Environmental watering in the Murray River Valley
Download
Environmental watering 2012-13
Up to 300 gigalitres of Commonwealth environmental water has been made available to create more natural river flow patterns in the Murray River valley, and deliver significant volumes of water to the lower Murray River, during spring and summer 2012-13.
The Murray River, South Australia
© SA Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources - used with permission
The use of environmental water in the Murray River valley will build on the outcomes of previous years' environmental water delivery and high natural flow events, and seek to:
- maintain and improve the health of riparian and wetland native vegetation
- encourage breeding and support the survival of native fish such as Murray cod, silver perch, golden perch and freshwater catfish
- connect habitats along the river and between the river channel and fringing wetlands
- transport and disperse materials such as sediment, nutrients and organic matter
- provide additional inflows to the Lower Lakes to improve water quality and enable barrage releases to the Coorong. Additional inflows to the Coorong will help manage salinity and seasonal water levels for native water plants such as Ruppia tuberosa.
This watering event is part of a series of coordinated environmental watering actions across the southern connected basin. Water from other environmental water holders as well as other Commonwealth environmental watering actions, such as spring releases in the Murrumbidgee and Goulburn rivers, will together support environmental outcomes at multiple sites across the river system.
Commonwealth environmental watering in the Murray River valley will be actively managed to take account of river conditions and rainfall, in cooperation with the SA Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources, NSW Office of Environment and Heritage, Victorian Environmental Water Holder, Murray-Darling Basin Authority and Catchment Management Authorities.
The South Australian Research and Development Institute will monitor the outcomes of this watering action in the lower Murray River valley.
What makes this place so special and why is Commonwealth environmental water used here?
The Murray River valley:
- is home to a large and diverse range of plants and animals, including migratory birds and a number of threatened native plants and animals
- includes many nationally and internationally significant wetlands
- is home to some of the largest stands of river red gum in Australia.
Subscribe to
our mailing list
Sign up to our mailing list and keep up to date with the latest news at the Commonwealth Environmental Water website.