Wherever we have development involving the clearing of on ground vegetation we immediately increase the exposure of the substrate to erosion. It is therefore important that wherever possible we mitigate the effects of erosion. One such method is a sediment control fence.
Adjacent to the Green Army site is the Redcliffe Golf Club who recently conducted some ground works including the clearing of vegetation in an area adjacent to a channel which flows directly into Hays Inlet. If you look at the first image (photo A) you can see that there is a lot of loose sediment which would be washed into the channel in the next rain event. The club installed sediment control fencing in the “nick of time” (photo B). Just days later there was a significant rainfall event and if you look at photo C you can see how the sediment was trapped at the bottom of the fence. This sediment would have been washed directly into Hays Inlet if not for the fencing. Thus the fencing reduced the impact on topsoil loss and water quality. It’s not a perfect system, we still lose soil through erosion, but it does mitigate some of the effects of ground works.