Murray-Darling Basin Commission – August 2005, E-letter No 45

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

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(See also The Living Murray website at http://www.thelivingmurray.mdbc.gov.au )

In this issue:

• National MDBA Conference to focus on ownership of water
• Moama community updated on latest Living Murray info
• First channel-filling diversions of irrigation season begin
• 2005 MDBC Adelaide Youth River Conference a success
• More water released from Dartmouth for electricity
• Minor drawdown of Torrumbarry Weir
• Waterwatch partners meet in Mudgee
• Workshops to focus on native vegetation rehabilitation
• Coffs Harbour workshop on translocation of threatened plants
• Free conference studies ‘Community and Catchments' research
• NWC pushes for better national water accounting
• Study to explore impacts of Loddon Campaspe water trading
• Forests, wood and livelihoods – finding a future for all
• Applications open for Primary Industries graduate scho lars hip

National MDBA Conference to focus on ownership of water

The conference theme and program will explore the current topic of water ownership and the likely impact of the proposed separation of water and land titles across the Murray-Darling Basin .

The NSW Minister for Local Government and Minister for Rural Affairs, the Hon Tony Kelly, MLC will open the conference and Murray-Darling Basin Commission President Rt Hon Ian Sinclair AC and Chief Executive Dr Wendy Craik will be keynote speakers.

Other speakers and their themes include:

• Cr Brian Grogan - National President, Murray Darling Association (How the Murray Darling Association is working to improve the linkages within the Basin?);
• Mr Peter Sutherland- Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources (Water Reform in New South Wales );
• Mr Ross Krebs - Director Of Planning, Department of Natural Resources and Planning (The Queensland Murray Darling)
• Mr Bruce McCollum - Chief Executive Officer, Border Rivers Food And Fibre (The Darling Initiative)
• Mr Ralph Leutton- Policy Manager, Cotton Australia (The Cotton industry in Australia - What Impact ?) and
• Mr Doug Miell- Chief Executive, NSW Irrigator's Council (One Goal - Striking the Balance)

The Association is a non-government organisation that transcends state boundaries and represents the views, aspirations and concerns of a large number of people living in the Murray-Darling Basin .

For information on the event contact the Murray Darling Association on (08) 8226 0582, email: event@mda.asn.au or visit the website at www.mda.asn.au

For registration and accommodation contact Dubbo City Tourism on (02) 6884 1422, email: tourism@dubbo.nsw.gov.au or visit their website at www.dubbotourism.com.au

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Moama community updated on latest Living Murray info

The Forum was conducted by the Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council's Community Advisory Committee, Murray- Darling Basin Commission (MDBC) and NSW and Victorian State Government natural resource managers

One of a series of meetings being held along the River Murray, the Moama forum presented information on:

• The Living Murray Business Plan;
• The Living Murray significant ecological assets individual management plans for Gunbower Koondrook-Perricoota Forest and Barmah-Millewa Forest ;
• The role of the MDB Ministerial Councils' Community Advisory Committee and other key organisations in implementing the plan.

“The MDB Ministerial Council approved the Living Murray Business Plan in 2004. It details how the Council's Living Murray First Step Decision will be implemented,” Dr Craik said.

Similar forums have also been held in Mildura, Renmark and Murray Bridge with further functions proposed to be held around each of the significant ecological assets in the future. These will cover similar information about the Living Murray Business Plan.

For more information on The Living Murray go to: www.thelivingmurray.mdbc.gov.au

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First channel-filling diversions of irrigation season begin

Diversions from the Torrumbarry Weir pool to the National Channel are also scheduled.

In addition, NSW State Water began gradually refilling Stevens Weir Pool on the Edward River in late July.

South Area Customer Service Manager, Lindsay Beck said the gradual refilling of the weir pool would be increased by about 30cm a day, to a level that would meet current requirements.

The refilling of the weir pool was expected to take about ten days and river users would need to take into account expected changes to river conditions in the next few weeks when planning their activities

State Water would also start refilling the Wakool River system, Yallakool, and Colligen Creeks via their offtake regulators, when the water level in the Stevens Weir pool had reached targeted levels, Mr Beck said.

For more information contact Suzie Gaynor 02 6841 2006 or 0428 613 478

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2005 MDBC Adelaide Youth River Conference a success

This was the State-wide version of the International River Health Conference, Australia 's only environmental event “for kids and by kids.”

