# data[].attributes.body
The Darling-Murray Basin is located in Southeastern Australia and connects 3 of Australia's longest rivers (The Darling, The Murray, and the Murrumbidgee) together. It also covers 4 states and contains 25,000 wetlands, of which 16 are recognized as being of international importance. In addition, the basin homes many floodplains, which contain unique ecosystems such as the Barmah–Millewa Forest.

Photo Source: https:https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2020-12-15/murray-darling-basin-plan-evaluation-report-2020-released/12982530

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
A major review of the $13 billion Murray-Darling Basin Plan has highlighted the progress made in recovering water for the environment while addressing some major challenges posed by climate change.

The latest basin plan review highlights the challenge posed by climate change

The MDBA says more time is needed for important water-saving projects to be completed

Authority officials acknowledge engagement with communities and First Nations peoples has been poor

The 2020 basin plan evaluation drew on a number of key reports into the plan's operation and said while it was working as intended, the coming years represented the most difficult aspects of its implementation and would be compounded by declining inflows.

"Australians should be proud of this effort," Murray-Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) chief executive Phillip Glyde said.

Murray Darling Basin Authority head, Phillip Glyde says 2,100 gigalitres of water had been recovered for the environment so far.

To date, the plan has recovered 20 per cent of the water used by farmers before 2012, representing 2,100 gigalitres of water for the environment.

But modelling undertaken by the CSIRO has highlighted the extent a warming climate would continue to impact the basin.

"Currently, we plan for every dry year to occur one in 10 years," MDBA executive director of strategy and knowledge Vicki Woodburn said.

"Under the scenario the CSIRO thinks is the most likely, this will [now] be one in five years."

Hard work ahead

Much of the remaining water recovery under the plan comes in the form of engineering works to use water more efficiently and projects designed to allow larger flows through the system - known as supply and constraints projects.

The full vision of the basin plan can not be achieved until constraints along the river are lifted to allow larger amounts of water to flow through the system.

The 2024 deadline for their completion is written into the basin plan, however there are three projects in Victoria and nine in New South Wales that are at serious risk of not meeting that deadline.

Key among them is the lifting of river constraints, something that requires negotiation with an estimated 3,000 landholders.

If constraints cannot be lifted it prevents watering of many wetlands, and the recent Water for the Special Account report concluded "neither the 450GL nor the constraints measures program will be delivered in full by June 30, 2024".

What is the Murray-Darling Basin Plan again?

The Murray-Darling Basin Plan has remained controversial ever since its introduction in 2012. So, what is it again?

Another major project at Menindee Lakes in NSW faces significant community opposition.

Mr Glyde said the MDBA would have more confidence in these projects if the deadlines were extended, something water ministers from NSW and Victoria requested at a recent meeting.

He said past engineering projects in the basin had proven complex and timely to deliver, referring to the 500GL recovered under the Living Murray Program in the early 2000s.

"The reality though, at the moment, is that the timeframe is set in the legislation of the basin plan, and if we are going to allow for more time then that legislation has to change," Mr Glyde said.

"The Commonwealth Government has recently made it clear that it is not going back into Parliament to change the timeframe at this stage, it's in the process of exulting state governments to work cooperatively with the Commonwealth Government to get these projects done."

If the projects are not completed, the Government is required re-enter the market and buy enough water from irrigators to meet the recovery target.

Floodplain licensing progress

More work needs to be done to measure and police the amount of water that is harvested by farmers on floodplains in Queensland and New South Wales, according to Mr Glyde.

What is flood plain harvesting?

Why flood plain harvesting might be the fork in the river for the Murray-Darling Basin Plan

He said the MDBA had found "some issues" with water resource plans in the NSW part of the northern basin, and the authority was working well with NSW officials to resolve them.

"We don't think they need significant change, but they will need change," he said.

"All of the plans submitted by NSW had to be changed or updated to be entirely consistent, and then they were accredited.

"Floodplain harvesting is an issue that Queensland and NSW state governments have responsibility for, from the MDBA's perspective, and what the basin plan is designed to do is to bring all forms of water take to the account so that they can be monitored, measured, and complied with.

"So from our perspective, the work that both Queensland and NSW are doing on licencing floodplain harvesting to lower levels than the current take is to be encouraged."

Get the latest rural news
The review of the plan's implementation says 20 per cent of the water once used by agriculture is now held in environmental water accounts.

Improved communication

Mr Glyde and Ms Woodburn both acknowledged communication and engagement with irrigation communities and First Nations peoples in the basin had been poor.

While the plan had successfully recovered water for the environment, allegations of and convictions for theft, corruption, and concerns over water ownership had eroded community trust in water management.

