Murray River

The Albanese Government is delivering over 100 times more additional environmental water in one term than the previous Liberal National Government delivered in a decade. This is a huge win for South Australia.

Farmer hopes for water security have been buoyed by new changes to water sharing plans for six NSW rivers. NSW Farmers Water Taskforce Chair Richard Bootle said the revised wetland maps released by the state government this week were a sign of positive progress for many farmers, who were concerned land and water would be unfairly locked away by new water sharing plans.

A phenomenal weekend was enjoyed by a whopping 400 competitors. Plenty of fish caught over the weekend and it was hard work with the weather conditions ... There were incredibly impressive prizes on offer, thanks to a lot of highly generous sponsors.

The Murray–Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) will hold its fifth annual water conference 29 and 30 July in the city of Murray Bridge in regional South Australia. MDBA Chief Executive Andrew McConville said it was the first time River Reflections would be held in this part of the southern Basin where community interests and water management challenges differed to those further upstream.

The second annual Lake Meran Festival was held last Sunday afternoon with hundreds of visitors coming along to enjoy the music, community, a great afternoon by the lake and to take a look at the star of the event, Grumpy the Turtle. Weighing in at almost one tonne, Grumpy was designed and built by Bendigo artist Moz Moresi ...

Madison Eastmond ... being carried out in the Hills and Fleurieu, Limestone Coast and Northern, and Yorke as a multi-region intuitive, the TURTLE Project is a collaborative effort of landscape boards, First Nations, citizen scientists, NGOs, councils and landholders to gather information to guide the protection of freshwater turtles across South Australia.

Current flow is 1,120 ML/day with a level of exactly one metre. (It was running at 15,259 ML/day in January.) The salt level is at 309 uS/cm which is still OK for gardens. Both filtered and raw water are being sourced from the river.

When South Australians were trying to turn their estuary into a freshwater dam in the 1940’s, the Mulloway natural migration was devastated. Now, Australia’s only freshwater estuary hangs like a noose around the neck of the Murray Darling Basin, consuming huge volumes of freshwater to raise an artificial lake height for yachting, and an attempt to dilute the Southern Ocean, under the fundamentally flawed Murray Darling Basin Plan.

Legal action taken by MLDRIN, a Confederation of First Nations from the southern half of the Murray-Darling Basin, has led to the Federal Environment and Water Minister Tanya Plibersek conceding she made a mistake in accrediting the NSW Fractured Rock Water Resource Plan.

"A healthy working forest where native species can flourish, and where local communities can connect and co-manage the forest for future generations" ... Over the past few months, various locations within the KP Forest have been sampled for native and exotic fish abundance and biomass, as part of the annual monitoring program. This sampling has involved a combination of fyke netting...

The NSW Government has been urged to show its commitment to regional NSW by backing a feasibility study into a community-supported water-saving project. Narrandera resident David Farley, who has spent time abroad developing water management strategies that support both the environment and agriculture, is calling on NSW Water Minister Rose Jackson to back a $1 million feasibility study for the Lake Coolah project.

Madison Eastmond. The Riverland Food & Wine Festival is back to take over the Berri riverfront this March, with the revamped event preparing to showcase the best local produce, wine, and entertainment. With a focus on local wine and cuisine, sustainability, and safety, the classic event has been reimagined for the Riverland community since it was last held in the region six years ago.

Madison Eastmond. The Department for Environment and Water (DEW) have collaborated with First Peoples of the River Murray and Mallee Region (FPRMMR) to develop a field guide on the plants and cultural significance of Riverland floodplains.

First Nations environmental lobbying group Murray Lower Darling River Indigenous Nations (MLDRIN) is in the Federal Court today to challenge the decision by Minister Plibersek to accredit the NSW Fractured Rock Water Resource Plan (WRP) ... “We repeatedly advised the MDBA that the Fractured Rock Water Resource Plan should not be recommended for accreditation," Brendan Kennedy, Chair, MLDRIN, Tati Tati Nation member, said.

Roy Butler, Member for Barwon, tells us he visited a place run by Oceans2Earth. They make a product called Soil Enhancer. They mix fish waste and wood together to make a fertiliser. The man behind this is Tim Crane, originally from Wilcannia.

Murrumbidgee Irrigation (MI) is looking forward to kicking off the Urban Channel Pipeline Project this year, which will provide a range of benefits to the communities of Griffith and Leeton ... The project is designed to replace inefficient aging channels around Griffith and Leeton with 47.5 kilometres of new pipeline.

Hugh Schuitemaker. SAPOL last weekend issued a warning for locals and visitors to the Riverland regarding river safety, ahead of the Dash 4 Cash and Dinghy Derby events that were held in Renmark. The warning came following a number of recent incidents on the Murray River, including the hospitalisation of a swimmer who was struck by a boat, near Mannum, on 28 January.

It isn’t often that you see flamingos, unicorns or even paddle pops floating down the Murray River, but every year on the Australia Day long weekend at Koondrook and Barham you will see that and more.