former landfill material underground.

Using treated stormwater to irrigate the park instead of potable (tap) water, saves Council and rate-payers money and helps preserve the community’s drinking water supply.

Outcomes

Stormwater harvested for reuse in irrigation
Less stormwater entering the Merri Creek and Darebin Creek
Slowed flow of stormwater entering the lake systems, reducing the risk of erosion
Reduced risk of flooding of the park and surrounds

Project Description:
The swale in All Nations Park is an open, grassy channel that helps to drain stormwater from the park and surrounds into All Nations Park Lake for storage and reuse

Purpose:
Designed to capture pollutants, delay stormwater run-off and channel water into All Nations Park Lake, where it is stored and reused for irrigation (watering) of the park

Catchment:
Merri Creek

Completion Date:
2002

Downloads:

Watershed: Towards a Water Sensitive Darebin

Melbourne Water- How to Build A Swale (527KB)

Project details

How the System Works

The swale was designed as part of the All Nations Park Masterplan. The All Nations Park Lake was situated downslope of the park with the swale channelling water from upslope.

A swale can look just like a ditch, or – when not filled with water – can be hard to see at all. They are often planted with grasses or native vegetation and can be designed in a range of shapes and sizes. The key purpose of a swale is to direct stormwater in a particular direction, to help improve the health of our local waterways.

System Components

Stormwater: Flows across hard surfaces and downslope in and around the park, such as from The Hilltop. The stormwater flows via gravity, into the swale.

Swale: Stormwater flows along the length of the swale, downslope into the All Nations Park Lake. The grasses lining the swale help to slow down the flow of the stormwater, reducing the risk of soil erosion. They can also help to capture litter and other pollutants that may be caught in the stormwater.

The All Nations Swale is a simple, linear design that does not require any pumps or electricity to be used to move water. Other types of swales sometimes have features, such as an overflow pipe to prevent flooding, stormwater pipe adjustments, plants and/or mulch. To find out more information about building your own swale see Melbourne Water’s Building a Swale.

Lake: Water from the swale is stored to be used for irrigation. The park’s irrigation system pumps water from the lake into a timed irrigation system that can be adjusted to suit rainfall conditions.

Project Timeline

1998
All Nations Park Masterplan developed.

2002
Official opening of All Nations Park with swale and lake completed.

Maintenance and Monitoring

The All Nations Park swale only requires a small amount of regular maintenance. This includes regular mowing, removal of litter and weeds, and inspection of the channel to ensure it remains free of obstructions (blockages).

PROJECT BENEFITS

Benefits to Community

All Nations Park is an important recreational green space for the Northcote community and visitors.

The park is conveniently located directly behind the Northcote Plaza shopping centre car park, not far from the main thoroughfare of High Street. It is a large park with playgrounds, open grassy areas, gardens and trees. Public concerts and community events are held in the Meeting Place area of the park each year. Studies have shown that public open spaces in urban areas can increase levels of physical activity in the community and have mental health benefits, which can help to reduce healthcare costs (Parks Victoria, 2017).

The All Nations Park swale has been designed as a subtle water sensitive urban design feature that blends in with the landscape, while performing an important function. By channelling stormwater into the swale, the risk of flooding of the park in high rainfall periods is reduced. By storing and reusing the captured stormwater for irrigation, the park’s grass is also kept green and healthy during periods of low rainfall. The swale helps to keep the park in good condition for the local community and visitors to enjoy year-round.

Harvesting stormwater for use in irrigation also saves Council and rate-payers money and helps preserve the community’s drinking water supply.

Environmental Benefits

The All Nations Park swale and lake help to collect some of the stormwater that flows over the hard surfaces of Northcote and stop it from entering the Merri Creek and Darebin Creek untreated. This helps to improve water quality in local waterways, creating a cleaner and healthier environment for the plants and animals that live in and around our creeks. It also promotes better water quality downstream in the Yarra River and Port Phillip Bay, benefiting ecological communities (plants and animals) in those environments.

Many native animals call the creeks and lakes of Darebin home – such as platypus, rakali (native water rat), frogs, fish (such as the common galaxias) and birds (such as the sacred kingfisher). Waterways like the Merri and Darebin Creek provide food and habitat for these and other animals and plants, so it is important to prevent water pollution that may cause them harm.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Acknowledgements

Darebin City Council acknowledges the Wurundjeri people as the traditional owners and custodians of this land and pays respect to their Elders past and present.