The NSW Government has announced the start of new environmental flows for the Hawkesbury-Nepean River following the completion of a $39 million upgrade to dams and weirs across the system.
NSW Minister for Water, Phil Costa said the new environmental flows were a major investment in one of Sydney’s most important river systems and a key part of the NSW Government’s Metropolitan Water Plan to secure water for people and the environment.
“Overall the new environmental flow rules will see a tenfold increase in the amount of water released to restore the health of one of Sydney’s most iconic waterways,“ Minister Costa said.
To find out more read the NSW Government media release.
A new CSIRO report has been released that will help ensure the delivery of maximum ecological benefits from water allocations in the Murray-Darling Basin. Funded by the National Water Commission, the report; Ecological Outcomes of Flow Regimes in the Murray-Darling Basin, provides information that will assist water managers to improve and justify delivery of environmental water to ‘icon sites’, including wetlands of international significance such as the Macquarie Marshes, Gwydir Wetlands and Narran Lakes. To find out more click here.
Tags: CSIRO, Ecological, Environmental flows, Environmental water, Flow Inundation Model, Flow regimes, Gwydir, Macquarie Marshes, Murray-Darling Basin, Research, Science
News | Siwan Lovett | 
21 June 2010 12:05 pm | 
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One researcher argues that in order to turn around environmental degradation in the Murray-Darling basin, we need to change how we think about the fundamental relationships between people and planet.
We just don’t all come from Adam and Eve. We come from the simple dirt that we walk upon. And out spirits, and our Baiame, our makers, it’s all interconnected there. And people don’t even show respect, you know, for that. If our river and environment is dying, then I believe that we as a people are also dying.
These are the words of Lee Joachim, an Indigenous man of the Yorta Yorta people from Barmah, Victoria. His is one of many voices telling a similar story – the Murray River is dying. It is this all too common and tragic imagery that Dr Jessica Weir came across time and again while researching for her PhD in the Fenner School of Environment and Society at ANU.
Read more about Dr Jessica Weir’s research in James Giggacher’s article in ANU News.
To explore the Yarra River is to delve into Melbourne’s history. Iconic Melbourne events such as John Landy attempting to run the four-minute mile during the 1956 Olympics or anarchist Chummy Fleming speaking at Birrarung Marr occurred on the banks of the 240km-long river.
Former agriculturist Ron Amor, of East Ivanhoe, attempts to document the river’s vast history in his new book, Exploring the Yarra.
Read more about Exploring the Yarra in this Melbourne Leader article.
The Smart Farms projects (NutrientSmart Farms and WaterSmart Farms) are working with landholders in the lower Hawkesbury Nepean region to improve nutrient management and water use efficiency.
See the latest Smart Farms newsletter for these feature articles:
- NutrientSmart Farms on target early
- Grants for River Water Irrigators
- Case study: Microbes to Manage Dairy Effluent Ponds
- Grants for Land Management Projects: BIG or small!
The Smart Farms projects are part of the Hawkesbury Nepean River Recovery Program which aims to improve river health by making more water available for environmental flows and reducing nutrient inputs to the river system. The Hawkesbury-Nepean River Recovery Program is funded by the Australian Government through the Water for the Future program.
