Environmental watering: Victoria Murray River catchment
Watering sitesThe sites were selected by the Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder (CEWH) based on proposals put forward by jurisdictions and after receiving advice from the Environmental Water Scientific Advisory Committee.
Victoria will manage the watering at each of the sites, undertake monitoring of the ecological responses and provide the information to the Commonwealth.
Lindsay Island
Lindsay Island
Photo: M. Mohell
| Source | Volume (ML) |
|---|---|
| Commonwealth | 1,000 |
| State | 1,000 |
| Total | 2,000 |
Lindsay Island, on the Victorian and South Australian border, is part of an icon site of The Living Murray program. It contains large areas of River Red Gum, Black Box woodland and diverse wetland habitats.
The drought and reduced River Murray flows have resulted in the decline in ecological health and the death of mature River Red Gums. The remaining River Red Gums and understorey vegetation are threatened by depletion of soil moisture and underlying saline groundwater, jeopardising habitats for a diverse range of waterbirds, fish, frogs and turtles. The environmental water allocated was directed to a number of small creeks and billabongs on Lindsay Island.
See also: Environmental watering at Lindsay Island - video
Hattah Lakes
Hattah Lakes
Photo: H. Conkey
| Source | Volume (ML) | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Autumn 2009 | ||
| Commonwealth | 2,124 | June 2009 |
| State | 1,700 | June 2009 |
| TLM | 1,000 | June 2009 |
| Autumn total | 4,825 | |
| Spring 2009 | ||
| Commonwealth | 3,100 | November 2009 |
| State | 1,100 | September 2009 |
| State | 2,100 | November 2009 |
| Spring total | 6,200 | |
| TOTAL | 11,025 | |
Hattah Lakes in north-west Victoria is an internationally significant wetland, listed under the Ramsar Convention. It is also an icon site of The Living Murray (TLM) program and is listed on the Directory of Important Wetlands in Australia (DIWA). The site consists of highly stressed River Red Gum communities. Water allocated at this site aimed to avoid irretrievable loss of the iconic River Red Gums and provide drought refuge for species including the Regent Parrot, which is listed as vulnerable under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act).
The Commonwealth allocated 2,124 ML (megalitres, i.e. million litres) of water to Hattah Lakes in June 2009 in collaboration with the Victorian Government (1,700 ML) and The Living Murray program (1,000 ML).
To build on the watering undertaken in autumn, the Australian Government has allocated 3,100 ML of Commonwealth water to fill two lakes (Yerang and Mournpall) in the northern section of Hattah Lakes. The Victorian Government is also contributing 2,100 ML to this watering event. This follows 1,000 ML delivered by the Victorian Government in September to offset reduction in levels of the lakes watered during autumn, which has ensured the lake system is primed for the deliveries in November 2009.
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