Government hasn’t given up on Basin plan says Minister
"I’ve been very clear that my government does not support buybacks. This is not an empty promise – I have already demonstrated that I am taking action by releasing the NSW Alternatives to Buybacks Plan in February that clearly shows how we plan to minimise the exposure of regional communities to water buybacks": NSW Minister for Water, Rose Jackson.
Fun in the sun with record catches at Moulamein fishing comp
393 fish were caught during the Moulamein Football Netball Club’s annual fishing competition. ... This year's event saw entrants become citizen scientists, forming a partnership with Dr Nathan Miles from NSW Fisheries at Narrandera to record vital fish data to monitor fish numbers between the Balpool Bridge and 19-mile reserve on the Edward River at Moulamein.
NSW Nature Conservation Council v NSW Water and Environment Ministers discontinued
In relation to the discontinuation of the case brought by the Nature Conservation Council (NCC) of New South Wales (NSW) against the NSW Water Minister and NSW Environment Minister in 2021 to challenge the validity of the Border Rivers Water Sharing Plan, media releases have been issued by the Ministers and the NCC.
The power and accountability in the Murray Darling Basin: Agribusiness Australia
Restoring our Rivers Bill debated at Agribusiness Australia event. The profound implications of the Commonwealth’s Restoring Our Rivers Bill was unpacked in a wide-ranging discussion about the Murray Darling Basin Plan at an Agribusiness Australia event in Melbourne last week in front of nearly 150 guests.
Tintaldra whopper landed
A leisurely fishing trip with some mates from Jeremal Bridge to Tintaldra on Saturday became very memorable when Josh Boers landed this 93cm Murray cod, much to the envy of his fellow anglers.
One man, a tinnie and the mighty Murray
There’s a magic that comes from the tranquil flowing waters of the mighty Murray. As the river snakes from the mountains across the floodplains and finishes in the estuary, Dennis Miles of Yarrawonga has been observing the beauty, the challenges and the love expressed by people on the river.
Dalton fishes for river quality
Member for Murray Helen Dalton says carp are a threat to the Murray Darling Basin that has been ignored by the NSW Government ... “This week's release of the government's Alternatives to Buybacks Plan completely ignores one of the greatest environmental threats to our river systems - invasive and destructive Carp,” Mrs Dalton said.
Recent fish deaths reignite management frustration – Part 2
For six generations, the Lunghusen family have farmed on Gunbower Creek. The recent fish deaths have Jason Lunghusen questioning the current management of the creek and how much say the community actually has in these top-down government-run projects.
Water options offer hope for farmers: NSW Farmers Association
The state’s peak farming group says the NSW Alternatives to Buybacks Plan clearly puts the onus on the Albanese Government to avoid ruinous water buybacks. The scrapping of important legislative protections – designed to ensure towns and businesses would not be killed off as a result of buybacks under the Murray-Darling Basin Plan...
Recent fish deaths reignite management frustration
A recent fish kill in Gunbower Creek has reignited frustrations over managing the waterways ... “The fish kill in January two weeks ago, that was because of the record January rains, farmers had to drain water into the creek and the creek was stagnant because no irrigation took place,” said Jason Lunghusen.
Water buyback framework fails
There is not much Wakool mixed farmer John Lolicato doesn’t know about water ... The recent release of the Restoring our Rivers draft framework has once again left him shaking his head ... John said this buyback is disastrous for the region environmentally, economically and socially.
Weir update
Mark Coulton, speaking to ABC Broken Hill on Monday, said he understood that due to Covid, a flood, etc there had been some unavoidable delays to the new Wilcannia Weir. However he is now at a loss as to why, at 5 minutes to midnight, the NSW government has changed the design of the weir.
Murray–Darling Basin Authority communique, February 2024
The Authority met with the Hon Tanya Plibersek Minister for the Environment and Water, to discuss Basin issues. The Authority noted the Minister’s announcement of 30 January 2024 launching new programs to deliver the Basin Plan in full. Members were further briefed by representatives of the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water.
Fact finding trip proves South Australia’s lower lakes are “fake lakes”
NSW farmers and politicians have been lied to about the state of South Australia’s Lower Lakes, with Independent Member for Murray, Helen Dalton, calling on NSW Premier Chris Minns to visit the area immediately. "We have all been conned and it must stop," Ms Dalton said.
Labor’s naïve support for mass buybacks sends government bureaucrats scrambling: Centofanti
The government agency tasked with looking after the interests of the state’s primary production has undertaken no modelling to understand the possible impact mass water buybacks will have on the South Australian agricultural production, it can be revealed … Dr Nicola Centofanti, said she is appalled with the Malinauskas Labor Government’s “talk first, think later” approach towards the River Murray.
Pygs are flying – thanks to team effort
Things are looking up for yet another threatened small-bodied native fish in the region, with the state and federal government agencies’ rescue plan bearing fruit. The Murray-Darling lineage of the southern pygmy perch was once common in the wetlands and slow flowing creeks of the Basin.
Mildura Weir named best maintained and managed asset along River Murray: MDBA
The 2023 JS Collings Trophy for excellence in maintaining major water management infrastructure on the River Murray has been awarded to Mildura Weir by the Murray–Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) ... "Mildura Weir comprises 24 steel trestles, each weighing approximately 11 tonnes, that can be winched from the river to allow maintenance, or to allow the safe passage of flood waters": MDBA’s Executive Director River Management, Andrew Reynolds.
Where have all the mussels gone?
Margrit Beemster. Research has been conducted in the Yallakool Creek and upper Wakool River near Deniliquin to find an easier way to detect adult freshwater mussels and to better understand why mussels are no longer as plentiful as they once were.
The jury’s in: Fresh lakes a death sentence for Murray-Darling Basin
Goolwa South Australian resident, Ken Jury, sees a better way forward for the basin and believes that governments are risking the viability of the whole basin. Ken, an investigative journalist with a passion for marine and aquatic ecology ... is an expert on the South Australian Lower Lakes and Coorong ...
Community advocates tour with Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder
Currently, 4,622 gigalitres of entitlements is held by government as environmental water, and Australia’s largest irrigator, Dr Simon Banks, Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder, was joined by Central Murray Environmental Floodplain Group, community representatives and Paul Madden OAM of Arbuthnot Sawmills for a tour of local farms and forests. John Toll farms at Gunbower ...
Basin book aims to educate
A new book about the rivers and wetlands of the Murray-Darling Basin includes information about the Upper Murray and is now on its way to thousands of primary schools across Australia. Commissioned by the Jane Goodall Institute in London and Sydney, the book was written by the Petaurus Education Group in Albury-Wodonga.
Leeton’s SunRice named top agricultural exporter
The SunRice group, with headquarters in Leeton, has won the Agribusiness, Food and Beverages Award at the 61st annual Australian Export Awards at Parliament House. The top prize was presented to CEO Paul Serra by the Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade)… The decision by the Federal Government department to recognise SunRice came just days before the Federal Senate passed a controversial new bill giving the government increased powers to buy back water from irrigators.
