Prospect Creek (New South Wales)

Prospect Creek is an urban watercourse of the Georges River catchment that is located in the western region of Sydney, in New South Wales, Australia. Situated within the local government areas of Fairfield City and Canterbury-Bankstown Councils, the creek is 26 kilometres (16 mi) long, starting at the Prospect Reservoir at the top of the catchment and flows south-east to the Georges River at Georges Hall, as its tributary. In the north, the creek forms the border between Cumberland and Fairfield City Councils. Running through a prominent open space corridor, Prospect Creek drains the encompassing floodplain.

The creek offers 8 km (5.0 mi) of recreational area and winds through a number of parks and reserves, including walkways and cycling paths that parallel the creek. As Prospect Reservoir forms a part of the Sydney metropolitan water supply, the flow of the creek is regulated in accordance with the operational requirements of Sydney Water. The catchment area of the creek is approximately 98 square kilometres (38 sq mi), and is largely urbanised with industrial land uses, residential and open space for recreation.

For the first British settlers, the creek and the surrounds offered essential food and water resources, and thereby encouraged the development of local agriculture and industry. At time of its European discovery, Prospect Creek was a series of freshwater ponds, rather than an unbroken stream, particularly north of Carramar. During the early 20th century, the lower Prospect Creek was a large part of life for residents in the Fairfield LGA area with numerous pleasure grounds and recreation spaces, that included boating. The lower Prospect Creek (in the south) is affected by tides, and that part of the creek was referred to as a 'river' by the locals in the early 20th century.