Canberra’s river runs on 7–8% of its natural flow

The forgotten river has one chance left.

The rules that decide how much water reaches the Upper Murrumbidgee were written in 2002 and have never been reviewed. That review is finally happening, and the independent panel has been blunt about what is at stake.

Its draft report describes the river’s condition as abysmal, and warns that failing to act would condemn it to a gradual death. It also says the reforms are not a menu. Taken in pieces, they will not work.

Tell them to implement the review in full to save the Bidgee.

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Our river is dying.
The Independent Review Panel’s draft report describes the condition of the Upper Murrumbidgee as abysmal, and warns that a decision not to implement the reforms would condemn it to a gradual death.

A dam was built. The river never got its water back.

The rules that decide how much water reaches the Upper Murrumbidgee have never been reviewed. That review is finally happening, and the independent panel has been blunt about what is at stake.

Almost none of it gets past the dam wall. On average ~93% of the annual flow is diverted at Tantangara and sent west through a tunnel to Lake Eucumbene and the Snowy Scheme - in some years as much as 99%.

Where the Upper Murrumbidgee’s water goes Schematic of the 320 kilometre reach from Tantangara Dam to Burrinjuck Dam. The river is drawn as a band whose width represents its flow. At Tantangara the flow splits: on average 93% is diverted west through a tunnel to Lake Eucumbene and the Snowy Scheme, and 7% continues downstream. That ~7% runs the entire length of the reach, shown as a thin gold sliver inside a dashed outline of the river as it would otherwise be. Headwaters, Kosciuszko NP ~93% is diverted here Through the tunnel to Lake Eucumbene and the Snowy Scheme - an average of 260 billion litres a year. ~7% continues - the whole 320 km Tantangara Dam 0 km Bredbo Canberra 242 km Burrinjuck Dam 320 km What the river would carry ~7% what it actually gets Schematic, not to scale. Band width represents flow.

Swipe to see the full reach →

Diversion figures: Wassens et al., Environmental flows in the upper Murrumbidgee River, Marine & Freshwater Research; and ANU Crawford School, Restoring flows to the upper Murrumbidgee. The 320 km reach runs from the headwaters in Kosciuszko National Park to Burrinjuck Dam.

The Panel’s draft recommends building the share back to 30%, about 87 GL, staged from an immediate 23%. The river has already lost most of its Macquarie perch, a population now so isolated that more than 52 fish have had to be carried upstream by hand to keep its genetics viable.

Four ministers hold this between them.

This isn’t one portfolio’s problem, which is exactly how it has been avoided for two decades. Here is why each of them is on the email.

Murray Watt

Minister for the Environment and Water

The Deed, the environmental flows and the review itself sit in his portfolio. He receives the Panel’s final recommendations.

Chris Bowen

Minister for Climate Change and Energy

A shareholder minister for Snowy Hydro, which operates Tantangara and would carry the generation trade-offs of higher releases.

Katy Gallagher

Minister for Finance · Senator for the ACT

The other Snowy Hydro shareholder minister, and the ACT’s representative in Cabinet. Both roles point the same way.

Suzanne Orr

ACT Minister for Climate Change, Environment, Energy and Water

The review recommends the ACT join the new agreement as a full party. That is her signature, and the Territory’s entitlement contribution.

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