Murray-Darling lifeline pumped out

Water purchased by taxpayers to save Australia's inland rivers is being harvested by irrigators.

The 2020 basin plan evaluation also acknowledged it had led to changes in what types of crops the basin was producing, and that support measures could have been better targeted.

"There is evidence to suggest that much of the past funding to support communities to adapt to water reform could have been better targeted, particularly for those smaller communities that have had more water recovered through direct buybacks or that did not receive on-farm irrigation upgrades," the report said.

Ms Woodburn said the recent Sefton Review demonstrated the pressure the plan had placed on people, businesses, and industries in the basin.

"It compounded other changes, so even though the impact of the basin plan at the basin scale has overall been positive, we do see smaller, water dependent, and remote communities are doing it tough," she said.

"At the time the basin plan was agreed, governments were aware of the adjustment the plan would drive and built in support.

"This evaluation finds that the support has not been as effective as it could have been.

"More work is required to help people understand the changes, how they might play out in the future, and what they can do to adapt and prosper."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Climate change, complex projects pave tough road ahead for Murray-Darling Basin Plan

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A major review of the $13 billion Murray-Darling Basin Plan has highlighted the progress made in recovering water for the environment while addressing some major challenges posed by climate change.

# data[].attributes.body
The basin is home to 367 bird species, 85 mammal species, and over 50 native fish species. In addition, it homes 46 snake species and 100 lizard species. Some examples of these species include:

eastern grey kangaroos

red kangaroos

koalas

platypus

black flying foxes

Photo Source: https://www.planetzoogame.com/zoopedia/red-kangaroo

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The red kangaroo (or Macropus rufus) is a large species of marsupial mammal that lives throughout Au...

# data[].attributes.body
The basin spans a total of 2,097 miles in length. The Murray River is 1,558 miles long, the 409,835 sq miles of the basin is "flat, low-lying and far inland." The rivers located within the basin are very long and slow-flowing and carry a large volume of water (~ 24,000 gigalitres.) Since the basin encompasses such a large space, the temperature and precipitation pattern of each part of the basin varies. In the East, there is a lot of Rainfall (up to 1,500 mm per year),  in the South, there are many snow-filled months, and in the West there is little rainfall at all.
Photo Source: https://sites.google.com/site/thehumanitiesempanadas/farmland-at-the-murray-darling-basin-in-victoria

# data[].attributes.body
The Darling-Murray Basin is home to over 2.2 million people including 40 of the first Aboriginal Nations, who use the land for regulatory, provisional, cultural, and supporting services. The people of the First Nation have a deep spiritual connection with the land since before the first Europeans arrived, and rely on its wellbeing for their psychological and local identity. In addition, more than 40% of all of Australia's agriculture comes from the basin, making it extremely important for not only the people who reside in the basin, but all of Australia.

Photo Source: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/sep/21/indigenous-australians-most-ancient-civilisation-on-earth-dna-study-confirms

# data[].attributes.body
When Australia's 6 colonies became one nation on January 1st of 1901, one of the most challenging questions at hand was the control and share of the Murray-Darling Basin. In 1914, the River Murray Waters Agreement was signed, making it the first arrangement between South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and the Australian governments. Since then, there have been countless efforts to better and improve the water access and water quality. In 1917, the River Murray Commission was formed, and in the 1990's, Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory joined the agreement. Then, in 2007, the Water Act was passed in order to "promote the use and management of the Basin’s water resources in a way that optimizes economic, social and environmental outcomes." Lastly, in 2012 the Murray–Darling Basin Plan became law to manage the Basin as a whole connected system, and maintain it for future generations.

Photo Source: https://www.theland.com.au/story/5403621/drought-myth-holds-murray-darling-back/

# data[].attributes.body
Over 9,200 farmers are dependent on water from the basin to turn their land into productive farmland so that they could grow things such as wool, cotton, wheat, sheep, cattle, dairy produce, rice, oil-seed, wine, fruit, and vegetables. It is said that ~ $24 billion is contributed to Australia's economy through these agricultural activities.

# data[].attributes.body
There are many recreational activities that rely on the Murray-Darling Basin having good water quality and quantity. Activities such as boating festivals and water ski races, as well as canoeing, recreational fishing, waterskiing, or riverboat tours.

# data[].attributes.body
The people of the First Nation that live and directly thrive off the water of the Murray Darling Basin, benefit from "cultural flows" or water entitlements which allow the indigenous people the right to use and manage the basin's water, allowing them to use the land for their spiritual and cultural heritage and values. Some examples include participating in ceremonies or harvesting medicinal plants and herbs. In addition, these cultural flows help protect burial mounds, scarred trees, and campsites.