Another conference will take place in Wagga Wagga on 18 August and in early 2006 conferences are planned for Canberra and Bendigo (opportunities exist for sponsors).

In Adelaide , 29 South Australian Schools cooperated in 18 presentations at the conference, which conference founder and convener Aaron Wood said provided students with “hands on, student-centred learning to bring about a cultural change in the way we perceive our natural environment”

He said the event also helped raise awareness of the importance of environment education, and the value of the “Kids Teaching Kids” model of education.

“Students again have come away from the event with skills in acting on their concerns for the environment, more knowledge about environmental issues and how other communities are dealing with those concerns.

“But more importantly, it builds students who are more resilient and optimistic, have a sense of future, are capable public speakers and can communicate ideas in many different forms,” he said.

Mr Woods said it was a great boost this year to have popular Channel Seven show “Saturday Disney” visit Adelaide to cover the event. A presenter on the show, Sara Groen, was the celebrity MC and another Seven identity, Ben Hewett of Big Arvo fame, also took part.

“They will develop a story which will become part of a show based on the environment and what can be done to help. The story will go to air later this year and the television national coverage will be a big win for Adelaide , surrounding regions and businesses relying on our natural resources,” he said.

The Conference, was supported by the Murray-Darling Basin Commission, the Department of Education and Children's Services, the Natural Heritage Trust, the Murray Darling Association, Savings and Loans Credit Union, SA Water and the River Murray Water Catchment Management Board.

For more information contact Arron Wood, on (03) 9329 3736, email arron@fire-starter.com.au or visit the website at www.riverhealth.com

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More water released from Dartmouth for electricity

Combined with local inflows, the flow at Tallandoon increased to about 2 000 ML/day (or 1.83 m gauge height).

In a recent weekly bulletin, River Murray Water General Manager Mr David Dreverman, said the duration of these higher releases would depend on electricity demand in the near future and runoff from further rainfall.

He said renewed inflows to the River Murray from the Kiewa and Ovens Rivers were enough to meet downstream demands, and accordingly the release from Hume Reservoir remained steady at the minimum flow of 600 ML/day.

The release from Hume has been restricted to the minimum flow since the middle of June, enabling inflow to the reservoir to be captured and stored for the coming water supply season.

In late July, the storage in Hume increased by a further 84 GL, to 1 129 GL (or 37% capacity), which is about 800 GL more than at the same time last season.

Flows from the heavy rainfall in northern NSW earlier in July were slowly progressing downstream in the Darling Catchment. The flow in the Barwon River at Brewarrina peaked on 18 July at about 17 000 ML/day.

Further downstream, the flow in the Darling River at Bourke was close to 14 000 ML/day and was expected to peak near this level.

For more information call David Dreverman on (02) 2679 0100 or check the latest River Murray Water weekly report at www.mdbc.gov.au/river_murray/river_info/river_info.html

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Minor drawdown of Torrumbarry Weir

River Murray Water General Manager David Dreverman said the level would be maintained at this lower level until early August to enable an inspection of the river banks for erosion upstream of the Torrumbarry Weir.

“Recent rain has increased flows in this reach of the River Murray and, as a result, the effect of the drawdown on river levels upstream of Torrumbarry Weir at Echuca is likely to be minor,” Mr Dreverman said.

“River boat operators have advised that the operation of river boats and houseboats in the vicinity of Echuca is expected to continue as normal”.

“Depending on river flow conditions at the time, the water level is expected to be lowered by about 20-25 cm at the Deep Creek Marina, while at the Echuca wharf the water level is expected to be similar to, or slightly lower than, the current level of about 86.4 m AHD. The levels may be higher than this if there is further heavy rain and runoff” Mr Dreverman said.

“River pumpers, boat operators and other river users upstream of Torrumbarry Weir are advised to take these changed water levels into account and make any necessary adjustments in response to the lower weir pool level,” he said.

For more information call David Dreverman on (02) 2679 0100 or check the latest River Murray Water weekly report at www.mdbc.gov.au/river_murray/river_info/river_info.html

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Waterwatch partners meet in Mudgee

Organised by the Central West Catchment Management Authority the event included discussions between the Waterwatch partners - Sydney Water, Sydney Catchment Authority, Hunter Central Rivers Catchment Management Authority and the Central West CMA.

The Waterwatch NSW Program promotes water quality as a tool to involve the community in land and water management at the local catchment level. The program fosters the involvement of the community in water quality monitoring and aims to increase awareness through the provision of a number of activities that promote healthy rivers and productive waterways.

