Recommendations
- Continue with biennial stream habitat assessments, in conjunction with annual macroinvertebrate monitoring, at all RWQMN sites.
- Standardise the habitat assessment protocol so that reproducibility is easily achieved from one surveyor to another.
- Carry out multivariate statistical analysis of the macroinvertebrate data with the habitat assessment and water quality data.
- Investigate declining water quality/macroinvertebrate scores/stream health and stability at all sites that show a downward trend.
- Implement a fish monitoring programme at all RWQMN sites, to complement the macroinvertebrate and habitat assessment data.