# data[].attributes.body
Because the Murray-Darling Basin has extremely variable weather, and it is constantly changing throughout the year, the area is susceptible to droughts. When there is not enough rainfall, there is a lot of stress on the ecosystem, as water sources are depleted. The more droughts there are, the more water is evaporated, the higher the temperature and salinity of the water is, which creates inhabitable conditions for fish to survive. This ripples throughout the whole ecosystem, as the water conditions for human use via irrigation for the farmlands are destroyed as well.

# data[].attributes.body
Just as the area is susceptible to drought because of varying climate patterns, there are also issues with flooding. This leads to issues such as overbank deposits, and the riverbanks eroding which brings in abundant and unhealthy amounts of sediment and nutrient-rich run-off into the water, further affecting its quality.

# data[].attributes.body
Due to agricultural land use from around the basin, the rivers of the Murray Darling are constantly being flushed with chemicals from farms, and other nutrient-rich pollutants and substances. This directly affects the water quality and water safety and is problematic to the people and towns who depend on it for drinking water, such as the town of Adelaide who gets its drinking water from the basin itself.

# data[].attributes.body
Acid sulfate soils are natural and cause no harm when submerged under water. However, when there are droughts and water levels go down, these soils are exposed and a chemical reaction occurs. Acidification happens when oxygen and acid sulfate mix, resulting in complex reactions that create sulfuric acid- in turn releasing heavy metals into the water basin system.

# data[].attributes.attachment_caption
Predicted changes in precipitation patterns for Australia in the year 2095.

# data[].attributes.body
As the planet's temperature continues to rise, and more and more greenhouse gasses are being expelled into the atmosphere, the Murray- Darling Basin is expected to become drier and drier. Many climate models suggest that global warming increases precipitation variability, which is an issue that the basin already is facing. With precipitation variability threatening to become even more grave, droughts and floods will continue to plague the Basin. This means that the agricultural systems that rely on the rivers of the basin could potentially collapse, and threaten food security and water quality for present and future generations.

# data[].attributes.headline
Ecosystem Consequences: Algal Blooms & Mass Fish Deaths

# data[].attributes.subject
Ecosystem Consequences: Algal Blooms & Mass Fish Deaths

# data[].attributes.body
There have been countless accounts throughout the years of thousands of dead fish showing up on the river banks because of the droughts- as there is higher salinity and temperature rapidly changes, and precipitation brings nitrogen-rich runoff into the river creating algae blooms. In a similar manner, the heavy metals from exposed acid sulfate soils also result in a plethora of fish deaths.

# data[].attributes.body
Since the Murray-Darling Basin experiences frequent droughts, this leads to the surrounding land being overly dry. As a direct consequence of this, there are frequent bushfires. After a bushfire happens, the wind picks up the ash and minerals and brings those particles into the river waterways. Then, the ecosystem suffers as a result. There is less oxygen in the water, reducing the water quality, and in turn creating more blackwater events. Likewise, there is a reduced water flow, which also affects the water quality and quantity.

# data[].attributes.body
Water Quality: Thanks to all of the regulation and laws passed to protect the Murray-Darling Basin, the water quality is generally good throughout the basin. However, this is being threatened by bushfires, algal blooms, climate change, irrigation pollution, droughts and flooding.

# data[].attributes.attachment_caption
Growth in water use in the Murray–Darling Basin since 1920 (Chartres and Williams 2006). 

# data[].attributes.body
Water access and availability has been declining in the Murray-Darling Basin as there has been an increasing demand for water for agricultural purposes given the rising population. This, put together with the natural droughts that the Basin is prone to, has had long-term damage on the health of its waterways. To make matters worse, climate change has brought about extreme flooding and drought periods, further restricting the access and availability of safe water sources.

Photo Source:

https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Growth-in-water-use-in-the-Murray-Darling-Basin-since-1920-Chartres-and-Williams-2006_fig4_319701330

# data[].attributes.body
With the reduction of water availability, there will be less water available to produce renewable energy sources such as hydroelectric power. Other energy sources that also depend on water such as gas, will also become more scarce as there will be less available water to produce them.

# data[].attributes.body
In order to have food security, the agricultural industry needs to be able to provide Australia with sufficient food to eat. This means that the Basin must be kept in pristine shape. Thus, healthy rivers and food security go hand in hand. Australia has faced many droughts that have affected some of its most important crops such as rice (that rely on a lot of water to be farmed). Since rice is a cheap commodity for a lot of nations, and Australia exports ~ 350,000 tonnes per year, other nations also depend on Australia for their food security as well.