Within the Cudgegong catchment, the Waterwatch Program participants include a number of local schools, the TAFE College , Landcare groups and the Mid Western Council.

The Central West Waterwatch Program, Regional Facilitator, Beryl Newman said, “It is important for organisations to understand water quality issues facing the Central West catchment especially in non urbanised areas.”

The Central West CMA is a proud sponsor of the Waterwatch Program that promotes the value of water and encourages effective water use practices.

“The Waterwatch Program highlights the value of our water and how it is a whole of community responsibility. This program supports our CW CMA mission, to help the community conserve, restore, and manage natural and cultural resources ” said Ms Newman.

For more information contact Lynne Hawkes (02) 6393 4310, mobile 0428 600 701

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Workshops to focus on native vegetation rehabilitation

Organised by the Australian Network for Plant Conservation, the workshops will focus on the knowledge and skills required to undertake ecological rehabilitation and management of disturbed native vegetation.

The workshops are aimed at anyone involved in native vegetation rehabilitation and management, such as local Councils, State government agencies, utilities providers (eg power, water), managers of stock reserves, road or rail easements, NRM/biodiversity staff, CMA staff, industry, environmental consultants, Landcare and other community groups, private landholders and other land managers and decision makers.

Themes of the workshops include:

• NSW vegetation legislation essential for rehabilitation practitioners and projects;
• The ecological principles essential to planning a rehabilitation project;
• Applying the principles to actual rehabilitation projects (case studies, workshop activity, site visits, techniques); and
• Understanding the task (the goal for the site, planning, consultation needed, issues such as conservation genetics, provenance, the role of soil symbionts, monitoring and ongoing management);

The Dubbo workshop will be held on 25-26 October at the Western Plains Zoo. Registration is not yet open but expressions of interest welcome.

For more information, Workshop flyers, programs, fees & registration forms are on the ANPC website http://www.anbg.gov.au/anpc/course1.html Or contact the ANPC National Office Phone: 02-6250 9509; 6250 9523; Fax: 02-6250 9528; email: anpc@anbg.gov.au

National conference: the Australian Network for Plant Conservation and the South Australian Department for Environment and Heritage will hold a national conference on “ Plant Conservation - the Challenges of Change” 26 September to 1 October.

To be held at Adelaide 's National Wine Centre, the conference will appeal to anyone involved in plant conservation and native vegetation rehabilitation, from on-ground practitioners to researchers and policy makers.

Themes include: extreme policy changes, urban ecology, using revegetation to achieve ecological outcomes, indigenous interests in conservation. Workshops will have a practical focus, with the final day being a special workshop on the translocation of threatened plants.

For more information contact the ANPC National Office Phone: 02-6250 9509; 6250 9523; Fax: 02-6250 9528; email: anpc@anbg.gov.au

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Coffs Harbour workshop on translocation of threatened plants

The one-day workshop on 30 August is aimed at anyone involved in the planning, approval or implementation of translocation projects for threatened flora.

Organisers say the workshop is particularly relevant for environmental consultants and local government staff involved in the development approval process.

The presenters include translocation experts who were involved in developing the revised Guidelines for the Translocation of Threatened Plants in Australia (ANPC, 2004). There will also be local experts presenting local case studies, highlighting lessons to be learnt.

For further information , visit the ANPC website http://www.anbg.gov.au/anpc and click on ‘Courses & Workshops'

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Free conference studies ‘Community and Catchments' research

The conference will be held on Thursday, 18 August at Charles Sturt University 's Wagga Wagga campus.

Organisers say the conference wil present some of the important issues facing rural communities and catchments, including sustainability, the use of resources, social development, landcare, water and vegetation reform and environmental policy.

More than a dozen presenters including Professor Margaret Alston, Associate-Professor Ian Gray and Dr Catherine Allan will present papers on a range of topics such as:

• implementing regional scale adaptive management;
• understanding the why and how of community engagement ;
• what is social capital and is it really important? ;
• improving governance arrangements for regional catchment management; and
• evaluating catchments scale programs and projects.

The event is being run prior to the 5th NSW Landcare/Catchment Management Forum and will appeal to regional land managers, conservation planners, community members, landholders and others interested in community conservation and natural resource management. Attendance is free and includes lunch.

