MURRAY-DARLING BASIN MINISTERIAL COUNCIL The Living … · natural (pre-development) flow • population: 2 million • annual economic output: $23 billion a year • agricultural

TThhee LLiivviinngg MMuurrrraayyA discussion paper on restoring the health of the River Murray

M U R R A Y - D A R L I N G B A S I N M I N I S T E R I A L C O U N C I L

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Stage 1:Informing and

engaging thecommunity

i

The Living MurrayA discussion paper on restoring the health of the River Murray

Stage 1: Informing and engaging the community

July 2002

SIX

GOVERNMENTS WORKING IN

PARTNERSHIP WITH THE COMMUNIT

Y

www.thelivingmurray.mdbc.gov.au

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Community EngagementEnvironmental Flows and Water Quality Objectives for the River Murray

Opportunities for community input

STEPSSTAGE

Stage 1:Inform &Engage

Stage 2:Propose

Stage 3:Implement

- inform community of the work and knowledge that has ledto the recognition of the need for the Australian communityto consider what it wants for the future of the River Murray;

- inform Murray-Darling Basin Commission of thecommunity’s knowledge, values, aspirations, issues,information needs and concerns;

- provide progress report on community engagement toMinisterial Council meeting in November 2002 and set aframework for further discussions and investigations.

Community and government agencies will work together to:- provide a comprehensive analysis for the provision of

water to the River Murray using three reference points (350 GL, 750 GL and 1 500 GL a year);

- evaluate the benefits and impacts of the three referencepoints;

- seek views on a preferred way forward to address localand system-wide issues;

- establish what’s needed to manage and keep track of thesocial, cultural, economic and environmental impacts ofany decision;

- inform the Ministerial Council meeting of October 2003.

-- negotiate details of and timeframes for the implementationof Council decisions.

2002

July

August

September

October

November

December

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

2003

2003 October Ministerial Council Meeting- will consider the outcomes of the engagement

process and the recommendations brought before it by the Murray-Darling Basin Commission.

ContactsWebsite: www.thelivingmurray.mdbc.gov.auEmail: [email protected]: 1800 687 044Facsimilie: 02 6248 8053Mail Address: The Living Murray, GPO Box 409, Canberra ACT 2601

November 2003–

Onwards

consolidation period toprepare the documentation necessaryto inform Stage 2

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The health of the River Murray is vital toAustralians for many reasons—ourprosperity, our environment, ourcommunities, and our future depend on it.

Although much has been achieved for theRiver, and its environment, our scientificadvice is now clear we have to do more toensure a healthy River Murray in the longterm. This is of particular importance to ourvaluable irrigation industries.

The Murray-Darling Basin MinisterialCouncil wishes the community to be fullyengaged in an issue so significant to its valuesand future—one which warrants clearunderstanding, extensive discussion anddebate, followed by sound decisions.

This paper provides an introduction to theissue of environmental flows in the RiverMurray. It explores the health of the River,and ways we might improve it. It identifiespossible consequences, benefits and concernsand is intended to guide the discussion ofrelevant issues, including water trade andaccess rights to water.

The process for community engagement isoutlined on the page opposite and in moredetail throughout this document. It will beguided by principles about treating peopleand communities equitably and providing fordiverse values and perspectives to be heardand considered. The Ministerial Council hasestablished the Independent CommunityEngagement Panel (ICEP) to facilitate thisprocess.

The document commences Stage 1 of a threestage process. Stage 1 is about informing andengaging the communities. We recognise thisdocument will not meet the informationneeds of all sectors of the community andthat further information will be necessary.Some of the more detailed information isavailable from www.thelivingmurray.mdbc.gov.au

Every person or group concerned about thehealth of the River Murray, its industries andcommunities is encouraged to contribute tothis important debate.

Dr Roy Green

President

Murray-Darling Basin Commission

iii

Foreword

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Photo: Bill B

achman

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CHAPTER 1. THE LIVING MURRAY 1

ABOUT YOUR FUTURE 1

A river at risk 1

A healthy working river 2

One Basin, one river system, one environment 2

DISCUSSING OUR FUTURE 2

How much water? 2

Vital issues 3

HOW YOU CAN TAKE PART 4

CHAPTER 2. THE RIVER THAT SHAPES AUSTRALIA 5

THE VALUES OF THE MURRAY 5

Environmental values 5

Cultural values 7

Heritage values 7

Economic values 8

Community values 8

WHO DOES THE RIVER MURRAY BELONG TO? 9

CHAPTER 3. THE STATE OF OUR RIVERS 11

WATER USE IN THE MURRAY-DARLING BASIN 12

AGRICULTURAL PROFITS 15

THREATS TO THE VALUES WE PRIZE 16

CHAPTER 4. CREATING A HEALTHY WORKING RIVER 19

VISION AND OBJECTIVES 19

WATER QUALITY OBJECTIVES 20

WHAT IS A HEALTHY WORKING RIVER? 20

CHAPTER 5. WHAT IS AN ENVIRONMENTAL FLOW? 23

CHAPTER 6. RUNS ON THE BOARD 25

A CHANGE IN OUR ATTITUDES 25

EXAMPLES OF WHAT WE HAVE ALREADY DONE FOR THE RIVER MURRAY 25

EXAMPLES OF WHAT WE HAVE ALREADY DONE FOR THE TRIBUTARIES 27

BETTER USE OF EXISTING WATER FOR RIVER HEALTH 27

CHAPTER 7. WHAT WE CAN DO 29

PROSPECTS FOR A HEALTHY WORKING RIVER - THREE REFERENCE POINTS 29

WORKING OUT THE IMPACTS 30

LOOKING FOR ‘WIN-WIN’ SOLUTIONS 30

CATCHMENT CARE 31

CLIMATE CHANGE 31

Table of Contents

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CHAPTER 8. OUR BALANCING ACT 33

STRIKING THE RIGHT BALANCE 33

Irrigated agriculture 33

Drinking water 33

Manufacturing industry 34

Tourism and recreation 34

Different parts of the river 34

The river and its tributaries 35

Trade-offs between states 35

Sovereignty of the states 35

HOW SHOULD WATER BE RECOVERED? 35

THE CAP, ACCESS RIGHTS TO WATER AND WATER TRADE 36

The Cap 36

Access rights and water trade 36

THE IMPACT OF WATER RECOVERY 37

The cost of doing nothing 37

Costs and benefits 37

Who will pay? 38

CHAPTER 9. MAKING IT WORK 39

ONE BASIN, ONE RIVER SYSTEM, ONE ENVIRONMENT 39

LIFTING OUR GAME 39

IDENTIFYING ENVIRONMENTAL WATER 39

CHAPTER 10. NEW HORIZONS AND OPPORTUNITIES 41

KNOWLEDGE EXPORTS 41

NEW INDUSTRIES 41

CHAPTER 11. OVER TO YOU 43

THE DECISIONS 43

How will a decision be made? 43

Stage 1: Inform and engage–July to December 2002 44

Stage 2: Propose–April to October 2003 44

Stage 3: Implement–after October 2003 44

WHO IS INVOLVED? 46

HOW CAN I BE INVOLVED? 46

CONTACTS 46

GLOSSARY 47

REFERENCES 49

THE LIVING MURRAY FEEDBACK FORM 51

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About your futureThis is a discussion paper aboutenvironmental flows for the River Murray.

It's about protecting the things the RiverMurray means to Australians: prosperity,irrigation, industry and clean water, naturallandscape, history, culture and tradition.

The future of the River Murray has relevanceto the whole Murray-Darling Basin. Inaddressing the environmental needs of theRiver Murray, the tributaries will have to playtheir part in providing adequate flows. Thiswill involve the Murrumbidgee andGoulburn Rivers and, although thecontribution to the River Murray is smaller,the Darling River above Menindee Lakes.There will be environmental benefitsachieved for the tributaries as well as theRiver Murray through this process.

A river at riskThere is evidence the River Murray is introuble. Poor water quality, loss of nativeplants, animals, fish, forests and wetlands,and an increase in pests such as carp, allpoint to a river and a landscape in decline.Scientific advice indicates that if we donothing, the river’s health will inevitably getworse. This will affect our irrigation andother industries, our native plants andanimals, and our communities.

One of the main causes of decline is the largeamount of water we take from the rivers forirrigation and other uses. Governments andthe Australian public have actively supportedirrigation for over 100 years, and it hasgenerated great prosperity for the nation andour communities. Tourism has prosperedalong the river, partly because of itscontrolled water supply and flow. Continuedenjoyment of these benefits depends onmaintaining the river’s health.

Despite signs the River Murray is in poorhealth, there are prospects for recovery.Compared with the state of many of theworld's great rivers, we still have theopportunity to restore its health and vitality. Environmental flows are one way we can do this.

An 'environmental flow' is any river flowpattern provided with the intention of

maintaining or improving river health.

Environmental flows include:

• making best use of water currentlyavailable to the environment;

• saving water lost in channels and otherdistribution systems and redirecting it tothe environment; and

• reducing the amount of water removedfrom the river for human use.

Some major issues of river health—likesalinity, turbidity and decline in native fish—are due to other factors besides altered flowpatterns in the river. These issues willcontinue to be dealt with under theMinisterial Council’s Integrated CatchmentManagement Policy and other initiatives likethe National Action Plan for Salinity andWater Quality (NAPSWQ).

The Murray-Darling Basin at a glance• covers 1.06 million square kilometres

(14% of Australia)

• annual run-off of 24 300 GL a year (which is 6% of total Australian run-off )

• average diversions: 11 431 GL plus watersupply for Adelaide and some other SouthAustralian towns

• median annual flow to sea: 27% ofnatural (pre-development) flow

• population: 2 million

• annual economic output: $23 billion a year

• agricultural output: $10 billion a year

1

Chapter 1. The Living Murray

Despite signs theRiver Murray isin poor health,

there areprospects for

recovery.

Photo: John Baker

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A healthy working river Our goal is to create a healthy working river—one that assures us of continuedprosperity, clean water and a flourishingenvironment. However balancing thedifferent and often conflicting social,economic and environmental values isdifficult. There needs to be discussion aboutthe best ways to use the river’s waters and thebalances that must be struck betweendifferent values.

Our understanding of how to achieve ahealthy working river, both scientifically andsocially, is still growing and needs morework. However we cannot afford to waituntil the river declines to the point whererecovery will be very difficult or evenimpossible. Corrective action can be takennow, with existing knowledge, and improvedas we come up with better solutions.

One Basin, one river system, oneenvironmentTo achieve a healthy working river we needto recognise we are dealing with one Basin,one river system, one environment.

The health of the River Murray relies in parton having healthy tributaries. Individualstates and regions are making good progressin protecting their rivers and catchments.However there is now scientific evidence thatwork for individual tributaries will not besufficient to protect the River Murray, itswater quality or native plants and animals.

Discussing our futureThe Murray-Darling Basin MinisterialCouncil (the Ministerial Council) consists ofthe Ministers responsible for land, water and

environmental resources in each of theCommonwealth, New South Wales, SouthAustralian, Victorian, Queensland and ACTGovernments. The Ministerial Council hasthe power to make decisions for the Basin asa whole.

In March 2001, the Ministerial Councilagreed to a vision and set of objectives forthe River Murray. The vision is:

... a healthy River Murray System,sustaining communities and preservingunique values.

The Ministerial Council is now asking thecommunity to discuss the best ways toachieve this vision. In April 2002 it:

• agreed to hold a community-wideconsultation process about environmentalflows, beginning in July 2002;

• directed that a comprehensive study bedone on the costs and benefits to theenvironment and the community ofreturning water to the environment;

• recognised a need to spend $150 millionon modifying dams, weirs and locks andother measures, to make best use of allthe water currently available to theenvironment; and

• recognised the importance of establishingwater trading arrangements for theefficient allocation of the scarce waterresources of the Basin and that theeffectiveness of these arrangements willdepend on clear definition of access rightsto water.

The Ministerial Council recognises both thecomplexity of the environmental flows issueand the need for certainty in thecommunities relying on irrigated agriculture.Its strong desire is to manage the resources ofthe River Murray and its tributaries toimprove its environment, while enhancingthe social and economic benefits obtainedfrom water use.

How much water?

To aid the discussion on how much watershould be recovered, the Ministerial Councilhas picked three reference points. These arenot actual options but are intended to giveall sectors of the community an idea of thecosts and benefits involved in transferringvarious annual volumes of water fromcurrent uses (such as irrigation or water

2 Photo: Andrew

Tatnell

Our goal is ahealthy working

river


losses) to the environment of the RiverMurray. No decision has yet been made onwhether water will be recovered nor howmuch.

The reference points are:

• 350 GL a year (or 350 000 ML a year);

• 750 GL a year; and

• 1 500 GL a year.

Volumes of water• a ‘GL’ or ‘gigalitre’ is a measure of

volume; one gigalitre is shorthand for onebillion litres.

• a ‘ML’ or ‘megalitre’ is one million litresor about the amount of water in oneOlympic-sized swimming pool.

• the middle reference point of 750 GL is about one quarter of the capacity of the Hume Dam, or one-and-a-halfSydney Harbours.

