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Red-railed pedestrian bridge beside a grassy creek bank

Fishway Design: Preparing a Civil Construction Brief

Bring the right information to your first fishway construction conversation.

Start a fishway project brief with the waterway, the barrier you want to address and the information already available. Then identify who is responsible for design and what you need the construction team to assess. You do not need to have every answer before making an enquiry, but separating confirmed information from open questions makes that conversation more useful.

Greenworks builds and rehabilitates fishways in Victoria, working with clients and natural resource managers on each site’s requirements. This guide helps you prepare that initial brief; it is not a hydraulic or ecological design specification.

Describe the site before choosing a fishway type

Give the waterway name, location and a short description of the existing barrier. Say whether you are investigating a new fishway, rehabilitation of an existing installation or a fishway within wider waterway works. Include available plans, photographs and assessment reports so the project team can see what has already been established.

Greenworks has construction and rehabilitation experience with pool-type fishways, including vertical-slot structures, and rock-ramp fishways. If a type has been recommended, share the recommendation and its design status. If it has not, record that as an open design question rather than selecting a structure from a project photograph.

Concrete baffles and channels in Greenworks’ Maribyrnong River fishway project
Brimbank Park, Keilor – Maribyrnong River Fishway. Project examples help frame a discussion; the design must suit the proposed site.

Make responsibilities and drawing status clear

Identify the client, natural resource manager, designer and construction contractor involved. Share the latest drawings and specifications, noting their revision and whether they are ready for construction or still under development. Ask the construction team which gaps need to be resolved before they can confirm scope, methodology and pricing.

Keep design decisions with the responsible specialists. The brief should make ecological and hydraulic design responsibilities visible, alongside the construction scope, so an unresolved decision is not mistaken for an agreed inclusion.

Explain access, other works and timing

Show how the construction area can be reached and flag nearby assets or public access that may affect the works. Note any interfaces with earthworks, existing concrete or rock structures, or another contractor’s programme. Where information is unavailable, identify who will obtain it.

Give your preferred programme and distinguish it from confirmed dates. Include outstanding drawings, approvals and access arrangements as dependencies, then ask what is needed for the next stage of review.

Send a brief the team can respond to

A useful first enquiry brings together the site location, project objective, available documents, key contacts and the decision you need help progressing. For example, you may want to discuss the construction scope of an existing design or the information needed before a site review.

Explore Greenworks’ fishway construction experience and the Thomson River fishway case study, then contact the team with your project information.

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