Seasons greetings to all Lakes lovers

We're proud to present the latest update of what's been happening across the Gippsland Lakes through the Love Our Lakes program.

The team wishes everyone season's greetings and a very safe, peaceful and happy new year. We thank you for your support and look forward to working together and sharing more news in 2026.

Gippsland Lakes Coordinating Committee sets sail

The Gippsland Lakes Coordinating Committee welcomed new community members to help deliver local projects that protect and enhance the health of the Ramsar listed wetland.

Minister for Water Gayle Tierney announced the members to the Committee, which plays a key role in advocating and supporting the long-term health of Gippsland Lakes and their catchments.

“The Gippsland Lakes and surrounds are a precious resource for all Victorians, and the Coordinating Committee plays an invaluable role in protecting and improving the health of the Gippsland Lakes for more locals and visitors to experience.” said Minister Tierney.

The committee will comprise five new community members – independent Chair Eric Sjerp and directors Charles Solomon, Chris Barry, Joanna Rule and William Runciman – alongside returning community members Jessica Reeves and Christine Wrench. 

They will join Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation representative Charee Smith, and members from Victorian public sector agencies.

The newly formed Gippsland Lakes Coordinating Committee has now met twice to begin their work to oversee the delivery of the next round of projects to benefit the health of the Gippsland Lakes Ramsar wetland.

“The depth of skill and knowledge around the table is immense,” noted Chair Eric Sjerp who acknowledged the work of the previous Committee and outgoing Chair, Glenys Watts.

The Committee will oversee the Labor Government’s $6 million investment to continue improving the health of the Lakes through management, improving facilities and community engagement. 

 Read the full story and report

Annual Report pays dividends for the Lakes

The Love our Lakes program works for its ‘shareholders’ – the community, environment and wildlife and the 2024-25 Gippsland Lakes Annual Report highlights the key ‘returns’ for the Ramsar-listed Lakes on Gunaikurnai Country.

Program highlights included reducing sediments and improving water quality by working with landholders to control weeds, fence and revegetate priority waterways. These works have flow on effects on the Lakes’ precious fringing wetlands, seagrass meadows and fish populations.

Another critical and collaborative project completed complex renourishment activities to restore degraded shoreline habitat at two islands within the Lakes and protect nesting shorebirds from introduced predators.

Read the full story and report

Community wetland opens on Crooke Street

We are delighted to report that East Gippsland Shire Council has officially opened the new Crooke Street Wetland.  This once-neglected drain, now a wetland, will help slow and filter stormwater before it reaches Jones Bay and the Gippsland Lakes.

The now beautiful natural space will also help prevent flooding, be a refuge for birds and other wildlife and create a peaceful place for the local community.  

We were proud to help support this project that will improve water quality in Jones Bay - part of the Gippsland Lakes Ramsar Site.

Lakes’ water quality delivered direct to your device

If getting all the info on water quality is your thing, or you’re simply interested in the health of the water in the Lakes, you can now access data from four sites via the Water Measurement Information System website.  

Four new and upgraded stations have been installed to monitor water quality and provide updates with the community in real time across the Lakes.

The new stations share information from Jones Bay, Lake Coleman and Clydebank Morass and the existing Loch Sport station now has a salinity sensor. 

“These stations continuously monitor key water parameters including salinity, dissolved oxygen, temperature and turbidity within the Gippsland Lakes Ramsar site” said Bec Hemming, CEO of East Gippsland CMA.  

And the exciting thing is that it’s available to everyone, anytime online. 

 Read the full story and start exploring.

Seagrass is a Lakes superstar!

Seagrass is super important to the Gippsland Lakes! The meadows of this special plant help to maintain the Lakes' water quality, stabilise sediments and provide habitat for fish to breed.

The Love Our Lakes program is working to protect and enhance the Lakes' seagrass. Between 2019 and 2024, we’ve been mapping its extent using satellite imaging. Early next year we’ll bring it all back down to earth by ‘ground truthing’ the images recorded from space. 

Across the Lakes we have worked with Gippsland Ports and partners to design, manufacture and install 10 seagrass friendly moorings bringing the total to 40.  Ten new seagrass-friendly swing moorings have been installed for recreational boaters at popular destinations across the Gippsland Lakes.

Welcome back the birds festival huge success

The Lakes' first Welcome Back the Birds Festival was a great success with over 1,000 people enjoying the event held at Eagle Point. 

The passion for the Lakes and its special environment and wildlife was celebrated across the day with  community members, nature lovers and families coming together to celebrate the return of migratory birds and learn more about the incredible journeys these species undertake each year.

Read the full story 

Love letters from the Lakes

We have just released this year's summer postcards to share messages for locals and visitors alike to learn about and care for the Gippsland Lakes. 

This postcard focuses on the Lakes' migratory birds and how we can all take some simple steps to care for them:

• Please help by following any signage when you enter an area.
• If you see unusual signs of sickness or death in wildlife, please call the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline on 1800 675 888.

Get your free cards and send you own Lakes' love letters. Available from Visitor Information Centres around the Lakes.

Or download copies here.

Talikatoor - Gunaikurnai Country

Talikatoor – Little Flood – known today as the Gippsland Lakes is, and has always been, an important place for Gunaikurnai Traditional Owners. Ancestors travelled across the Bassian Plain – the land bridge to Tasmania now under Bass Strait – for thousands of generations and when the lake system formed after the last Ice Age, the Tatungalung and Krauatungalung clans utilised the abundance of resources provided.

In recent times, stronger involvement in the management of Sea Country is creating opportunities to improve economic outcomes for Gunaikurnai Traditional Owners, whose relationship with these cultural landscapes continues, even when the evidence of their previous occupation now lies beneath the ocean.

We are privileged to work with the Lakes' Traditional Owners to deliver these programs on Gunaikurnai Country - particularly the projects led by Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation which continue to deliver great outcomes’

Join Gunaikurnai Elder Uncle Russell Mullett as he talks about the Lakes' significance in the beautiful short video above.