More work is being done to define the costsand benefits associated with the return ofeach of these volumes of water to the RiverMurray. A second document will bepublished in 2003, which will clearly set outthese costs and benefits so that the balancescan be more easily weighed up.

There are those who believe it is essential toreturn water now, even though ourknowledge is imperfect, before it is too late.At the same time we must recognise thatirrigators and regional communities’ currentand future livelihoods will be directlyaffected by reduced water availability. Thepeople who live in and farm in the Basinhave huge financial and social investments inexisting arrangements.

Any changes to existing arrangements needto be considered as part of an open,transparent, accountable and fair decision-making process.

There will be opportunities for allstakeholders, including irrigators,townspeople, governments and scientists, tobe involved in the debate.

In October 2003, the Ministerial Councilwill consider the outcomes of this process.

Vital issues For many, the question of recovery of waterfor environmental flows centres on thesecurity of access to water and the availabilityof compensation.

Each state and territory of the Murray-Darling Basin has laws providing accessrights to water, and allowing access rights tobe altered.

The laws in each state differ from one another,and some laws provide for compensation to bepaid under certain circumstances where accessrights might be altered.

This discussion touches on other difficultand sensitive questions:

• What might be the impact on currentuses such as irrigation, of recoveringwater for the environment?

• What does the health of the River Murrayreally mean for our industries, ourdrinking water, our environment and us?

• How should environmental water bemanaged to achieve the optimalenvironmental, social and economicoutcomes?

• How much water needs to be saved?Where would it come from? How shouldit be used? What would it cost? Whoshould pay for it?

• How do we minimise the chance that anyregion or group—such as broadacreirrigation—might be disadvantaged ordealt with unfairly?

• How could we share the benefits andcosts, which are likely to be high, fairlyamong all Australians?

• Should water given up for theenvironment be kept for the environmentuntil it reaches the Murray Mouth, orshould irrigators be able to use it after ithas performed an environmentalfunction?

These issues raise further questions:

• Should water for the environment be justtaken back or acquired throughcompensation?

• Should water for the environment beacquired compulsorily or voluntarily?

• What are people’s access rights to water?How secure are they? How will they beaffected?

3

We are dealingwith one Basin,

one river system, one

environment.


• How can water trading help? How couldwe run a more efficient water market?

• Should the water be purchased bygovernment on an open market?

• How do we achieve more efficientirrigation practices and how do we sharethe water savings?

• How effective will environmental flowsbe in restoring the health of specificenvironments along the River Murray?

How you can take partThe Ministerial Council is asking for theadvice of the community about howgovernments should respond to the issue ofenvironmental flows.

It wants to give everybody in the Basin, andbeyond, a chance to put forward their views,concerns and ideas. This intensivecommunity engagement process has threestages up to and beyond the October 2003meeting of the Ministerial Council as shownin the diagram on page 45. Communityadvice is sought throughout this engagementprocess.

An Independent Community EngagementPanel (ICEP) has been chosen to helpeffective discussion to take place. These

citizens will help make sure people haveaccess to information, understand the issues,and are given the opportunity to havevaluable discussions. They will make surethat the views and ideas of the communityare listened to and fairly considered in anydecisions about recovery of water for theenvironment.

Details of how to get involved in thediscussion are on page 46.

Details of how the Murray-Darling BasinCommission will respond to communitycomment, and release further information onmatters of interest and concern are inChapter 11.

For information and background documentsto the issue, visit our website:www.thelivingmurray.mdbc.gov.au or ring1800 687 044

A second document on environmental flowswill be published by the Murray-DarlingBasin Commission in 2003, which willclearly set out the costs and benefits of thethree reference points so that the balancescan be more easily weighed up.

4

The community’sadvice and

views are beingsought.

Photo: John Baker


5

The Murray-Darling ranks among theworld's great river systems in terms of lengthand catchment area (Fig. 1), yet it carries acomparatively small, and highly variable,volume of water.

For tens of millions of years the waters of theMurray-Darling Basin have shaped thelandscape of eastern and southern Australia.They provide the life-force for our uniqueplants and animals.

Its waters sustain life through the landscape,not just along the rivers themselves, but forhundreds of kilometres around, supportingtrees, grasses, aquatic plants, birds,marsupials, fish, reptiles and the microscopicanimals on which other creatures feed.Migrating birds from China, Japan andbeyond depend on the waters of the Basin.

The Murray-Darling Basin is also the sourcefrom which Australia draws much of ourwealth: agriculture, tourism, recreation andleisure, manufacturing, mining, electricityand many other industries. All communitiesdepend on its continued health, particularlythose living in the Basin.

For Aboriginal people, European settlersand recent arrivals from other parts of theworld alike, the rivers play a large part inour identity, history and folklore.

The values of the MurrayA healthy river with good water qualitysafeguards our industries, our culture andcommunities, and the Basin landscape.Below are some of the values people hold forthe River Murray as part of the largerMurray-Darling Basin. The communityengagement process, outlined in Chapter 11,invites all sectors of the community to speakof these values, and discuss how we canbalance our various interests and theenvironmental needs of the River Murray.

Environmental valuesThe bedrock of the Murray-Darling Basin isover 350 million years old. Through eons itswaters have carved creeks and river channelsthrough the mountains and plains of this drycontinent. These seasonal water movements,swinging from flood to drought, causedunique plants and animals to evolve thatdepend on these patterns to breed, surviveand grow. Murray cod and river red gumsare but two examples.

After a dry period, floods rejuvenate the riversystem. This stimulates the growth andbreeding cycles of many native plants, insectsand water bugs living in wetlands and on thefloodplain. These become an important foodsource for fish and other aquatic animals,and maintain the variety of species in ourriver systems.

Today the Basin symbolises our national wishto be sustainable, to pass on to futureAustralians the landscape we ourselves valueand enjoy, to preserve its beauty, its wealth oflife and the way it functions and serves us.

In its internationally significant wetland areasand endangered species, the Basin also standsfor our responsibility as global stewards,looking after nature to be found nowhere elseon earth.

Chapter 2. The River thatShapes Australia A healthy river

safeguards ourindustries, our

culture,communities

andenvironment.

Photo: Andrew

Tatnell


6

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Figure 1: The River Murray System, part of the larger Murray-Darling Basin.


7

Cultural valuesAboriginal Australians were first to discoverthe bounty of the Murray-Darling Basin,more than 70 000 years ago. Ever since, theyhave lived with the rivers, managed andprospered from their natural resources. TheRiver Murray language groups and nationsinclude the Wiradjuri, Yorta Yorta, WambaWamba, Wadi Wadi, Barapa Barapa, Muthi

Muthi, Latje Latje, Barkinji and Ngarrindjeri.Traditional knowledge about the rivers andtheir life and culture was learned and passedon over generations. The river and itsfloodplain shaped, and is a living part of,their beliefs and lives. It contains sacred andsignificant places which need to be respected,protected and preserved. Indigenous peoplestill occupy traditional lands; with the river,wetlands and floodplain providing food,medicinal herbs and raw materials.

The land and waters is a living body. Wethe Ngarrindjeri people are a part of itsexistence. The land and waters must behealthy for the Ngarrindjeri people to behealthy. We are hurting for our country.The Land is dying, the River is dying, theKurangk (Coorong) is dying and theMurray Mouth is closing. What does thefuture hold for us? (Tom Trevorrow,Ngarrindjeri elder, 2002).1

Heritage valuesThe River Murray has shaped importantelements of our modern history. It was thesite of early European settlements, located atcrossings with abundant freshwater.

It became the nation's first great inlandtransport network, fostering the developmentof towns and agricultural industry.

For generations, families and communitieshave lived with the river, forging traditionsand upholding their values. In the 19th and20th centuries, much of the wool on whichAustralia rode to prosperity was grownwithin the Basin. Its beef, crops, dairyproduce and fruit sustained our nation andothers in peace and war. The building ofdams and weirs on the river made the supplyof water more reliable in terms of quantity,allowing large-scale irrigation farming todevelop. This made parts of the Basinamong the greatest generators of wealth inAustralia.

Ever since, life along the rivers and withinthe Basin has been an important part of theAustralian identity.

During the second half of the 19th century,a number of factors including anexpanding population, closer settlement,and severe droughts, led to a heightenedinterest in the potential of irrigation andin spectacular projects involving largestorage reservoirs and extensive waterdistribution systems. Governments becameheavily involved, and for many years theextension of irrigated land was seen to beof national importance. In the first half ofthe 20th century, irrigation was also seenas a means of increasing the intensity offarming and thus allowing schemes for thesettlement of returned soldiers from theFirst and Second World Wars which werefinanced by both the Commonwealth andthe States. (Hallows and Thompson, TheHistory of Irrigation in Australia, p7)2

1 Ngarrindjeri Culture from the document Murray Mouth Perspectives prepared by the SA Department of Water Land and BiodiversityConservation, 2002.

2 Hallows P.J. and Thompson D.G., The History of Irrigation in Australia, p7.

Photo: John Baker

Photo: John Baker


8

Economic valuesToday the Murray-Darling Basin enrichesAustralia by an estimated $23 billion everyyear. Agricultural produce now exceeds $10billion, mining $3 billion, tourism andleisure around $6.5 billion, electricity $0.3billion, commercial fishing and otherindustries $2.5 billion. About $5 billion is earned through irrigation: dairy, rice,cotton, beef, wine and horticulture. Foodprocessing, Australia's largest manufacturingindustry and employer, depends heavily on irrigation for a steady supply of quality produce.

The wider value of the Basin to the nationaleconomy is much greater—around $75billion a year. This supports an estimated1.5 million jobs, most of them in the cities.Tourism is burgeoning, with 15 millionvisitors a year attracted to the National Parks,State Forests, rivers and world-significantwetlands. Boating on the many rivers, lakes,weir pools and reservoirs of the system ispopular; including house boats, paddle-steamers, fishing and ski boats. Tourists arealso drawn to the wine industry, farmholidays, historic and other attractions.

A healthy River Murray also provides manyother services, such as cleansing the water so it is suitable for agriculture, industry, local government and domestic use. Therewould be a direct cost to these users if suchservices were lost through a further decline in river health.

Also, public perception of an unhealthy riverhas the potential to harm the image ofAustralian agriculture. The 1991 blue-greenalgae bloom on the Darling River is anexample of the scale of problems that mayarise, and these may undermine consumerconfidence in the agricultural products of theBasin.

The Basin provides Australian industry andhomes with 4 000 MW of power. TheSnowy Mountains hydroelectric scheme,straddling the Great Dividing Range at thetop of the Basin, generates 3.5 per cent of allelectricity on the mainland. Other hydro-electric plants, built on dams and weirsthroughout the Basin, help meet our powerdemands.

The Basin also ranks Australia among theworld leaders for skills in water, land andenvironmental management.

Community valuesThe Basin symbolises important qualities ofAustralian life and our rural communities.People see it as a place of aspiration andachievement, of hard work, imagination,creativity and problems overcome.

People came to live and work near the riverbecause of its abundant fresh water, food,shelter and fertile soils. They responded to its beauty in painting, stories, poetry, filmand song.

The Basin's communities encompass manyAustralian beliefs and virtues. Theknowledge of Aboriginal people, the courageand vision of the pioneers, the vision anddrive of the nation-builders, the care andconcern of environmentalists and river-users,the energy and optimism of the Basin'syouth and the peaceful life and progress of its citizens.

Photo: John Baker

The Basincontributes an

estimated $23 billion toAustralia each

year.


9

Who does the RiverMurray belong to?The River Murray belongs to all Australians,present, past and future. It belongs to thetwo million who live in the Basin, themillions who rely on its water and power,and everyone who prospers from itsresources. Its wealth is a primary driver ofthe economy. It cradles a sixth of theAustralian landscape. Its history and cultureare part of our identity as a people.

The River Murray is thus a sharedresponsibility of all Australians, and we mustwork together to see its health and qualitiesare still there for our children’s children.

In a sense too, it belongs to the peoples ofthe world. Tens of millions enjoy itsexcellent food and farm products, itsminerals and manufactured goods. Manycome as visitors or migrants. It harbours apriceless resource in its internationallysignificant wetlands, from which birdsmigrate to distant regions of the globe.

The RiverMurray 'belongs'

to allAustralians,

present, past andfuture. It is thus

a sharedresponsibility ofall Australians.

Photo: John Baker


10

Photos 1,3 and 4: John Baker, Photo 2: David Eastburn (MDBC)


11

Under natural conditions, around half therun-off from the Murray-Darling Basin usedto reach the sea. The rest watered thefloodplain, filled wetlands, sustained andregenerated the bush, supported wildlife andrecharged groundwater. Much also evaporated.

For the last 100 years governments andcommunities have actively supported theregulation of the Basin’s rivers, controlling itsnatural variability and allowing the diversionof large amounts of water, chiefly foragriculture. Today, these diversions, 95 percent of which are used for irrigation, accountfor about half of the Basin's annual run-off.

