AFTER the city's lifeblood almost ran dry, recent rainfall has started to revive the Peel River.
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As the likelihood of reaching Day Zero slips further away, the overall health of the river has started to improve, but severe rain events have wreaked some havoc, OzFish Northwest coordinator and Tamworth Urban Landcare Group (TULG) project manager Anne Michie said.
"In the dams we have seen quite an improvement, and with the Peel River it has been great to see it flowing again naturally due to inflows upstream from the rain that we have had," she said.
"We have had a few issues, there was the issue with how dry it was - but the storm events actually created more problems because here in town in the CBD a lot of the water that runs into the Peel is storm water run-off.
"It picks up the rubbish and organics from around town but if there's not enough to wash it downstream it can kill fish, it can be a double-edged sword."
The public can help keep the health of the river in good nick by not planting deciduous trees in their own gardens, where leaf litter can end up in the river.
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A large enough amount can impact oxygen levels in the river as it decays and kill fish.
TULG has applied for a Habitat Action Grant to continue weed control at the river, where volunteers have taken to kayaks to clear invasive willow weeds from the river itself.
Tamworth had reportedly received around 25mm of rain on Monday night to 9am and the river was 0.64m high at the Paradise Wells, according to WaterNSW data.