Murray-Darling Basin Commission – May 2004 E-letter No 30

Welcome to the Murray-Darling Basin monthly e-letter with reports of happenings across the Basin. 

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In this issue:

The Murray-Darling Basin Commission (MDBC) has publicly released the Native Fish Strategy 2003 – 2013 (NFS) and will now provide feedback to the communities who made valuable contributions during its six-month consultation phase. 

The Strategy is a working document that will guide the management, protection and rehabilitation of native fish populations and their habitats within the Murray-Darling Basin for the next 10 years.

Its main aim is to "rehabilitate native fish populations in the Murray-Darling Basin back to 60 percent of their estimated pre-European levels after 50 years of implementation".

According to MDBC NFS Officer Anthony Chariton, members of the MDBC and representatives from the NFS Community Stakeholder Group and State fisheries agencies will visit northwest NSW and Queensland to hold public meetings early May to discuss some of the current projects within the Strategy as well as some future plans. 

"We will discuss the "Sea to Hume" fish passage project designed to allow fish to move freely from the Murray Mouth to the Hume Dam near Albury," Mr Chariton said.

"In addition, we will explain how the NFS projects will significantly reduce carp populations throughout the Basin, in particular the exciting prospects and innovative science behind the "Daughterless Carp" project," he said. 

The meetings planned so far are at:

For more informatio n on the meetings: contact Anthony Chariton, 02 62790155 or fish.project@mdbc.gov.au

For media inquiries contact: Allison Hicks on 02 62790129, email: allison.hicks@mdbc.gov.au
 

Lake Mulwala Management Plan to be finalised this year
A plan to sustainably manage Lake Mulwala for the benefit of all users would be finalised this year, according to River Murray Water General Manager David Dreverman.

He said a recent series of meetings between authorities, key groups and organisations had resulted in an important step forward for the Lake Mulwala Management Plan.

The meetings - held in late March - included Parks Victoria, Waterways NSW, the Boating Industry Association of Victoria, Lake Mulwala Community Action Group, Mulwala Water Ski Club, Moira Tourism, Yarrawonga-Mulwala Tourism and the Moira and Corowa Councils.

The meetings, conducted during an extension to the original consultation period, clarified community concerns set out in submissions on an earlier draft plan.

The final Plan will set up a collaborative approach for the future management of the lake and its resources.

"The Plan will propose that a community reference group be established to advise management agencies who will be implementing the Plan," Mr Dreverman said.

Formed by the Yarrawonga Weir, Lake Mulwala was created to regulate water for irrigation. It is also a valuable tourism and recreation asset for sailing, water skiing and fishing. 

For more information contact:

David Dreverman, General Manager, River Murray Water on 02 6279 0100.

For media inquiries contact: Allison Hicks, MDBC Communication Unit, 
Phone: (02) 62790129 BH
 
 

‘ Landmark Update’ looks at sustainablity
The latest issue of "Landmark Update" focuses on the Upper Billabong Creek pilot region in NSW, sustainability indicators and the application of the Current Recommended Practices.

The MDBC’s Landmark program aims to identify the need for land use and land management change and explores policy responses which might facilitate change in broadacre dryland regions in the Murray-Darling Basin". 

With phase 2 of Landmark research drawing to a close, "Landmark Update" reports that several research reports will be published soon.

These include:

For more information go to the Landmark website at www.mdbc.gov.au/landmark
 

Boosting farm profitability and lifestyle
Better natural resource management can boost agricultural profitability and improve farmers’ lifestyles – particularly by shortening their working hours 

That’s the main conclusion of a forum held at Dubbo in March to highlight the lessons learned from two major projects supported by the Murray-Darling Basin Commission.

The two projects are the NSW Central West TARGET Project and NSW Liverpool Plains Project. These are both major land use change projects funded under the Natural Heritage Trust’s Murray-Darling 2001 Program and the NSW Salinity Program. 