In parts of the river, particularly in SouthAustralia, the flows each year have decreased

greatly due to water extraction (Fig.2). Inother areas of the river, regulation has notaffected the total volume of water much, but has changed the seasonal pattern of theflow (Fig.3).

Between Albury and Yarrawonga, where theriver flow is higher than natural due to theSnowy Mountains hydroelectric scheme, theoriginal winter-spring floods have beenreplaced by high summer flows to providewater for irrigation. Also, a greaterproportion of the flow is now containedwithin the banks of the river. This reducesthe amount of water reaching the floodplainand puts additional stress on the riverchannel, eroding river banks and leading tothe formation of larger anabranches.

Chapter 3. The State of Our Rivers

Figure 2: Destination of run-off in the Murray-Darling Basin under‘natural’ and ‘current’ conditions (based on modelled data3).

Figure 3: Flows under ‘natural’ and ‘current’ conditions in the River Murray at Albury and at the Murray Mouth in South Australia.

Use of theBasin's waterhas had an

impact on riverflow patterns.

3 Crabb P. 1997 and MDBC data

riverineenvironment

sea/coastalenvironment

sea/coastalenvironment

riverineenvironment

towns, stock& domestic

irrigation

NATURAL CURRENT

60,000

50,000

40,000

30,000

20,000

10,000

20,000

10,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000

Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun

0 0

Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun

Flo

w (

ML

a d

ay)

Flo

w (

ML

a d

ay)

naturalconditions current

conditions

naturalconditions

currentconditions

Albury Murray Mouth


12

Water use in theMurray-Darling BasinLarge volumes of water are taken out of mostof the key rivers and tributaries in the Basinfor human use. The table opposite shows thelong-term average diversion (the Cap) ineach river valley4.

The Cap on diversionsThe Cap on diversions was introduced in1995 and limits the amount of waterextracted from the Basin’s rivers. Inregulated rivers diversions are limited to whatwould have been diverted under 1993-94levels of development. In unregulated riversthe Cap may be expressed as an end-of-valleyflow regime.

The Cap has been applied in this way, withsmall variations, in NSW, Victoria and SouthAustralia which combined account for 94 percent of the Basin's diverted water (Table 1).Queensland and the ACT take a total of 6per cent, and their Cap and the way it isdetermined has not yet been finalised.

The Ministerial Council implemented theCap as a first step towards striking anappropriate balance between the economicand social benefits obtained from thedevelopment of the Basin’s water resources,and the environmental uses of water in therivers.

The proportion of available water taken fromeach river varies widely, in some cases it isbelow 20%, in others above 50%. In thecase of the River Murray, New South Walesand Victoria shares its water 50:50 and alsoequally share the responsibility to supplySouth Australia. However, they actually usedifferent amounts of water.

4 Independent Audit Group, 2002

Photo: John Baker


13

State & Valley Long-Term Diversion Cap

(GL per year)

NEW SOUTH WALES

Barwon-Upper Darling 177

Lower Darling 119

Border Rivers 204

Gwydir* 345

Namoi 284

Macquarie 474

Lachlan* 339

Murrumbidgee 2 289

NSW Murray 1 877

Total New South Wales 6 108

VICTORIA

Goulburn/Loddon/Broken 2 084

Murray/Kiewa/Ovens 1 656

Campaspe 122

Wimmera-Mallee* 162

Total Victoria 4 024

SOUTH AUSTRALIA

Country towns 50

Reclaimed swamps 100

Other 457

Total South Australia (except metropolitan Adelaide) 607

QUEENSLAND MDB 654#

AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY 38@

TOTAL (except metropolitan Adelaide) 11 431

* These valleys contribute little or no water to the main stem of the River Murray. # Cap yet to be finalised; provisional estimate of actual diversions in 2000/01 shown.@ Cap yet to be finalised; proposed Cap shown.

SOUTH AUSTRALIA (metropolitan Adelaide)

Adelaide - rolling 5 year total 650 GL over five years

Table 1: Murray-Darling Basin long-term diversion Cap by valley.


14

The flow to the sea from the Murray Mouthin a typical year under natural conditions wasaround 11 300 GL. In a typical year undercurrent conditions it is about 3 000 GL or27% of what it was before regulation.Diversions do not exactly match thereduction in flow at the Mouth, as some ofthe water that is now diverted would neverhave made it to the sea.

The effect of regulation on flows along theRiver Murray and in tributaries as they jointhe River is shown in Figure 4. This reflectsboth the diversions throughout the Basin andthe availability of water in these rivers.

For example, the flow in the Ovens andKiewa Rivers, in north-east Victoria, havebeen largely unaffected by development,whereas the flow at Albury is 12% higherdue to the extra water diverted into the Basin

from the Snowy Mountains hydroelectricscheme. Further down the river, belowmajor diversion points like Yarrawonga Weir,the flow in the river is a lot less than it wasnaturally. Also, some of the tributaries aredelivering far less water to the River Murraythan they would have if they were notregulated (Fig.4).

This shows the current flow regime in theRiver Murray is the result of diversionsspread across the Basin. It means thatrestoring the river's health will rely onchanges to varying degrees in the majortributaries, as well in the Murray itself.Further analysis will be required to find themost effective way of introducing changesthroughout the Basin to provideenvironmental flows to the River Murray.

0 100 200 km

NEW SOUTHWALES

Darling River

QUEENSLAND

AUSTRALIA

Adelaide

Goulburn R.

Yarrawonga

Murrumbidgee R.

Sydney

Brisbane

Canberra

OutflowSnowy

JindabyneSnowy below

Melbourne

Legend1. The size of each pie chart provides an

indication of the median annual flow ateach site under natural conditions.

2. Green indicates the median annual flowat each site under the currentconditions.

3. Brown illustrates the natural median annual flow undercurrent conditions.

4. Yellow indicates the volume that thecurrent median annual flow is in excessof the natural flow under currentconditions.

Albury

VICTORIA

Ovens R. Kiewa R.

SOUTH

Upper Darling

MurrayRiver

OutflowR. Murray

loss of the

to SAFlow

Figure 4: Comparison of flows in a typical year under natural and current conditionsalong the River Murray and key tributaries.

The current flowregime in the

River Murray isthe result ofdiversions

spread across theBasin.


15

Agricultural profitsThe Murray-Darling Basin accounts foralmost one third by value of Australia'sagricultural output. Irrigation is a major

contributor to the profitability of agriculturewithin the Basin. This can be seen fromFigures 5 and 6.

Figure 5: Profitability of Australian agriculture in the 5 years to 1996 expressed in terms of‘profit at full equity’ (PFE) (source: www.environment.gov.au/atlas)

<-$5-$5 to $0$0 to $10$10 to $50$50 to $100$100 to $500$500 to $1000>$1000

Profit at Full Equityfor 5yr ($/ha/yr)

Statisticshighlight the

importance ofirrigation to theprofitability of

Australianagriculture.

Figure 6: The agricultural area of Australia with the area contributing 80% of farm profits(expressed as ‘profit at full equity’) (PFE) highlighted (1996/97 data, source:www.environment.gov.au/atlas).

Area contributing 80% of PFE

Agricultural Area


16

Figure 5 shows the ‘profit at full equity’5

across Australia for the 5 years to 1996 (notethis was a period of major drought in muchof northern Australia).

In Figure 6, the areas of the Australianlandscape contributing 80% of the total farmprofit, measured in this way, are highlighted.This shows 80% of farm profits weregenerated from around 2% of the landscapeduring this period—and this was largelyirrigation areas in the Murray-Darling Basin.

This information highlights the importanceof irrigation in the Basin to the profitabilityof Australian agriculture.

Threats to the values we prizeUse of the Basin’s water resources hasbrought huge benefit to Australia. Yet thechanges in flow also have ecological, cultural,social and economic consequences.

The effects of these changes in flow varywidely along the river, because the location ofirrigation districts, dams and weirs, results indifferent flow patterns in different places.They can also take many years for their fullimpact to be realised.

These have led to the following changes inriver health which are discussed in moredetail below:

• widespread increases in nutrients andsediment in the water6;

• river flows rated poor in all zones of theRiver Murray7;

• vegetation and wildlife significantlyimpaired along 40% of the total riverlength in the Basin8;

• 16 of the Basin's 35 native fish specieslisted as threatened9; and

• salinity in the Lower Murray is projectedto rise by 50% and more than 100% inmany smaller rivers in the coming 50years10.

5 The ‘profit at full equity’ of a farming enterprise is the amount of farm profit generated assuming there are no debts to pay off. It provides an indication of the underlying profitability of different landscapes and industries.

6 Norris et al., 2001, p x7 Norris et al., 2001, p xi8 Norris et al., 20019 MDBMC Draft Native Fish Strategy for the Murray-Darling Basin 2002-2012, 200210 MDBC Salinity Audit, 1999

Photo: Rosemary Purdie

Use of theBasin’s waterresources hasbrought huge

benefit toAustralia.

Photo: David Eastburn (M

DBC

)


17

Poor water qualityChanges to river flow patterns have led topoorer water quality. Combined with theeffects of weirs and dams, this has adverselyaffected native plant, bird and fish life.Evidence for this has emerged in scientificinvestigations over more than a decade.11

Declining water quality affects all users, aswell as the environment. Good water qualityis essential for productive irrigation, fishingand manufacturing industries, for tourismand recreation, for drinking and for the townwater supplies delivered by local governments.Without it, all our values—economic,environmental, cultural and social—suffer.

Salinity, turbidity, nutrients, algal blooms andwater temperature changes are signs ofdeclining water quality, and all are affected tosome extent by the amount of flow in theriver. Salinity affects the water's use forindustry and drinking. Changes in watertemperature impact on fish; while murky,nutrient-rich water alters the balance of plantand animal life in the water.

Improved catchment management is neededto address the causes of water quality decline.Improving the flow pattern will also help12

and is one part of this strategy.

Unseasonal flows In its natural state the River Murray receivedmost water in winter and spring. Releasingwater in summer for irrigation alters thetiming of flows from the natural pattern.These unseasonal flows have their biggesteffect close to the main dams and weirs(Figure 3). High summer flows permanentlyflood some wetlands and parts of the

floodplain, which need a wetting-and-dryingcycle to sustain their plants and animals.High water levels upstream of weirs and lockshave a similar effect. This may result in:

• loss of plant communities, such as riverred gums;

• declining numbers of native birds,animals and fish;

• the spread of exotic weeds and pests;

• greater erosion of river banks andscouring of new channels; and

• loss of the natural signals that tell nativefish, birds, plants and aquatic insectswhen to breed.

Damaged wetlandsWetlands recharge the river and surroundinglandscape with life, and they cleanse thewater by absorbing nutrients, silt andpollutants. Many wetlands need floodingand drying cycles. The flooding releases foodfor plants, fish, birds and animals, andencourages them to breed. Receding waterthen carries new life into the river.

Drying out is equally vital for some parts ofthe floodplain, for the health of plants andtrees and the life cycles of many birds,animals and insects.

The River Murray System has five wetlandsof world significance. River regulation hascaused changes in the flow pattern to theseand other wetlands that include floodsoccurring less often and lasting for a shortertime than they did naturally. These smaller,shorter floods mean native birds, plants andanimals do not breed as often, or assuccessfully. For instance, many waterbirds

11 See Thoms et al., 2000, Jensen A. et al., 2000, Norris et al., 2001 and Jones G. et al., 200212 Jones G. et al., 2002

Photo: Andrew

Tatnell


DBC

)

Changes in flowalso haveecological,

cultural, socialand economicconsequences.


18

require floods lasting 3–5 months for thehatchlings to leave the nest. When floods areartificially shortened, the adult birds abandontheir nests and the chicks starve or are eatenby predators.

Murray Mouth closure The Coorong and Murray Mouth nowreceive far less water than they did undernatural conditions13. The Mouth has onlyclosed once, in 1981, since regulation startedon the River Murray. However the loss offlow causes the Murray Mouth to approachclosure far more frequently, risking majorenvironmental, cultural, economic and socialconsequences.

Some species of fish need to move betweenthe ocean and the freshwater Lower Lakes tobreed. The Barrages near the Murray Mouthlimit their migration and reduce theirabundance. Closure of the Murray Mouthwould limit them further and affect thefishing industry, tourism and leisure.

The Barrages have also changed the ecologyof the Lower Lakes, reducing the estuarinearea of the Murray to 11% of its naturalsize14. Recent studies reveal that estuarinebird habitat is still declining in both size andquality. If this continues, Australia will failto meet its obligations under internationalwildlife agreements.

Fish lossesSixteen of the Basin's 35 native fish speciesare listed as threatened in the Basin, with thetrout cod rated critically endangered15. Thenatural range of other species has dwindledsharply.

Native fish numbers are falling because of:

• loss of habitat;

• loss of the natural water temperature andflow signals that tell them when to breed;

• dams, weirs and structures that blocktheir migration paths;

• lack of flooding and food sources foryoung fish;

• overfishing; and

• predation and competition from exoticfish.

