Monitoring and evaluation of riparian projects is hard. Funding bodies rightfully want to know what is being achieved with the funding they are investing. We immediately resort to providing lists of outputs such as kilometres of stream, fencing installed, trees planted, weeds controlled, erosion structures and so on. This is generally followed by 'but what are you actually achieving'? A reasonable question. While there is sound understanding of the correlation between on ground action and outcomes from years of research, the monitoring of change within a site or catchment becomes problematic due to so many variables. This is exacerbated by a lack of monitoring sites or people available to monitor regularly enough or in enough places to determine trends.
The Rivers of Carbon Project uses the Rapid Appraisal of Riparian Condition (RARC) which is effective in demonstrating change over time (scientifically) but it does not always tell the full story that funding bodies want to hear. Water NSW have invested in returning to Rivers of Carbon sites to collect information in the form of photography, story telling and landholder interviews along with the collection of data. Although this seems an obvious approach it is rarely invested in to the degree required to convey the full suite of outcomes.
Three case studies are used to illustrate the effectiveness of demonstrating outcomes visually as well as scientifically.
If data is collected, it is rarely analysed in a meaningful way (outside specific research), posing an ongoing problem for riparian project monitoring and reporting.