Both projects are now coming to a conclusion and the forum was designed to present some of the major findings to landholders. 

NSW DIPNR staff in Orange are compiling a CD of the forum presentations and reports from the TARGET projects. Information from the Liverpool Plains Project also will be available soon. 

For further information contact Fiona Lynn at the Murray-Darling Basin Commission at fiona.lynn@mdbc.gov.au
 

First Indigenous Basin Gathering attracts 30 nations
The Murray-Darling Basin Commission’s first ever "Our Water, Our Land, Our Life, Indigenous Basin Wide Gathering" at Old Parliament House on May 19^-21 has attracted representatives from 30 nations.

The MDBC has organised the event as part of its the Murray-Darling Basin Indigenous Action Plan which aims to establish meaningful partnerships between Indigenous peoples within the Basin. 

The Plan will be built on a framework that recognizes the cultural diversity of Indigenous peoples within the Basin and the need for self-representation by Indigenous Nations, in natural resource management forums.

The Basin Wide Gathering will allow each part of the Indigenous Action Plan to gain the informed consent of Indigenous people. 

It will facilitate the establishment of an agreed set of principles, processes and actions between Indigenous peoples and the MDBC on the way forward for the final phase of the MDB Indigenous Action Plan.

For further information contact Karen Demmery on 6279 0124 or karen.demmery@mdbc.gov.au or the MDBC’s Integrated Catchment Management unit on 6279 0100.

Indigenous festival features Basin artists, writers & performers
The annual three-week festival of contemporary Indigenous arts – "Message Sticks" – this year will focus on the work of Indigenous artists and performers who have a relationship with the rivers and outback towns of the Murray-Darling Basin.

The festival opens at the Sydney Opera House on Sorry Day, Wednesday 26 May.

Organisers say the venue will "light up under the powerful and illuminating talents of Indigenous Australian artists in a feast of theatre, art exhibitions, music, forums and film."

Artists will be featured from all over the enormous Basin area which covers most of South-Eastern Australia, including parts of Queensland, New South Wales, the ACT, Victoria and South Australia. 

Highlights of the festival include:

"Sydney Opera House is proud to be working with Indigenous artists in the spirit of Reconciliation. We invite everyone to come to the House to experience the variety of events during this rich contemporary arts festival." 

Message Sticks is produced by the Sydney Opera House with individual program elements developed in collaboration with Indigenous advisors and curators. 

For more information or bookings phone (02) 9250 7111 or visit www.sydneyoperahouse.com

For Media inquiries and images contact: Emma Heath on (02) 9571 5621, mobile: 0413 768 588, email: ehprm@ozemail.com.au
   

Yarrawonga Weir access road closes temporarily
River Murray Water and Goulburn-Murray Water announced the temporary closure of the access road across Yarrawonga Weir to all traffic for about four weeks from 24 April for essential maintenance works. 

The weir access road needs to be closed to allow large crane access and rigging work for a major refurbishment of parts of the weir flood gates.

However, the pedestrian walkway on the structure will remain open for pedestrians and cyclists during this period.

River Murray Water and Goulburn-Murray Water apologise for any inconvenience the works may cause.

For further details contact Goulburn-Murray Water’s Yarrawonga office on (03) 5744 3137.

For media inquiries contact David Jeffery, Murray Headworks Manager, Goulburn-Murray Water, on (02) 6049 8251
 
 

Students, teachers urged to join environment MDBC conferences
Students and teachers have been urged to register for two MDBC supported State-wide environmental conferences to be held in New South Wales and Queensland.

The conferences, which aim to promote and encourage community involvement in the future health of our rivers, are:

They lead on from the highly successful International River Health Conference for Youth held in Mildura Victoria every two years and which has twice been a finalist in the Eureka Prize Australian Science Awards, winner of the State Landcare Award and finalist in the 2004 Banksia Awards. 