Floodplain salinity Once the River Murray acted as a majoroutlet for the region’s groundwater. Todaythe weirs and locks maintain unnaturallyhigh river levels, and this holds back thegroundwater from entering the river. Thegroundwater then rises to the surface of thenearby floodplain, bringing salt with it.Combined with salinity problems caused byirrigation, floodplain salinity threatens thesurvival of native bush, the productivity offarming systems, and whole industries andcommunities in some areas. Also, reducedflooding means salt is no longer effectivelyflushed from the landscape.

Though not directly related to river flowmanagement, regional groundwater pressuresand dryland salinity are major problemsacross the Basin. Since much of this salt willeventually end up in the river, it emphasisesthe importance of an integrated approach tomanaging the whole Basin.

Photo: Andrew

Tatnell

Photo: Mapland A

delaide

13 See Walker D.J., 2002 and Close A.F., 200214 Jensen A. et al., 2000, p 1915 MDBMC, Draft Native Fish Strategy for the Murray-Darling Basin 2002-2012, 2002


19

Vision and ObjectivesThis discussion paper looks at ways we mightcreate and preserve a healthy working RiverMurray.

In March 2001, the Murray-Darling BasinMinisterial Council agreed to a vision and setof objectives for the River Murray, originallyput forward by members of the community.Their aim is to seek a balance between all the

values the Australian community has for theriver.

Vision:... a healthy River Murraysystem, sustaining communitiesand preserving unique values.

Chapter 4. Creating aHealthy Working River

River health objectives

1. Protect and restore key habitat features in the river, riparian zone, floodplain andestuary to enhance ecological processes.

2. Protect and restore healthy riverine and estuarine environments and high-valuefloodplain and wetlands of national and international importance.

3. Prevent the extinction of native species from the riverine system.

4. Overcome barriers to the migration of native fish species.

Environmental flow objectives

5. Reinstate ecologically significant elements of the natural flow regime.

6. Keep the Murray Mouth open to maintain navigation and fish passage and toenhance estuarine conditions in the Coorong.

7. Significantly improve connectivity between and within riverine, wetland, floodplainand estuarine environments.

Water quality objectives

8. Substantially improve water quality in the Murray system to a level that sustainsecological processes, environmental values and productive capacity.

9. Manage salinity to minimise impacts on ecological processes and productivity levels.

10. Manage nutrient levels to reduce the occurrence of blue-green algal blooms.

11. Minimise the impact of potential pollutants such as sediment and pesticides withinriverine environments.

Human dimension objectives

12. Implement an adaptive approach to the management of the River Murray consistentwith the Integrated Catchment Management Policy Statement, monitoringecological outcomes and reviewing operations in the light of new information.

13. Gather, evaluate and disseminate the community’s living, scientific and intuitiveknowledge to optimise environmental flow strategies.

14. Ensure participation of the entire community by recognising the cultural andhistorical relationship to the river, its landscape and its people and acknowledgingthe past to affect the future.

15. Recognise the importance of a healthy River Murray to the economic, social andcultural prosperity of communities along the length of the river.

Objectives:

Action is alreadybeing takenachieve a

healthy workingriver.


20

16 Jones, G. et al., 2002

Water quality objectivesOne way to tell if a river is healthy or not isto look at water quality. How we manageriver flows has a big influence on waterquality, especially in a highly-regulated riverlike the Murray. As a rule, larger flows leadto better water quality. However, when theenvironment needs lower flows—forinstance, to dry a wetland for a time—thismay also reduce water quality temporarily.Having agreed water quality objectives is oneway we can assess these trade-offs.

Agreed water quality objectives are a way thatthe community states its values for water inrelation to human health, uses and the needsof the environment. The Murray-DarlingBasin Commission is developing draft waterquality objectives for the River Murray toencourage discussion as part of its statutoryduties. They will be integrated with relevantState and Commonwealth process such as theNational Action Plan for Salinity and WaterQuality (NAPSWQ) and catchmentplanning processes.

The draft water quality objectives areavailable on our website and will bepublished later in 2002. The views of thecommunity and stakeholders will be soughtbetween now and October 2003, allowingfinal water quality objectives to be agreed.

The Commission has assessed the effects ofenvironmental flows on water quality usingthese water quality factors:

• salinity;

• turbidity;

• risk of algal blooms; and

• temperature effects.

This list will be expanded so that the effectsof environmental flows on water quality inthe River Murray can be better identified and separated from other issues that affectwater quality.

Together, this assessment and the waterquality objectives help us to see how wellenvironmental flows meet the water qualityvalues of the community and the needs oflocal government. They can also be used as a guide for other catchment actions suchas agricultural land use, which also affectwater quality.

What is a healthyworking river? The Vision and Objectives of the MinisterialCouncil help us seek an acceptable balancebetween competing values for the river.They stress the importance of the ‘economic,social and cultural prosperity of communitiesalong the length of the River’, as well as theimportance of a healthy River Murray.

The idea of a healthy working river also seeksthese balances:

a healthy working river is one that ismanaged to provide a sustainablecompromise, agreed to by thecommunity, between the condition ofthe river and the level of human use.16

The table opposite provides examples of thesort of differences we might see between ahealthy working river and an unhealthy river.

For example, summer irrigation flows willremain a feature of the river between Hume

Photo: Ted Lawton

Photo: John Baker

Water qualitycan help tell us

if a river ishealthy.


21

and Yarrawonga. However environmentalflow initiatives will seek to reduce the adverseimpacts of unseasonal flooding on wetlandsand floodplains.

In the Lower Murray, the locks, weirs andbarrages will remain in place for irrigationand navigation—but water levels above themwill be varied to encourage healthy riversidevegetation and to prevent algal blooms.

Some wetlands will still be used foragriculture; others will be retained for theenvironment. The health of both types ofwetland stands to benefit fromenvironmental flows.

A healthy working river would also allow usto swim in it, catch fish from it and takedrinking water from it.

A healthy working River Murray may mean

• Active regional communities, wherea healthy environment and a thrivingeconomy go hand-in-hand

• Prosperous, water efficient irrigationindustries

• Tourism and recreation, with peoplefishing, safely swimming and boating

• Dams, locks and weirs operated toprovide for irrigation, navigation,and where possible, the environment

• A healthier (but not pristine) riverenvironment, including:

– healthy diverse riversidevegetation extending onto thefloodplain, however parts of thefloodplain will still suffer

– anabranches, billabongs andwetlands that fill up and dry outoften enough for breeding events,but not as often as under naturalconditions

– diverse bird and fish species

– Murray Mouth open to allow fishpassage and navigation

An unhealthy River Murray willcontribute to

• A community in conflict, decliningcultural and heritage values

• Less efficient irrigation industrieswith ageing infrastructure

• Reduced incidence of tourism andleisure activities

• Lots of money spent purifying waterto make it drinkable

• Dams, locks and weirs operated toprovide for irrigation, navigation,with no regard for environmentalimpacts

• An unhealthy river environment,including:

– eroding and collapsing riverbanks,dead or dying trees

– stressed floodplain vegetationwhere the floodplain is too dry orthere is increasing salinity

– weeds taking over, severe toxicblue-green algal blooms

Possible futures for the River Murray


DBC

)


22

Photo: John Baker


23

An 'environmental flow' is any river flowpattern provided with the intention ofmaintaining or improving river health.

Better use of water currently available andnew water made available for theenvironment, are forms of environmentalflows. Examples include:

• modifying floods in the river system (inparticular small to medium floods), toincrease the benefit to the environmentby changing:

– how often they occur,

– how big they are,

– how long they last for, and

– when they occur.

• restoring low-flows in parts of the riversystem where low-flows used to occurnaturally;

• altering water levels above weirs so theyresemble the natural seasonal changesthat occurred prior to regulation;

Modifying the pattern of floods does notmean creating floods from a ‘standing start’.An environmental flow generally meansmaking relatively small changes to parts ofthe flood’s pattern, so it helps theenvironment more.

The complexity of river and floodplaininteractions is shown in Figure 7. Differentparts of the river and its floodplain mayrequire different treatment. They may alsohave to ‘take turns’ to be watered dependingon the amount of water available.

To be effective, an environmental flow must:

• be timed to occur in the right season totrigger breeding of plants and animals;

• occur often enough and last long enoughto allow breeding to succeed;

• be large enough to link the river to itsfloodplain, wetlands, billabongs,anabranches, estuaries and the sea; and

• vary water levels to provide wetlands andriverbanks with wet-and-dry cycles.

Chapter 5. What is anEnvironmental Flow?

Environmentalflow: any changeto a river's flowpattern intendedto maintain orimprove river

health.

River cross-section

snags In-channel benches

Billabong/wetland

Natural low flow

anabranch

40-70m

4-6m

Ada

pted

fro

m W

hitti

ngto

n et

al.,

200

1; s

ourc

e m

ater

ial G

riff

ith U

nive

rsity

and

SE

QR

WQ

MS

1999

Natural high flow2

1fish, plants, water-bugs

3

During natural low flows riverbanks are allowed to dry, which improves bank stability and reduceserosion. As the river rises during natural high flows a variety of in-channel benches, anabranches, andfloodplain wetlands may receive water and connect with the river. This replenishes wetlands (such asbillabongs), which in turn recharge the river with organic material (food) and living organisms. Both theriver and floodplain benefit from this exchange Snags (trees fallen into the river) provide valuablehabitat for native fish and other river animals.

1

43

2

4

Figure 7: Cross-section typical of parts of the River Murray, showing the interactions that occur betweenthe river and its adjacent floodplain wetlands during high and low flows, and the plant and animalcommunities that depend upon these exchanges for survival.


24

Photo: Bill B

achman


25

A change in our attitudes By the early 1990s it was clear that theBasin’s rivers were in trouble. Native fishpopulations were in severe decline, wetlandswere contracting and water qualitydegrading.

The level of water use (diversions) andchanged flow patterns in the river became ahot topic. Many people could see a need tostrike a balance between water use and theenvironment, and Australians generallystarted to recognise the amount of water inthe Basin was limited.

The Ministerial Council responded to theseissues by introducing the Salinity andDrainage Strategy, a Water Quality Policy, anIntegrated Catchment Management Policy,the Cap on diversions, water pricing reforms,an Algal Management Strategy, scientificassessment of the rivers and theirenvironment and other measures.

The most important change has been in theviews and values of the people of theMurray-Darling Basin. This has emerged asstrong support for land and watermanagement plans, Landcare, Rivercare andcatchment management. It has beenencouraged by initiatives like the NaturalHeritage Trust and National Action Plan forSalinity and Water Quality. Much can belearned from these projects.

The Basin's farmers have become worldleaders in water use efficiency. Ricegrowers,for example, have cut their water use perhectare by around 30 per cent in ten years,while rice yields per megalitre have risen byover 60 per cent17. Gains have also beenmade in the dairy, cotton, wine grape andhorticulture industries.

A recent stakeholder survey found there ishigh concern for the current state of the RiverMurray and general awareness that it will takemany years to improve the situation.18 Therewas strong support from 95 per cent of thosesurveyed for the principle of environmentalflows for the River Murray. However, supportdropped to less than 40 per cent if water users,interested people, and local people were

excluded from the decision-making process.This has sent a clear signal that thecommunity must be involved in the decision.

The Basin states have recognised theimportance of river health and have beenintroducing processes to achieveenvironmental flows:

• New South Wales, Water Sharing Plansare being prepared under the WaterManagement Act 2000;

• in Victoria, Bulk Entitlements andStreamflow Management Plans arecoming in under the Water Act 1989;

• in South Australia, The State Water Plan2000, Catchment Water ManagementPlans and Water Allocation Plans arecoming in under the Water Resources Act1997; and

• in Queensland, Water Resource Plans arebeing prepared under the Water Act 2000.

These actions aim to allocate and sustainablymanage water to meet future needs. Theseinclude protecting the environment andassuring a secure supply to water users. Thesestate-based moves use the Cap as a reference,but otherwise do not focus on the health ofthe River Murray.

This discussion about environmental flowsaims to make sure that the overall health ofthe River Murray is not overlooked in all theprocesses surrounding it.

This process is run by a Project Board madeup of members of the Murray-Darling BasinCommission. They are advised by aCommunity Reference Panel, scientists andthe Commonwealth, State and Territorygovernments.

Examples of what wehave already done forthe River MurraySignificant environmental flows have alreadytaken place in the River Murray. Here aretwo cases showing how we can createenvironmental benefits in specific parts ofthe river:

Chapter 6. Runs on the Board

There is strongcommunitysupport for

better land andwater

management.

17 Ricegrowers’ Association of Australia Inc., 2002. http://www.rga.org.au/18 Nancarrow B.E. and Syme G.J., 2001


26

Barmah-Millewa ForestIn 1993 it was agreed to put 100 GL ofwater each year from NSW and Victorianirrigation supplies into an account toimprove watering of the Barmah-MillewaForest. In 2001 this was increased to amaximum of 150 GL a year.

This environmental water was first used in1998, when 97 GL was used to top up aminor flood in the forest caused by highflows in the Ovens and Kiewa Rivers. Whilemany floodplain plants and birds respondedwell, it was generally felt that the floodwasn't large enough and didn't last longenough to deliver full benefit to theecosystem.