# data[].attributes.body
The current management of the system has emphasized the need of balancing "economic, community, environmental and cultural" values. Every year, the Murray-Darling Basin authority assesses the water quality targets and puts them into a 5-year report. The Basin Governments also use an adaptive management approach in which they are constantly using new information to make the changes and adjustments necessary to maintain the Basin in a healthy state.

# data[].attributes.headline
Water Justice for the First Nation Communities

# data[].attributes.subject
Water Justice for the First Nation Communities

# data[].attributes.body
First Nation groups such as the Tati Tati are establishing environmental justice along the Margooya Lagoon via cultural flows. This example of increased control of aboriginal management of the Murray-Darling Basin. As stated in the video, the goal is to have the water flow as naturally as possible, because that was the way that the river was intended to flow.

Video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYtG_Km5h

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Water justice for First Nations communities in the Murray-Darling Basin

# data[].attributes.body
Environmental water, or water dedicated to maintaining the health of rivers and wetlands, is essential for a healthy future of the Basin. There has to be water that is specifically allocated for environmental use. This water should not be allowed to be redirected and used for other purposes by the private sector. Since Australia is a place that is very susceptible to drought, removing environmental water during drought periods can completely collapse the entire equilibrium of the system. With this being said, there need to be laws implemented that protect the water when it's flowing at its lowest. In addition, projects that fund purchases made to protect and dedicate the land for conservation efforts are brilliant ways to ensure that the water is being preserved and protected.

An example of recent efforts that have been made was the purchase of the Great Cunbung made in early 2019, which is said to be "the most valuable private conservation-focused purchase in Australia’s history." Doing this has protected the land from being converted into irrigated farmland, and thus saving millions of gallons from being extracted from the area.

# data[].attributes.headline
Solution #2: Improve Water Transparency 

# data[].attributes.subject
Solution #2: Improve Water Transparency 

# data[].attributes.body
Although there are reports that are published every 5 years on the Basin's water quality, this is simply not enough. There needs to be improved transparency in all stages and all parts of reporting real-time water quality of the Murray-Darling Basin. This would require an in-depth, consistent, and reliable series of systems to track and publically report the water quality. This may include reporting systems such as satellites, mandatory metering, and salinity trackers. This would benefit both the people of the First Nations, as well as the Australian government in finding ways to work together and understand the water system more in-depth with live and up-to-date data.

An example of a preexisting system that exists is found on the government website: https://riverdata.mdba.gov.au/system-view.
This live-data tracking system has 60 different points in the Basin and tracks their flow, volume, release, water temperature, salinity, and rainfall. However, a lot of the data is lacking and is not continuously being updated, appearing as "not measured." This means we really have to redevelop the way in which efforts such as these ones are being executed, because without completeness of data, it is hard to bear the benefits of this solution.

# data[].attributes.headline
Solution #3: Linking Water and Other Natural Resource Management

# data[].attributes.subject
Solution #3: Linking Water and Other Natural Resource Management

# data[].attributes.body
In order to create change when it comes to rives, we have to think systematically and not linearly. The health of rivers depends a lot on other natural resources such as riverbank habitats, floodplain land, and the surrounding catchments. With this being said, they should not be treated as separate entities and should be included in the Basin Plan. However, when the Basin Plan got implemented, the Murray-Darling Basin Commission had removed the existing more integrated system they had that included catchments. This is problematic in that real improvements cannot be made if we fail to see the system as a whole, leading to the "fixes that fail" model that we see time over time.

# data[].attributes.headline
Casual Loop Diagram: Tying It All Together

# data[].attributes.subject
Casual Loop Diagram: Tying It All Together

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-australia-water-basin-factbox/factbox-key-facts-about-australias-murray-darling-basin-idUSTRE6970MS20101008

https://www.mdba.gov.au/importance-murray-darling-basin/plants-animals-animals

https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/toc/10.1002/(ISSN)1944-7973.MDBASIN1#:~:text=The%20Murray%2DDarling%20Basin%20(MDB,of%20the%20Australian%20agricultural%20output.

https://www.mdba.gov.au/about-basin/water-for-first-nations-people

https://www.environment.sa.gov.au/topics/river-murray-new/basin-plan/importance-of-murray-darling-basin

https://www.nytimes.com/2000/03/07/news/pollution-and-water-diversion-blot-the-murray-in-downstream-australia.html

https://www.mdba.gov.au/media/mr/mdba-statement-60-minutes-food-security-water-management

https://www.natureaustralia.org.au/donate-to-our-mission/donate/help-protect-the-murray-darling-basin/

https://theconversation.com/5-ways-the-government-can-clean-up-the-murray-darling-basin-plan-116265

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Water Resources in the Murray-Darling Basin: Past, Present, and Future: Water Resources Research