The objective of the conference is to work within the school curricula and to assist teachers promote environmental management. However, some schools encourage drama, maths and history students to take part in the conference. That is not just about science and the environment, it can be a whole school experience. 

If you are a student from year 5 to 11, you can present at the Conference by visiting the "How to Present a Workshop" page at the conference website.

If you are an environmentally aware organisation or business who would like to get involved, you can sponsor a school to attend the Conferences. By helping a school with travel and registration costs your logo will be displayed on the website. 

You can help promote the Conferences by listing the event on your website or covering the Conferences in your newsletter. We are also inviting any interested media to attend the events. 

Both events will be covered by Channel Sevens Saturday Disney. Saturday Disney presenters will also be the celebrity MCs for each event. 

For more information or to register visit the website at www.riverhealth.com

New MDBC tool measures water trading impact on salinity
The Murray-Darling Basin Commission has developed a new computer modeling system to measure the effects of new irrigation development due to water trading on River Murray salinity levels.

The main purpose of SIMRAT – which stands for Salinity IMpacts Rapid Assessment Tool - is to allow the MDBC to calculate downstream environmental and economic salinity impacts due to new irrigation in the Mallee Zone. 

SIMRAT calculates the increase in groundwater discharge to the River Floodplain, due to changes in recharge below new irrigation development. It then combines this with measured groundwater salinities to calculate changes to salt inflows to the floodplain and river. Other models then convert this information to salinity level changes in the River Murray at Morgan and economic costs to downstream water users.

The assessed salinity impacts will then be used to adjust the Commission’s Salinity Register, established to track State Salinity Accountability under Schedule C of the Murray-Darling Basin Agreement.

The development of SIMRAT goes back to November 1997 when the Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council approved a Pilot Interstate Water Trading Project. SIMRAT will now allow consistent assessment of the salinity impacts from new irrigation development due to water trade in the pilot interstate trading area which incorporates the tri State Mallee Zone of South Australia, Victoria and NSW.

SIMRAT incorporates a GIS spatial assessment component and has been developed for the MDBC by a team of consultants including URS, AWE and SKM in partnership with the South Australian Department of Environment and Heritage. Training in the use of SIMRAT for State Agency staff involved in water trading is planned for coming months.

For more information contact Matt Kendall, Salinity Manager, MDBC on 02 6279 0100

Natural Resource Management Ministerial Council
Federal and state government ministers from across Australia met in Adelaide in April to exchange ideas on regional natural resource management, especially implementation of the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality and the Natural Heritage Trust. 

Attending the sixth meeting of the Natural Resource Management Ministerial Council, they also had their second annual meeting with the Natural Resource Management Community Forum.

The Forum is made up of representatives from regional natural resource management bodies, Indigenous representatives and representatives from peak national natural resource management-related organisations such as the Australian Landcare Council. 

They discussed issues including regional planning and governance, investment, developing effective partnerships, facilitator support, the role of local government and administrative efficiency. 

They asked the Forum for detailed advice on how to move forward on these key issues 

For more information and a complete copy of the communiqué they issued at the end of the meeting go to www.affa.gov.au/ministers/truss/releases/04/nrmmc604.html
 

Australia's first online water market?
A South Australian company will launch a new website on May 5 which it hopes will make water trading faster, cheaper and easier.

Marketing director of Waterfind.com.au Frank Grasso recently told ABC Radio his website would allow irrigators to negotiate a price for water online and would create a new era for water trading across the country.

At present traders rely on independent water brokers or privately organised sales to buy and sell. 

"So what it does, it enables buyers and sellers to negotiate with one another and agree on a price, then the system automatically generates contracts which are specific to that particular sale," Mr Grasso told the ABC. 

"And once the contracts are signed we actually collect the money manually. We work out the trading rules. We can work out whether you can sell temporary and permanent water to other regions, inter or intrastate" 

The same company plans to set up a water charity in July, allowing the public to buy water for environmental flows.