A second environmental flow was appliedfrom October 2000 to January 2001. A totalof 341 GL was released to extend a 1-in-5year flood event that was occurring naturallyin the forest (Fig.8). This was the largestrelease of water ever made to theenvironment in Australia.

The water was not used to increase the peak of the flood, but rather to slow the rate it drained out of the forest followingnatural flood peaks in October andNovember 2000 (Fig.8). This providedlonger, more natural conditions for birdbreeding and forest renewal.

Though it sounds like a lot of water, theenvironmental flow was in fact only 8 percent of the total flow at that point in theriver from September 2000 to January 2001.

The success of bird breeding equalled whatmight have occurred during a 1-in-10 yearflood. The great egret bred in the forest forthe first time since 1979, and birdpopulations generally increased. Nine speciesof frogs bred in key areas of the forest. Thetimber and grasslands of the forestflourished. Native fish took advantage of theflood to breed—but so did the introducedpest, the carp.

Despite inconvenience from flooding insome areas, the community respondedpositively to the environmental benefits thatfollowed the event.

Chowilla Floodplain, SouthAustraliaThe floods of October and December 2000provided opportunities for the Murray-Darling Basin Commission, together with SA Government agencies, to increase flowsinto South Australia to increase watering ofthe floodplain.

During October, the flow to South Australiawas increased by about 9 000 ML a day,using water from Lake Victoria, upstream ofthe SA border. Further flooding was

Actual FlowActual FlowEnvironmental Releases

Figure 8: Environmental flows to the Barmah-Millewa Forest (June 2000 – January 2001). Thisshows the actual flow and estimated flows without environmental release (note: water flows over thebanks of the River Murray into the forest at about 10 500 ML a day).

The 2000-2001Barmah-Millewa

watering was thelargest release ofwater ever made

to theenvironment in

Australia.


27

achieved by raising the upstream pool level ofLock 5 (near Renmark) by about 0.5 m.This increased the area of flooding by about8 per cent.

In the larger December event, the peak of theflood was also raised by about 9 000 ML aday. Parts of the floodplain that had notbeen soaked for four years were wateredduring this event allowing many wetlandspecies to regenerate.

Other achievementsOther recent environmental flow measureson the River Murray include:

• development of a long-term waterwaymanagement plan for Hume toYarrawonga;

• implementation of modified flowpatterns for Dartmouth Dam releases toachieve environmental benefits in theMitta Mitta River;

• controlling flows through the MenindeeLakes to imitate natural flows in theLower Darling;

• opening gates at Torrumbarry Weirduring high river levels, to let fish swimfreely past the weir; and

• agreement of an operating strategy forLake Victoria, which aims to balance thecompeting needs of Cultural Heritage,the environment, and water supply.

Examples of what wehave already done forthe tributariesThe Murrumbidgee and Goulburn Rivers arethe two most important tributaries forenhancing environmental flows to the RiverMurray, followed by the upper Darling Riverthough its contribution to the River Murrayis smaller. Here are two cases ofenvironmental flows:

Murrumbidgee River, NSWThe Murrumbidgee River receives increasedriver flows outside the irrigation season byreleasing part of the inflows to Burrinjuckand Blowering Dams. The target for theflow at Balranald, where the Murrumbidgeejoins the Murray, was raised and extra waterwas made available to the environment.These changes mean irrigators have returnedalmost 4% of their diversions to the river. Asimilar process is taking place across NSW,with irrigators on the Macquarie Riverreturning the highest proportion of theirdiversions to the River (16%).

Goulburn River, VictoriaEnvironmental flow provisions have beenintroduced in the Goulburn River toimprove its health. These provisions will seeimprovements made to the flow patternsbelow Eildon Dam, Goulburn Weir andwhere it reaches the Murray. They have beendesigned to provide flushing flows tosimulate small spring floods and to protectthe water quality of the River.

Further work is being done to improve the environmental effectiveness of these provisions.

Better use of existingwater for river healthIn 2001, there was a major study of thedams, locks and weirs of the River Murray.It found ways we can improve the health ofthe river by changing the way thesestructures are operated and constructed.

As a result, in April 2002, the MinisterialCouncil saw the need for $150 million to bespent on structural measures to achieve thebest environmental outcomes from the watercurrently available to the River Murray.

Photo: Andrew

Tatnell

We can aid riverhealth by

improving theoperation of

dams, locks andweirs.


28

These actions will take about seven years toimplement and will result in:

• improved floodplain health;

• better management for fish; and

• better management of the MurrayMouth, Coorong and Lower Lakes.

The Ministerial Council said:

These actions will improve the health ofthe River Murray while not affectingthe security of consumptive water uses.This approach underscores the Council’sdesire to focus management of thestructures and resources of the RiverMurray to improve the environmentwhile maintaining the social andeconomic benefits obtained fromresource use (Corowa Communique, 12April 200219).

Examples of the changes that might occur are:

• reducing the impact of unseasonalflooding of the Barmah-Millewa Forestthrough structural modifications atYarrawonga Weir and nearby;

• improving the way the river connectswith the floodplain;

• seasonally lowering weir pool water levelsto allow areas that have been wet fordecades to dry out. This includes actionsto offset impacts on people using theriver; and

• further investigation of how water can besupplied more efficiently to water userson the Great Anabranch of the DarlingRiver, to partially restore the natural flowpattern and return the water saved to theenvironment.

Much work is already going on to improvethe environment of the River Murray,including the development of fish-ways onweirs, salt interception works, ways tominimise the impact of cold water releasesfrom Hume Dam and ways to enhancewetland health.

We can achieve local benefits to the Murrayenvironment just through these structuraland operational changes at key locations,without recovering more water. However,the gains that can be achieved are small withthe amount of water currently available forenvironmental use.

For this reason the community of theMurray-Darling Basin is being asked toconsider the recovery of water from users toreturn water to the environment, so we canachieve benefits along the full length of theRiver Murray. For how to put forward yourviews, see Chapter 11.

19 Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council–Corowa Communique, 12 April 2002

Photo: Sarah Cartw

right


29

Though it will not solve every problemfacing the River Murray, providing extrawater to the environment will yield benefitsalong its full length. Key issues are: howmuch water do we need to attain a healthyworking river, and where do we get it from?

The Ministerial Council chose annualvolumes of 350 GL, 750 GL and 1500 GLto serve as reference points to startcommunity discussion about whether or notwater should be recovered from water usersfor the environment, and if so, how much.These are not ‘options’ but merely serve togive the community a base from which toconsider the costs, benefits and issuesinvolved. Further details of these costs andbenefits will be available in a seconddocument on environmental flows to bepublished in 2003.

Public input will help the MinisterialCouncil in considering the issue at itsmeeting in October 2003.

Prospects for a healthyworking river–threereference pointsThe Ministerial Council's three referencepoints help focus our discussion of the benefitsand costs of recovering different amounts ofwater for the environment. They include thechanges to dam, weir and lock operation andother measures previously described.

Scientists estimate, from an ecologicalperspective, that further water would beneeded to give a high likelihood of achievinga healthy working River Murray21. Thesmaller the amount of water recovered, thelower the overall prospects of river health.However, even relatively small amounts ofwater can benefit particular places.

The Ministerial Council’s three referencepoints were selected to provide a basis fordeveloping a balance between viable irrigatedagriculture, the social and economicconsequences and our current understandingof the river’s needs. Any level of recovery, ifadopted, would be introduced in an adaptivemanagement framework (‘learning by doing’),and the outcomes monitored and reviewed.

The consequences of implementing thesereference points are being investigated furtherin order to develop a better understanding ofthe effect of water recovery forenvironmental flows. Your views will helpthe Ministerial Council in its considerationof this issue in October 2003.

Although a particular annual volume ofwater may be mentioned, this would not beused as a constant flow. Rather, it would beused to vary flows in ways that more closelyresemble the natural river patterns.

Work leading to the choice of these referencepoints is detailed in the Report on theDevelopment of Options, prepared by theMurray-Darling Basin Commission for theMinisterial Council meeting in April 200222.The related scientific advice is contained inthe Independent Report of the Expert ReferencePanel on Environmental Flows and WaterQuality Requirements for the River MurraySystem23.

Both reports can be obtained from theMurray-Darling Basin Commission or theLiving Murray website.

Chapter 7. What We Can Do

Reference Points - Averageamount of extra waterprovided to the River Murrayenvironment

350 GL a year

750 GL a year

1500 GL a year

Estimated timeframe forimplementation

10 years

10 years

15 years

Likelihood of a healthyworking river from anecological perspective20

Low

Low-Moderate

Moderate

Three 'referencepoints' will helpus understandthe costs andbenefits of

recovering waterfor the

environment.

20 Jones G. et al., 200221 Jones G. et al., 200222 MDBC, Report on the Development of Options, April 200223 Jones et al., 2002


30

Working out the impacts The Ministerial Council has asked theMurray-Darling Basin Commission to makesure any water recovery achieves the bestresult for the environment, with the leastimpact on water users.

Some water savings might be achieved by reducing losses in transmission, such as evaporation and seepage from irrigationchannels.

We need to establish what water alreadyrecovered for the environment will becounted towards the reference points. Oneoption is to count all water that has beenrecovered for the environment since 1993-94(the year the Cap was introduced).

The reference points will however includethe 70 GL a year to be recovered for theRiver Murray through the Snowy Riverenvironmental flows process, and the 30 GLa year that Victoria and South Australiaagreed jointly to pursue for the River Murray.

A comprehensive analysis is being carried outto help us understand the costs and benefitsof each reference point. This will include:

• looking at ways to change the operationof the tributaries (the Goulburn andMurrumbidgee Rivers and also the upperDarling River recognising its contributionto the River Murray is smaller) and River Murray, to maximise environmentalbenefits;

• identifying how water can best berecovered to maximise environmentaloutcomes, while ensuring that it wouldbe recovered fairly between the Murrayand its tributaries;

• identifying environmental benefits alongthe length of the river as well as localbenefits at sites such as the MurrayMouth, Coorong, Chowilla Floodplain,Gunbower/Perricoota Forest, Barmah-Millewa Forest (refer Figure 1, page 6),and for native fish populations, such asMurray cod;

• understanding the delay betweenimplementing an environmental flow andseeing an improvement in the environment;

• understanding what we cannot achievefor the environment, as well as what we can;

• identifying benefits to cultural andheritage values, economic values,environmental values and communityvalues;

• identifying the costs of various referencepoints to each state, territory and theCommonwealth and finding ways tomanage the social and economic impacts;and

• identifying and addressing key issues suchas fairness, access rights to water andwater trade.

Making sure that water recovery achieves thebest result for the environment, will involve a careful choice among the range of benefitsand impacts along the river.

Different ways of managing the river systemwill be tried using a computer-basedmodelling process that takes account of allthe main influences on flow in the river suchas operation of the dams and weirs, loss ofwater by evaporation and the diversion ofwater from the river. This process aims toachieve the best result for the environment,with the least impact on water users. TheMurray-Darling Basin Commission will workwith state, territory and Commonwealthagencies, scientists and locals and seekcomment from the community.

It will be vital to continually monitor andreview any changes to river management, sowe can be sure we are achieving the bestpossible outcomes. See Chapter 9 for furtherdiscussion on this matter.

Looking for ‘win-win’solutions One of the first steps in the analysis will beto look for smart, ‘win-win’ ways to meet theneeds of environments along the river withthe least possible impact on industry.

By way of illustration, a lot of work was doneprior to Council’s March 2001 decision onwatering of Barmah-Millewa Forest tomaximise the benefit to the Forest whileminimising the impact on irrigation suppliesand the community. This decision was basedon a considerable effort, over a period ofyears, to identify a ‘win-win’ outcome24.

Another example is the work going on tobetter understand the behaviour of the

The MinisterialCouncil is

seeking the bestoutcome for the

environmentwith the least

impact on waterusers.

24 Murray Water Entitlement Committee, Sharing the Murray, 1997


31

Murray Mouth under different flowconditions. This is giving us a better idea ofhow to manage and care for the Mouth andits environment.

However, we have to be careful that a benefitin one place does not create a problemsomewhere else.

These examples show there are continualopportunities to improve and refine the waywe manage water to the benefit of both theenvironment and industries like agriculture,tourism and fishing.

Catchment careA healthy river depends not just on its flowpattern, but also on the condition of itscatchment, floodplain, surrounding and in-stream ecosystems and water quality.Although environmental flows are a vital partof river health, they cannot ensure a healthyriver on their own.

They are only part of our IntegratedCatchment Management Policy25 for the Basin.

Through this, landholders, communities andgovernment are already tackling many issuesthat affect river health through ‘on ground’actions. These include changes in:

• land-use (e.g. grazing, cropping);

• use of groundwater;

• town and farm run-off;

• floodplain salinity;

• stock access to river banks;

• river bank vegetation;

• wildlife habitat; and

• control of introduced pests (e.g. carp,rabbits and weeds).

The Integrated Catchment Management Policyalso links with other initiatives like the DraftNative Fish Strategy26, which aims to restorenative fish populations to 60% of theirnatural levels over 50 years.