For more details and to register visit the conference website: www.csu.edu.au/research/crsr/ccconf_flyer.htm or contact Jonathon Howard on (02) 60519685

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NWC pushes for better national water accounting

‘Providing a national framework for measuring, monitoring and reporting water use is fundamental to improving public confidence in water availability and management,' Chairman Ken Matthews said. ‘This is one of the pil lars of the National Water Initiative.

‘It was the focus of our recent discussions with 40 leaders and experts from all States and Territories, industry and environmental groups and science bodies at the National Water Resource Accounting Workshop.

‘There's no doubt of the conclusion that we're dealing with a huge and complex resource here and that we need to develop some common standards for collecting and reporting information on its status.'

Other issues considered by the Commission at its fourth meeting included an update on governments' implementation plans under the National Water Initiative. The Commission is currently reviewing these plans.

For more information visit the NWC site at www.nwc.gov.au or contact Kim Ulrick, Manager NWC Communications

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Study to explore impacts of Loddon Campaspe water trading

Victoria 's North Central Catchment Management Authority is in the process of appointing social researchers to undertake the study, which aims to increase understanding of the drivers influencing permanent water trade and how these may be influencing the social well-being of rural communities.

The research project, which is funded through the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality, will involve conducting case studies of four channel systems across the Loddon Campaspe irrigation region.

The researchers will investigate the relationship between the decisions made by landholders relating to whether or not they chose to permanently sell their water entitlements and how these decisions impact upon their sense of personal identity, their sense of locality, their social interaction within their community, and their involvement in the social institutions of their community.

"This research project is designed to fill a gap that exists in our current knowledge concerning these important issues", said North Central CMA Project Manager, Barry Hancock.

For more information , contact North Central CMA Project Manager Barry Hancock on (03) 5448 7124 on Sandra Volk on (03) 5440 1816, mobile 0408 349 675.

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Forests, wood and livelihoods – finding a future for all

The Minister for Foreign Affairs, the Hon Alexander Downer will open the event at Parliament House in Canberra on 16 August.

A key speaker will be the Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation Senator Ian Macdonald.

Organisers say the conference this year will aim to get beyond the emotion and polarisation usually associated with forestry sustainability issues.

The ATSE Crawford Fund is a non-profit non-government organisation dedicated to raising awareness of the links between food, environment, and the world's poor.

The Fund's mission is to increase Australians' engagement in international agricultural research, development and education for the benefit of developing countries and Australia .

A media release says, “The world's forests have key roles in providing primary wood products and related goods and services, and for millions of people, both rich and poor, they also provide spiritual, cultural and recreational benefits.

“Rarely does a week go by without heated debate in Australia and overseas about the management and maintenance of forests.

“Worldwide, our forests and woodlands face escalating pressures to provide products and services essential for human life. The debate is an emotive one that tends to polarise audiences.”

Some of the international and national speakers include:

• Dr David Kaimowitz, Director General, Center for International Forestry Research, Bogor , Indonesia
• Mrs Angela Cropper, President, The Cropper Foundation , Trinidad and Tobago
• Dr Dennis Garrity, Director General, World Agroforestry Centre, Nairobi , Kenya
• Professor Peter Kanowski, Professor of Forestry and Head of the Australian National University 's School of Resources , Environment and Society
• Dr Peter Moore, Member of FAO Fire Management Specialists Group; and Fire Management Specialist for IUCN, The World Conservation Union and WWF, the World Wide Fund for Nature
• Dr Hosny El-Lakany, Assistant Director-General, FAO (Forestry)
• Ms Emma Leslie, International Forestry Students' Association

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Applications open for Primary Industries graduate scho lars hip

PIIC is a joint venture partnership between the NSW Department of Primary Industries and the University of New England to boost primary industries research, extension and training outcomes with a special focus on the New England North West Region of NSW.

The PIIC scho lars hip is for post-graduate training in any of the following PIIC program areas:

• Improving economic outcomes for producers and communities;
• Integrating natural resource management and production improvement;
• Introducing and supporting the next generation of primary producers;
• Reducing the impact of transaction costs on sustainable production;
• Improving the risk profile of primary production.

Applications close 31 August 2005 .

Applicants should be Australian citizens or permanent residents who are eligible to enrol for PhD candidature at the University of New England .

Applicants should have a background relevant to any one of the program themes outlined above.

For more information contact Dr Bob Martin, Director, Primary Industries Innovation Centre, 4 Marsden Park Road, Calala NSW 2340 Fax 02 6763 1222 Email bob.martin@dpi.nsw.gov.au

ends