The Government's Catchment Action NSW funding will contribute $1.96 million to the Hawkesbury-Nepean authority to deliver on-the-ground projects, as well as $3.24 million in recurrent funding.

Catchment Action NSW funding has increased by 51per cent over 2008-09.

The money will be directed to four key programs to be delivered by the management authority in the next year:

Soil conservation ($945,000);

Native vegetation management ($925,000);

River restoration ($774,000); and

Wetland management ($447,000)

Authority chairman John Klem said environmental management in the catchment would be given a significant boost as a result.

``The NSW Government funding has helped us leverage funds from other sources to ensure we can invest $14.3million in managing natural resources in the catchment in the coming year,'' Mr Klem said. ``A key project is the catchment protection scheme, which will benefit from $945,000 investment in the Warragamba catchment from the NSW budget.''

The Catchment Protection Scheme aims to repair land degradation throughout the Warragamba catchment to protect water supplies for Sydney, the Blue Mountains and Illawarra.

In the past four years the scheme has protected and stabilised 7712 hectares of land and repaired 171 kilometres of creek and riverbanks.