The community of the Murray-DarlingBasin has already made a great commitmentto catchment management andenvironmental care. Environmental flows areone way to capitalise on these efforts.

Climate changeClimate change may still have a majorimpact on our river system and environment,whatever we do with environmental flowsand catchment management.

Scientists predict climate change may bringlower rainfall, higher evaporation and lowerriver flows, particularly in the southern partof the Basin27. This may reduce the amountof water available for both the environmentand water users alike, and is another reasonfor beginning to plan how we can safeguardour rivers in the long-term.

25 MDBMC Integrated Catchment Management in the Murray-Darling Basin 2001-2010, 200126 MDBMC Draft Native Fish Strategy for the Murray-Darling Basin 2002-2012, 2002.27 Jones R. et al., 2001

Soundcatchment

management isstill absolutely

vital.

Photo: John Baker


32

Photo: John Baker


33

There is no perfect solution to the challengesfacing the River Murray and its community.Many balances must be considered if we areto contemplate recovering water for theenvironment from current uses. The choicesthat need to be made will reflect our manyvalues, and we recognise these values willchange over time.

There is more at stake than a trade-offbetween irrigation and the environment.Balance must be sought between the manydifferent values we hold for our water.

Some of these balances are outlined below.These will be further studied over thecoming months. A second document onenvironmental flows will be published by theMurray-Darling Basin Commission in 2003,which will clearly set out the costs andbenefits of the three reference points so thatthe balances can be more easily weighed up.

The second document will seek input andideas from as many Australians as possible, sowe can collectively seek an acceptable balanceand spread the costs and benefits fairly.Further information about the seconddocument and how to contribute ideas andvoice concerns is in Chapter 11.

Striking the rightbalanceIrrigated agriculture

The Ministerial Council wants to considerhow we might strive for a sustainable, highlyproductive Basin with improved river health,

with minimum impact on irrigation and itssurrounding communities.

If more water is used for environmentalflows, rather than to irrigate crops, there maywell be economic loss. But there will also beeconomic loss if water quality for irrigationcontinues to deteriorate. However if water issaved through more efficient farming, assome farmers have already proved possible, itwill help offset the impact on irrigationcommunities. However such efficiencysavings may not yield enough water tosupport a healthy working River Murray.

There may be opportunities for industryrestructuring, new industries, greaterinvestment in research and technologies toimprove water use efficiency andproductivity, and upgrading of ageinginfrastructure. Through this investment, thefuture of irrigation could be moreprosperous. There will also be opportunitiesto meet global pressures for environmentallyfriendly produce.

There may be trade-offs between differentirrigation areas. For example, the value ofirrigated agriculture downstream may risebecause environmental flows enable farmersto use better quality water at the same timeas the asset base of upstream irrigatorsreduces because of water recovery.

Drinking waterOne of the most important concerns is aboutthe right of future Australians to enjoy clean,fresh drinking water—and to identify thechanges needed along the whole river to

Chapter 8. Our Balancing Act

There are nosimple answers.

We must balancemany interestsand issues tofind the best

solution.

Photos 1,2 and 3: John Baker, Photo 4: David Eastburn (MDBC)


34

achieve this. There are many communitiesthroughout the Basin that rely upon waterdrawn from rivers for domestic use. Thehigher the quality of water drawn, the lowerthe cost to treat the water for drinking.

However, if town and urban water users wish to benefit from improved water quality,they must also contribute to environmentalflows as well as with improving their wateruse efficiency.

Manufacturing industryManufacturing, especially in food products,is a growth industry in the Basin. It addsvalue to farm produce and creates jobs. It also relies on a secure supply of clean, fresh water.

Along with urban water users and irrigators,manufacturing industries will be expected touse best technologies to improve water useefficiency and reduce water use.

Tourism and recreationA healthy Murray that is safe for swimmingand boating and well-stocked with fish andbirdlife is beautiful to the senses. It willstimulate tourism and recreation along thelength of the river. This implies a balance insome communities between growing tourismand less water for irrigation, industry andurban use. Varying water levels to improveriver health may require a trade-off betweenthe environment and activities like boating.

Different parts of the riverEnvironmental flows tend to concentratetheir effect in particular stretches of the RiverMurray: a flood at one place does not alwaysmean a flood at another place downstream.

During floods, water spills over the banksand spreads out across forests andfloodplains, filling backwaters andbillabongs, creeks and anabranches. Some ofthis water will be absorbed by theenvironment and some will evaporate. Muchof it will gradually rejoin the river–often afterthe ‘front’ of the flood has passed. In thisway, the flood becomes smaller as it passesdown the river, but lasts longer.

The Barmah-Millewa Forest is an example ofthis process. Because the forest holds back itswater, it is hard to use environmental flowsfrom Hume Dam to improve flooding alongthe river below the forest. The best way towet downstream areas is by increasing RiverMurray flows with water from tributaries likethe Goulburn, Murrumbidgee and DarlingRivers and using water held in storages likeMenindee Lakes and Lake Victoria.

In building an approach for the whole RiverMurray, it may be better to focusenvironmental flows on significant sitesinitially, to ensure they are looked after. Thismeans using different tactics to achievespecific benefits in different parts of the river.It also means different environments mayhave to ‘take turns’ to be watered.

However, developing an environmental flowplan that cares for the whole of the riversystem, not just sections of it, is a centralissue for the community to consider.

If water is not recovered from existing uses,the extra water needed to maintain upstreamwetlands and floodplains will reduce the flowto the lower river and Murray Mouth, riskingdownstream environments and drinkingwater quality. If more water is provided,environmental benefits can be achieved alongthe entire river.

Photo: John Baker


DBC

)

A healthy River Murraywill stimulatetourism and

recreation alongthe River.


35

The river and its tributariesThe states are currently looking at theenvironmental flow needs of the tributariesindependently of the needs of the Murray. Yetall changes in flows out of the tributaries affectthe Murray itself to a greater or lesser degree,so it is vital to ensure that state and localdecisions also consider downstream needs.

It is important to remember that the volumesdiscussed in Chapter 7 are the amounts to bereturned to the River Murray, and not theamounts to be recovered from water users. Thetwo are often different due to losses in thesystem. This means that larger amounts ofwater may need to be recovered from waterusers in different areas to return the agreedamount to the River Murray.

It is also important to remember that muchof the water that once used to flow down theRiver Murray is now taken from tributaries,as well as from the Murray itself.

Water recovered from different locationsacross the Basin is subject to manyconsiderations and trade-offs. An issue thecommunity needs to consider is whether wecan recover water fairly from all the waterusers, regions and states that divert it and ifso, how.

Trade-offs between statesWater is diverted from the rivers of the Basinthrough a system of state licences. Each statehas a different water licensing system, anddifferent types of licences. The amount ofwater recovered may depend on where itcomes from, and the type of licence.

Given the complexity, it is possible that thebest result for the River Murray with theleast overall impact on water users may be toconcentrate impacts on only a few regions orcommunities. Other possible approachescould provide for a wider sharing of theimpacts between states and regions, but at anoverall greater cost to achieve an equivalentenvironmental benefit to the River Murray.

In deciding on environmental flows for the River Murray, the Ministerial Councilwill need to consider a range of options inorder to achieve an acceptable balance ofoverall costs, sharing of impacts andenvironmental benefits.

Sovereignty of the statesQuite apart from the necessary trade-offs tobe addressed in recovering any water for theenvironment, there is the matter of states'sovereignty over water. The Murray-DarlingBasin Agreement28 has the effect of modifyingthe exercise of the sovereign rights of thestates in their ownership of water. Bylegislative compact, NSW and Victoria agreeto share water equally at Albury, reserve theright to use their own tributary flows, andjointly commit to, as a minimumrequirement, meeting fixed entitlements toSouth Australia.

The Ministerial Council’s decision on theCap effectively limited any increase indiversions of water for use of tributary flowsby states and the use of River Murray Systemwaters, without changing the fundamentalwater sharing principles of the Agreement.These provide that the Murray-Darling BasinCommission, in exercising its powers ofcontrol over the waters of the Murray system,must ensure South Australia’s entitlementsand overall system reserves are met, and must meet the requirements of NSW andVictoria to be able to use the waters to which they are entitled.

Any decision to change adopted RiverMurray operating procedures, for example toreduce use to provide environmental benefits,must be taken in the context of theseprovisions of the Agreement. This wouldrequire the agreement of NSW and Victoriaon any proposal which had the effect ofchanging the volume or security of existingwater entitlements. Resolution of this issueand the associated economic and socialimplications will be a critical matter forMinisterial Council’s consideration.

How should water berecovered? One important issue is whether waterrecovery will be voluntary, compulsory orsome combination of the two. TheMinisterial Council seeks community viewson this.

28 The Murray-Darling Basin Agreement provides the foundation for the Murray-Darling Basin Initiative. It puts in place a process forthe effective management of the water, land and other environmental resources on a Basin-wide basis. The current version of theAgreement dates from 1992 (with later amendments) and sets out the powers of the Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council andMurray-Darling Basin Commission.

The tributariesmust play their

part inimproving thehealth of the

River Murray.


36

If it is decided to retrieve water forenvironmental flows compulsorily, thefollowing mechanisms are available:

• reduction of entitlements withoutcompensation;

• reduction of entitlements withcompensation (compulsory acquisition ofaccess rights); or

• targeted structural adjustment (closure ofuneconomic irrigation areas).

If voluntary retrieval is decided on, themechanisms could include:

• water efficiency savings by individuals;

• incentives to reduce water use; or

• government buy-back through the water market.

When environmental flows were establishedon the Snowy River, it was decided that inthis case, governments would pay for thewater acquired.

Any water recovery is bound to take placeover a number of years. This could takearound 10 years for smaller amounts (such as350 GL and 750 GL a year) and 15 years for larger amounts (1500 GL a year). Thiswould give water users and the market timeto adjust.

The Ministerial Council has made it clearthat it will develop approaches to waterrecovery that maximise benefits andminimise costs to water users.

The Cap, access rights towater and water trade

The CapThe Cap has been determined for NSW,Victoria and SA whilst it remains to be finallydetermined in Queensland and the ACT.

Complete implementation of the Capthroughout the Basin will guarantee securityto water users, and protect environmentalwater from growth in diversions.

Access rights and water tradeIn April 2002, the Council noted theimportance of establishing water tradingarrangements to best share the scarce waterresources of the Basin. It acknowledged thatthe effectiveness of such arrangements will

depend significantly on clear definition ofaccess rights of water users, often called waterproperty rights.

While the term ‘property rights’ is widelyused, it is not well defined. In commonusage people associate property withownership, whereas rights to water havehistorically been rights to access.

The states and territory of the Murray-DarlingBasin each have laws providing access rights towater, and allowing access rights to be altered.The laws in each State differ from one another,and some laws provide for compensation to bepaid under certain circumstances where accessrights might be altered.

• In NSW and Queensland, for example,access rights are guaranteed for up to 10years under their various arrangements,and changes within that period canattract compensation rights. They bothhave provisions for the Government tocompulsorily acquire rights, and to paycompensation for that acquisition.

• In Victoria access rights differsignificantly depending whether they areissued from an unregulated stream ordam under a stream flow managementplan, or whether they are part of a bulkentitlement owned by a Water Authority.Some access rights may be alteredwithout compensation at any time astream flow management plan is changed,or in order to meet the Murray-DarlingCap. Others may not be permanentlyaltered and would have to be boughtfrom their owner.

• In SA and the ACT access rights may bealtered without compensation when amanagement plan is changed or wherethere is a demonstrated environmental needto permanently reduce water use rights.

There is a need to clarify the nature of theBasin's many kinds of access rights to water,and to establish a way to relate differenttypes of rights. This is vital so that anyrecovery is on a fair basis and allows forefficient water trading.

The names of these rights vary, as does thesecurity of supply, the uptake of these rightsand the tenure of these rights. Examples are:

• New South Wales—‘high security’ andthe less secure ‘general security’ rights;

There is a needto clarify water

access rightsthroughout the

Basin.


37

• Victoria—‘water right’ and the less secure‘sales’ water;

• South Australia—‘high security waterentitlements’; and

• Queensland— ‘water allocations’.

The resolution of the question of accessrights to water is a major issue facing theMinisterial Council and Basin governments.

Developing a single access right for theBasin, while attractive, is probably lesspracticable than developing a single, unifiedsystem of access rights in which the rightsassociated with each of the many waterproducts in the Basin are clarified and clearlycommunicated. This clarification shouldclearly explain the process for:

• changing these rights—includingprovision for compensation; and

• conversion of these rights (e.g., tradingbetween different rights).

The advantages of a unified system of accessrights are:

• a common understanding of what itmeans to have a right to extract water inthe Murray-Darling Basin;

• more certainty about the nature of theright held and the provisions forcompensation if these rights are changedin a specified period;

• to support the development of anefficient and expanded water market inthe Murray-Darling Basin restricted onlyby the rivers’ geography; and

• improved effectiveness of water usethroughout the Basin.

