Letting rivers flow

We want rivers to be flowing from their source to the sea, supporting a diversity of plant and animal life and enabling the continuation of culture for Traditional Owners. We want healthy rivers that support healthy communities across the Basin, providing clean water, abundant fish and beautiful places to swim and enjoy the outdoors.

The problem

Sadly, rivers in the Murray-Darling Basin aren’t healthy and sometimes they don’t flow at all. We’re seeing algal blooms, large fish kill events, poor water quality and large stretches of rivers running dry. Communities in some areas can’t swim in the river as the water is too toxic. This is happening because too much water is being taken from the system, leaving rivers with too little water, and sometimes none at all.

Irrigators are able to pump even when flows are very low, and floodplain harvesting diverts vast volumes of important overland flows and rainfall before they even reach the river. Infrastructure in the rivers such as weirs and road crossings also prevent flows and create barriers to the movement of native fish species. Some of the infrastructure in the river is no longer in use but remains in place, creating environmental problems.

The evidence is clear: reduced connectivity of rivers along their length is contributing to fish kills and having severe impacts on ecosystem and cultural health, and downstream communities. Returning water to the environment has helped where it has actually been delivered, but the reality is that not enough water has been returned. Changes are needed to ensure the available water is used as effectively as possible.

The solution

Maintaining connectivity along the length of rivers—by ensuring they continue to flow and by removing barriers to fish passage—is essential for restoring river health and enabling native fish species to move between habitats.

We can do this by implementing flow targets that mean water cannot be taken from the river unless downstream flow thresholds have been met. We could introduce a system for licensing infrastructure in rivers, making sure it has been upgraded to allow fish passage and minimise impacts, or requiring its removal where it is no longer necessary. In addition, we could reduce floodplain harvesting volumes so that more of these important overland flows make it into rivers.