For more information visit the website at www.waterfind.com.au/home.html
 

Entries wanted for limnology ‘early career excellence awards’
The Australian Society for Limnology is calling for nominations to its Early Career Excellence Award.

Limnology is the study of inland waters including rivers, creeks, billabongs, ponds, pools, swamps, lakes, salt-lakes and other wetlands.

The awards reward and encourage "early career" limnologists who have contributed substantially to Australian limnology and/or aquatic ecosystem management. 

"Early career" is defined broadly as less than 10 years of involvement in a limnological career, and could be judged as beginning with postgraduate work in limnology or membership of the society.

Nominations may only be made by financial members of the Society and will hold for up to three years after nomination. The nomination must be in writing, confidential, and must be seconded by a financial member of the Society. 

Nominations must address the relevant selection criteria and a current copy of the nominee’s CV should be included to support the case.

Each nomination will be assessed by a committee chaired by the President of the Society. An award is not necessarily made each year. 

For more information visit the website at www.asl.org.au/asl_early_career_excellence_awards.htm
 
 

Irrigation Australia conference faces challenges of the future
The 7 ^th Irrigation Australia Conference and Exhibition to be held in Adelaide 11 - 13 May will highlight the major issues surrounding the irrigation industry in Australia.

With the theme "Irrigation coming of Age" organisers say it will reflect the future challenges and developments facing the industry and commemorates the Irrigation Association of Australia’s 21st anniversary.

The conference will focus on providing practical solutions to irrigation issues across urban and rural sectors.

The event includes expert speakers such as Professor Peter Cullen of the Wentworth Group who will lead a panel in a public forum on the future of irrigation. 

The panel will include George Warne, CEO of Murray Irrigation; International Speaker Tom Gohring, Deputy Director, California Bay-Delta Authority and the Honourable Rory McEwan, Minister for Agriculture in South Australia. 

Organisers say Irrigation Australia 2004 will also see the biggest Irrigation Exhibition to hit Adelaide with more than 350 brands on display about 111 exhibitors from Austria, USA, Italy, France, Israel, China,

India, Saudi Arabia, Spain, New Zealand and Australia

There are also daily workshops for Irrigators, resellers and specifiers on:

Dry conditions persist along River Murray
Very dry catchment conditions are persisting, with only very light rain along the River Murray, with little or no effect on streamflows, according to River Murray Water’s weekly report in late April.

The latest Bureau of Meteorology outlook for rainfall for the southern part of the Basin for the three month period May to July 2004 indicates a neutral outlook with almost an equal chance of either wet or dry conditions.

Hume storage can be expected to fall to low levels in coming weeks, the report said.

Release from Yarrawonga Weir was further reduced from 6 000 to 5 500 ML/day in response to reduced demand. 

Storage in Lake Victoria continued to be drawn down to help meet flow requirements for South Australia and to conserve water in the upper Murray storages for all three States’ next irrigation season.

The recent salinity spike which emanated from the lower Darling River is continuing to slowly move along the River Murray, but with diminishing impact. 

The initial peak arising from the spike reached Lock 3 at a level of about 420 EC on 21 April - significantly less than expected from preliminary forecasts made in March. 

For information read the complete report and updates at www.mdbc.gov.au/river_murray/river_info/weekly_report/archive/weekly_report_index.html
 

Carrots, sticks, toolkits – what works in environmental law?
Carrots, Sticks and Toolkits – that’s the theme for Queensland Environmental Law Association’s annual conference to be held at Cairns on 12-14 May.

Organisers say that traditional regulatory regimes in the planning and environment area have generally applied a carrot and stick approach to compliance and achieving desired results. 

But over the last 10 years the desire has increasingly been to find other more innovative ways of achieving better outcomes across a range of areas.

The conference will examine what has been innovative and what has not and what has been successful and what has not.

Conference sessions will also cover: 

For more information visit the QELA Conference website: www.qela.com.au/annualconference2004.shtml