In April 2002, the Council of AustralianGovernments (COAG) agreed to investigateopportunities and impediments to betterdefine and implement access rights to waterregimes throughout Australia. The Murray-Darling Basin Commission will use andbuild upon this work as it relates to its workon environmental flows.

The impact of waterrecovery Before any decision is made about recoveringwater for the environment, a clearunderstanding of costs and benefits, and ofcommunity attitudes and wishes is essential.

Work is planned to study the social andeconomic consequences of recovering waterfrom users. This will explore both the socialand economic effects of the three referencepoints: 350 GL, 750 GL and 1500 GL a yearon average.

Many issues and questions need to beresolved before the costs and benefits todifferent parts of the community are clear.These include things like how water is to berecovered, cost sharing arrangements, accessrights to water and structural adjustmentpackages. Some implications of waterrecovery are outlined below.

Your thoughts on these matters are centraland are sought during the communityengagement process (see Chapter 11).

The cost of doing nothing The consequences of doing nothing morethan we have already done for environmentalflows were considered by the Murray-DarlingBasin Commission's scientific advisers. Theyfound:

Doing nothing more than maintainingthe current Murray-Darling Basin Capon diversions, and maintaining currentriver operations, will lead to acontinuing decline in ecologicalcondition. If no further imposts on theriver system are allowed (i.e. noincreases to water abstraction, no moredams, no worsening of water quality, nomore exotic pests) then ecologicalcondition will stabilise at a level worsethan today within a few decades.29

Doing nothing is also costly. The continueddegradation of river health and water qualitywill cut into agricultural production,recreational activities, fishing, tourism,cultural and social values.

Costs and benefitsThe social, economic and cultural costs andbenefits of the three reference points chosenby the Ministerial Council as indicators forthe possible recovery of water for the RiverMurray (350 GL, 750 GL and 1500 GL ayear) will be thoroughly assessed betweennow and October 2003.

Our scientific advisers30 have assessed thelikely ecological outcomes of water recovery

29 Jones G. et al., 200230 Jones G. et al., 2002

We need to workout how the costsand benefits ofwater recovery

are to be sharedacross the

community.


38

and we have begun to investigate theeconomic and social implications. Asdescribed in Chapter 7, more work will becarried out in the coming year to make surewe understand the specific benefits and costsof the three reference points, so thecommunity can be involved in making thebest choices.

The aim of all these investigations is toensure any environmental measuresdeveloped yield the greatest benefits with theleast impact on water use. However, impactson particular parts of the community willvary, depending on how much water isrecovered, where from, how it is recovered(whether voluntary or compulsory), the wayaccess rights to water are clarified andwhether or not recompense is provided toaffected communities.

The Ministerial Council will need toconsider how an acceptable balance betweenthe overall costs, sharing of impacts andenvironmental benefits can be achieved.

Other costs and benefits and strategies tomanage the impacts will be developedthrough discussions with the community. If properly implemented, environmentalflows will be a positive investment in thelong-term future of the river and theprosperity of the communities it supports.

Who will pay?The answer to the question ‘who is going topay?’ for environmental flows will depend onresponses to this issue throughout thecommunity engagement process. Once themethods of water recovery and payment havebeen resolved, cost-sharing arrangements canbe developed between governments, waterusers and other sections of the community.

If governments are going to contribute, weneed to consider how the financialresponsibility should be shared amongstthem. It could be:

• shared equally;

• determined by the volume of water usedin each state/territory;

• determined by the location and extent ofenvironmental benefits in each state; or

• some other arrangement.

We also need to determine how the financialresponsibility will be shared between waterusers and the Australian community. TheMinisterial Council is keen to have yourviews on the case for and against variousways to recover water for environmentalflows, and how we can best achieve a healthyRiver Murray.

Photo: John Baker


39

One Basin, one riversystem, one environmentIt is important to recognise we are dealingwith one Basin, one river system, oneenvironment. Individual states and regionsare making good progress in protecting theirown rivers and catchments, but none ofthem look at the overall interactions betweenthe tributaries and the resulting impact onthe River Murray.

This environmental flows discussion isimportant to make sure that the RiverMurray is not overlooked in all the processessurrounding it.

Any water recovered for environmental flowsmust be looked after with one Basin, oneriver system, one environment in mind. Thiscould be done in a number of ways, such as:

• establishing an independent ‘bank’ forenvironmental water;

• through the Environmental Managerfunction within the Murray-DarlingBasin Commission; or

• managing the water through communitygroups such as the NSW MurrayWetlands Working Group.

The Council is keen to have your views onthe best way to ensure that environmentalflows are managed for the benefit of theRiver Murray.

Lifting our gameThe provision of water to the environmentneeds to be well-targeted so that it deliversthe maximum benefit, and maintains thedifferent natural habitats along the river. Inthe last decade a huge amount of knowledgehas been assembled on the environmentalneeds of the River Murray and its floodplain.As we continue to expand this knowledge,our ability to get ever-better ecological resultsfrom the flows and other actions willincrease.

It has been proposed that the 'environmentalwater' that has been used along the RiverMurray and its tributaries, and theenvironmental benefits achieved, be reported

annually. This report would also coverchanges to structures and otherenvironmental flow initiatives to increase ordecrease flows to wetlands, as well as anestimate of the water consumed or saved.

Using this information, the Murray-DarlingBasin Commission can study the cumulativeeffectiveness of environmental flows.

The Sustainable River Audit (SRA) beingdeveloped by the Murray-Darling BasinCommission will describe and monitor riverhealth and ecological condition for eachmajor river valley and will include indicatorslike hydrology, water quality, insects, fish andhabitat. Each state and territory is alsoundertaking improvements in its river healthmonitoring programs to reflect the specificrequirements of each catchment. Theseprograms will show whether the ecologicalcondition of our rivers is improving or not.

The precise environmental flow needs of theRiver Murray are not yet known. Howeverthere is plenty of evidence that the way wecurrently manage the rivers will cause theirhealth to deteriorate further. An annualenvironmental flow report, combined withthe SRA, will give vital feedback to guidefuture decisions in an adaptive managementframework (‘learning by doing’) and improvethe effectiveness of environmental flows inthe River Murray and the Murray-DarlingBasin as a whole.

Identifyingenvironmental waterAn essential task in managing environmentalflows is to know where the water is held,where it is going, how it is being used and—above all—what benefits we and ourenvironment gain from it.

Whether environmental water comes fromwater savings or from water users, clearguidelines will be developed on how andwhere the water is stored and the conditionsunder which it may be held, released orloaned to irrigators. These are being testedwith the environmental water for theBarmah-Millewa Forest. One possibility is toidentify environmental water, so we can

Chapter 9. Making it WorkWater for theenvironmentmust be well-

targetted to havethe best possible

effect.


40

protect it as it makes its way down theMurray, performing its variousenvironmental tasks.

Another possibility is to enableenvironmental water to be used by irrigatorsafter it has performed an environmental

function. This approach may reduce the costof retrieving water, and the impact onirrigators, particularly if the water is unlikelyto perform any real environmental functionfurther down the river.

Photo: Cooperative Research C

entre for Freshwater Ecology

If we donothing, river

health willinevitably

deteriorate.


41

If the community of the Murray-DarlingBasin develops and puts into action a planfor a healthy working River Murray, it will bethe first time such an undertaking has beensuccessful in one of the world's great rivercatchments. This will be something for allAustralians to take pride in–as they wereproud of the engineering feats of the SnowyMountains hydroelectric scheme half acentury ago, and the 1956 Melbourne and2000 Sydney Olympics.

This undertaking, combined with otherchanges taking place in society, will allowopportunities to flow–to lift irrigation to awhole new level of efficiency and sustainabilityand to revitalise communities with newindustries and modern technology. It can helpbuild new industries, jobs and skills across theBasin, bolster the community's prosperity,attract new residents and create a betterenvironment for our children.

The Basin community will need to besupported with new tools and skills to enablethem to adjust–new products and plantvarieties, new technologies, computing skillsand better export arrangements.

This chapter outlines a few of theopportunities to build a more prosperous,strong and sustainable community in theMurray-Darling Basin, building upon thechanges needed to create a healthy workingRiver Murray.

Knowledge exports The world is becoming desperately short offreshwater, arable land and trees. All countriesare seeking ways to produce more food fromless land and water, and to conserve theirenvironments. Answers to their needs couldcome from the people and sustainableindustries of the Murray-Darling Basin.

Our mining industry now earns $2 billion ayear in exports of knowledge about cleaner,more efficient ways to mine. Likewise, the

Basin could become a leading source ofadvice and technology for better ways tomanage land and water, plants and animals,for cleaner, greener ways to live and operateour industries. Creating a healthy workingriver offers an opportunity to turn ourknowledge about landcare, catchment andwater management, and sustainableproduction into a major export industry.

New industriesThere are many opportunities for newindustries in a more sustainable Basin. Someexamples follow.

Global demand for new flavours and spices isbooming–and Australia, in its native plants,has many unfamiliar and exotic products.Scientists, farmers, Aboriginal people andsupermarkets are already working to build anative foods industry which, like flowers orwine, can bolster farm income while helpingto save water.

The CSIRO says that our saline groundwatercontains valuable minerals and industrialchemicals as well as common salt. Extractingthese will not only save Australia hundreds of millions of dollars in industrial imports, itwill also help pay for the fight against salinity.

Advances in smart food technology arecreating new ways to add value to many ofour traditional products before they leave theBasin, so retaining the value and jobs close tohome. This means we can make moremoney for a given amount of water.

Farm livestock once produced mostly meat,milk or wool. They are now being used toproduce high-value pharmaceuticals andindustrial chemicals–yielding higher returnsfrom the water used to grow them and theirfeed. Aquaculture in both salt andfreshwater is expanding as wild fish stocksdwindle and prices rise.

Chapter 10. New Horizonsand Opportunities

Change alsobrings

opportunity fornew industries,

jobs andachievements.


42

Photo: John Baker


43

The decisionsThe Ministerial Council is asking for theadvice of the community about howgovernments should respond to the issue ofenvironmental flows for the River Murray.

There are three main decisions to be made:

• Do we, as a community, wish to recoverwater for the environment and othervalues of the River Murray?

• If so, how should we recover water?

• If we recover water, how do we fairlyshare the costs and benefits across thecommunity and nation?

Any decision (including one to do nothing)will affect the environment, the economy,communities and individuals. It is not justabout how much (if any) water we recover,but about the trade-offs we are willing tomake between the different values we holdfor the River Murray.

How will a decision be made?The Ministerial Council, in consultationwith its governments and having listened towhat the community has to say, intends toconsider this issue at its meeting in October2003.

The Council recognises this is a veryimportant and complex matter and wants thecommunity closely involved. This will allowcommunity values, knowledge andaspirations to be combined with scientificand technical knowledge in the search for thebest options.

A Community Reference Panel has workedwith the Commission throughout thedevelopment of this discussion, providing arange of community viewpoints. Itsmembers come from across the Basin, frommany industries, interests and perspectives.Also, the Community Advisory Committeeof the Ministerial Council (CAC) willcontinue to provide advice on the processand issues associated with environmentalflows.

An Independent Community EngagementPanel (ICEP) has been chosen to help

effective discussion to take place. Thesecitizens are there to help the community getthe information it needs to discuss the issues,and make sure that its views and informationare taken into account in any decisions made.

Independent CommunityEngagement Panel (ICEP)Pam Robinson, Chair

Graeme Kelleher

George Warne

Website: www.thelivingmurray.mdbc.gov.au/icep

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 1800 687 044

Facsimile: 02 6248 8053

Mail address: The Living Murray, GPO Box 409, Canberra ACT 2601

Community engagement will be carried outin three stages. Each of the stages will feedinto the decision-making process includingthe Ministerial Council meeting in October2003, when the Council will consider theissue of environmental flows. The threestages are shown in the flow chart on page 45.

Chapter 11. Over to You The MinisterialCouncil is

asking for thecommunity'sadvice and

ideas onenvironmental

flows.

Photo: John Baker


44

Stage 1: Inform and engage–Julyto December 2002During Stage 1 the Murray-Darling BasinCommission will work to inform thecommunity of the work and knowledge thathas led to the recognition of the need for theAustralian community to consider what itwants for the future of the River Murray.Community engagement in this Stage willalso enable the community to inform theMurray-Darling Basin Commission of itsknowledge, values, aspirations, issues,information needs and concerns.

During Stage 1 the environmental, social andeconomic implications of each of the threewater recovery reference points (350 GL, 750GL and 1 500 GL a year) will be exploredwith local communities and the broaderAustralian community. The direction of thisongoing work will be guided by theknowledge gained from communities as wellas the outcomes it produces.

The focus in Stage 1 will be on thosecommunities and sectors most likely to bedirectly affected by any decision aboutrecovery of water for the environment.

An Issues Log will be created as a central‘noticeboard’ for community views andinformation, so it can be fed into thediscussion and decision-making process. TheLog will be updated regularly and will bepublicly accessible on the web, in locallibraries and local papers. The communitycan check the Log to see what issues havebeen raised and by whom, what informationwe have on these issues and what work isbeing done to provide answers.

The initial discussions from this stage willfeed into the next Council meeting, inNovember 2002. A progress report oncommunity engagement will be provided tothe Ministerial Council at this time and theresponse of Council will set a framework forfurther discussions and investigations.

Stage 2: Propose–April toOctober 2003Stage 2 will commence in April 2003, afterfurther information and analysis has beenmade available. This will include a seconddocument on environmental flows which willclearly set out the costs and benefits of thethree reference points (350 GL, 750 GL and1 500 GL a year) so that the balances can bemore easily weighed up.

During this stage, community andgovernment agencies will work together to:

• evaluate the benefits and impacts of thethree reference points;

• seek views on a preferred way forward toaddress local and system-wide issues;

• establish what's needed to manage andkeep track of the social, cultural,economic and environmental impacts ofany decision;

• inform the Ministerial Council meetingof October 2003.

There will continue to be a high focus oncommunities throughout the Basin, but itwill also include the wider Australiancommunity. Any decisions made aboutrecovery of water are also likely to come at aneconomic cost–and this cost needs to beshared in a way acceptable to the Australiancommunity.

Stage 3: Implement–afterOctober 2003Stage 3 will commence after the October2003 Ministerial Council meeting whereCouncil will consider the outcomes of theengagement process and therecommendations brought before it by theMurray-Darling Basin Commission. Duringthis stage the details of and timeframes forthe implementation of Council decisions willbe negotiated with the community.

The focus inStage 1 will be

on thosecommunities

and sectors mostlikely to be

directly affectedby any decisionabout recoveryof water for theenvironment.


45

Community EngagementEnvironmental Flows and Water Quality Objectives for the River Murray

Opportunities for community input

STEPSSTAGE

Stage 1:Inform &Engage

Stage 2:Propose

Stage 3:Implement

- inform community of the work and knowledge that has ledto the recognition of the need for the Australian communityto consider what it wants for the future of the River Murray;

- inform Murray-Darling Basin Commission of thecommunity’s knowledge, values, aspirations, issues,information needs and concerns;

- provide progress report on community engagement toMinisterial Council meeting in November 2002 and set aframework for further discussions and investigations.

Community and government agencies will work together to:- provide a comprehensive analysis for the provision of

water to the River Murray using three reference points (350 GL, 750 GL and 1 500 GL a year);

- evaluate the benefits and impacts of the three referencepoints;

- seek views on a preferred way forward to address localand system-wide issues;

- establish what’s needed to manage and keep track of thesocial, cultural, economic and environmental impacts ofany decision;

- inform the Ministerial Council meeting of October 2003.

-- negotiate details of and timeframes for the implementationof Council decisions.

2002

July

August

September

October

November

December

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

2003

2003 October Ministerial Council Meeting- will consider the outcomes of the engagement

process and the recommendations brought before it by the Murray-Darling Basin Commission.

ContactsWebsite: www.thelivingmurray.mdbc.gov.auEmail: [email protected]: 1800 687 044Facsimilie: 02 6248 8053Mail Address: The Living Murray, GPO Box 409, Canberra ACT 2601

November 2003–

Onwards

consolidation period toprepare the documentation necessaryto inform Stage 2


46

Who is involved? All Australians have interests in the RiverMurray and the Murray-Darling Basin. Akey part of the decision making process is tobalance the interests of those living in localcommunities with what may be seen as thenational interests, and try to ensure there isfairness and equity in the result.

Community engagement is an opportunityfor all interests to be heard. It is essential forthose communities and individuals likely tobe most affected to be able to participatedirectly. It is also important to includepeople who may not normally have a chanceto contribute their knowledge, values andaspirations such as Indigenous communitiesand young people.

How can I be involved? Anyone wishing to be a part of thiscommunity discussion can:

• attend community forums, workshopsand information sessions to be heldacross the Basin and in nearbycommunities (further information onthese sessions is available from thecontacts shown);

• send written submissions to theMinisterial Council (at the addressshown);

• ask Murray-Darling Basin Commissionstaff and the Independent CommunityEngagement Panel (ICEP) to come anddiscuss the issues with local groups orcommunities;

• contribute to public debate on ourwebsite:www.thelivingmurray.mdbc.gov.au (allcomments received will be publishedhere);

• take part in special tele-conferences withscientists, government representatives andcommunity leaders; and/or

• contribute to public discussion throughthe media.

All comments received, including writtensubmissions, will be made available on ourwebsite unless you ask us not to.

For further information on the issue, look onThe Living Murray website or contact theMurray-Darling Basin Commission at theaddress below.

ContactsWebsite: www.thelivingmurray.mdbc.gov.au

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 1800 687 044

Facsimile: 02 6248 8053

Mail address: The Living Murray, GPO Box 409, Canberra ACT 2601

Photo: Andrew

Tatnell

Any interestedAustralian canbe involved inthe discussion.


47

Adaptive management – a management approach based upon ‘learning by doing’.

Anabranch – a secondary river channel that usually runs parallel to the main channel, andwhich flows only during flood conditions.

Basin – the total water catchment area of the rivers of the Murray-Darling.

Catchment – the area of land drained by a river and its tributaries.

Community engagement – a plan for public discussion and debate about the future healthof the River Murray and its tributaries.

Cap – the volume of water that would have been diverted under 1993-94 levels ofdevelopment. In unregulated rivers this Cap may be expressed as an end-of-valley flow regime.This is the way it has been applied, with small variations, in NSW, Victoria and SouthAustralia which combined account for 94 per cent of the Basin's diverted water. Queenslandand the ACT take a total of 6 per cent, and their Cap and the way it is determined has notyet been finalised.

Diversions – the removal and use of water from a river.

Ecosystem – communities of life forms and their physical environment which interact.

Environmental flow –any river flow pattern provided with the intention of maintaining orimproving river health.

GL (‘gigalitre’) – 1 billion litres (1000 million litres), the amount of water in 1 000Olympic-sized swimming pools; the total average run-off in the Murray-Darling Basin isapproximately 24 300 GL a year.

Groundwater – underground water, either flowing or still.

Healthy working river - a healthy working river is one that is managed to provide asustainable compromise, agreed to by the community, between the condition of the river andthe level of human use.

Habitat – a type of environment in which particular animals or plants live and grow.

Hydrology – the study of water flows.

ICEP – the Independent Community Engagement Panel, a group of three independentindividuals appointed to facilitate and help inform community discussion of this issue.

Integrated catchment management – a process which enables people to act together tomanage the natural resources of their catchment.

Median – the value in the middle of a set of values that are ranked from lowest to highest.

ML (‘megalitre’) – 1 million litres, the amount of water in one Olympic-sized swimmingpool.

Murray-Darling Basin Agreement – the Murray-Darling Basin Agreement provides thefoundation for the Murray-Darling Basin Initiative. It puts in place a process for the effectivemanagement of the water, land and other environmental resources on a Basin-wide basis. Thecurrent version of the Agreement dates from 1992 (with later amendments) and sets out thepowers of the Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council and Murray-Darling BasinCommission.

Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council – (the ‘Ministerial Council’) consists of theministers responsible for land, water and environmental resources in each of theCommonwealth, New South Wales, South Australia, Victoria, Queensland and AustralianCapital Territory Governments.

MW (‘megawatt’) – a unit of electric power.

Profit at full-equity – the amount of farm profit generated assuming there are no debts topay off. It provides an indication of the underlying profitability of different landscapes andindustries.

Glossary


48

Regulation – the control of the natural flow of a river using (e.g.) dams and weirs.

Salinity – the concentration of salt in soil or water.

Sustainability – managing our natural resources in a way that maintains their environmental,economic, social and cultural values so that they continue to be available in the long-term.

Tributary – creek or river flowing into a larger river.

Wetland – land flooded with temporary or permanent water, and the community of plantsand animals that lives in it.


49

Barmah-Millewa Forum 2001. Report on Barmah-Millewa Forest Flood of Spring 2000 and theSecond Use of Barmah-Millewa Forest Environmental Water allocation, Spring Summer2000/2001. Canberra.

Close A. F., 2002. Options for Reducing the Risk of Closure of the River Murray Mouth. MDBCTechnical Report 2002/2. February.

Crabb P., 1997. Murray-Darling Basin Resources. MDBC.

Department of Water Land and Biodiversity Conservation (South Australia), 2002. ‘MurrayMouth Perspectives’. [Extract from paper ‘Ngarrindjeri Culture’].

Hallows P.J. and Thompson D.G., undated. The History of Irrigation in Australia. AustralianNational Committee on Irrigation and Drainage, Mildura.

Independent Audit Group, 2002. Review of Cap Implementation 2000/01. Report of theIndependent Audit Group–Including Responses of Five State and Territory Governments.Report to the Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council, March.

Jensen A., Good M., Tucker P. and Long M., 2000. River Murray Barrages EnvironmentalFlows. Report to Murray-Darling Basin Commission, Canberra, ACT. Wetlands ManagementProgram, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Adelaide, South Australia,June.

Jones G. and Cartwright S., 2002. Future Visions for the River Murray: A Pictorial Companionto the Independent Report of the Expert Reference Panel on Environmental Flows and WaterQuality Requirements for the River Murray System. Cooperative Research Centre for FreshwaterEcology. Report to the Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council, February.

Jones G., Hillman T., Kingsford R., McMahon T., Walker K., Arthington A., Whittington J.and Cartwright S., 2002. Independent Report of the Expert Reference Panel on EnvironmentalFlows and Water Quality Requirements for the River Murray System. Cooperative ResearchCentre for Freshwater Ecology. Report to the Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council,February.

Jones R., Whetton P., Walsh K. and Page C., 2001. Future Impact of Climate Variability,Climate Change and Land Use Change on Water Resources in the Murray-Darling Basin.Overview and Draft Program of Research. CSIRO Atmospheric Research, September.

Murray-Darling Basin Commission, 2002. Environmental Flows for the River Murray - Reporton the Development of Options. Report to the Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial CouncilMeeting 31–12 April 2002.

Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council, 1999. Salinity Audit - Community Summary.

Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council, 2001. Integrated Catchment Management in theMurray-Darling Basin 2001–2010. June.

Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council, 2002. Draft Native Fish Strategy for the Murray-Darling Basin 2002–2012. March.

Murray Water Entitlement Committee (Victoria), 1997. Sharing the Murray. October.

Nancarrow B.E., and Syme G.J., 2001. River Murray Environmental Flows and Water QualityProject Stakeholder Profiling Study. Australian Research Centre for Water in Society, CSIROLand and Water, August.

References


50

Norris R.H., Liston P., Davies N., Dyer F., Linke S., Prosser I., Young B., 2001. Snapshot ofthe Murray-Darling Basin River Condition. Report to the Murray-Darling Basin Commission,September.

SEQRWQMS., 1999. South-East Queensland Regional Water Quality Management Strategy.Developed by the South-East Queensland Regional Water Quality Management Strategy.

Thoms M. C., Suter P., Roberts J., Koehn J., Jones G., Hillman T. and Close A., 2000.Report of the River Murray Scientific Panel on Environmental Flows: River Murray - Dartmouthto Wellington and the Lower Darling River, River Murray. Scientific Panel on EnvironmentalFlows, Murray-Darling Basin Commission, Canberra, June.

Walker D.J., 2002. The Behaviour and Future of the River Murray Mouth. Centre for AppliedModelling in Water Engineering, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, TheUniversity of Adelaide. February (revised May).

Whittington J., Coysh J., Davies P., Dyer F., Gawne B., Lawrence I., Liston P., Norris R.,Robinson W., Thoms M., 2001. Development of a Framework for the Sustainable Rivers Audit.A Report to the Murray-Darling Basin Commission. Cooperative Research Centre forFreshwater Ecology. Technical Report No. 8/2001.


51

The Living Murray

Feedback FormPlease provide your feedback by 1 October 2002 to allow it to be included in the informationprovided to the Ministerial Council meeting one month later.

What further information would you like?

How would you prefer to receive information?

Would you like to be involved in the ongoing process for discussing and deciding aboutenvironmental flows? Yes/No

If yes, how would you like to be involved?

Which of the following reaches of the River Murray System do you have a particularinterest in?

❏ Upper reaches to Albury/Wodonga

❏ Albury/Wodonga to Echuca

❏ Echuca to SA Border

❏ SA Border to Waikerie

❏ Waikerie to river mouth

❏ Lower Darling and Great Anabranch of the Darling River

❏ The whole River Murray System

OR❏ The whole Murray-Darling Basin

❏ Darling River above Menindee Lakes

The document raises a number of issues and questions that we need to consider (see page 3). Are there other issues you think should be considered? If yes, what are the issues?

Your contact details To receive further information please complete the following:

Name:

Address:

Phone: Email (if available)

Please send your completed form by 1 October 2002 to:

The Living Murray, GPO Box 409, Canberra ACT 2601Fax: 02 6248 8053Email: [email protected]


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MURRAY-DARLING BASIN MINISTERIAL COUNCIL The Living … · natural (pre-development) flow • population: 2 million • annual economic output: $23 billion a year • agricultural

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