The Continuation the Flow in the Murray River

[paddlesteamerman1]

I have been thinking of this for quite some time now.. What is going to happen to our majestic Murray??? Lake Hume is nearly empty and Lake Mulwala should keep us going for a little bit but what is going to happen when the rain ceases even more than it has and the snowfall just doesnt make an appearance??? Is the Murray just going to continue to get smaller and smaller until it is a trickle in the soil???
Also it is dry in QLD and NSW so the Darling doesnt have much chance, recent photos of it show barely anything in it what so ever...
I just thought someone might have the answer, I dont know every nook and cranny of the Murray-Darling basin, only really the basics!!

[derekwarner_decoy]

Sorry PD's but this an OZ comment only.... James says...

"I just thought someone might have the answer"

James......if you find anyone with the answer... please refer them to John Howard or Kim Beazley as our Murray system    is getting dryer by the day...... I  :respect2 for BIG BIG rain each & every day.... Derek

[Roderick Smith]

Google to find MDBC's site (something like www.mdbc.gov.au)
It has current statistics and projections, and a whole lot of historical stuff.
I have also found some very good CSIRO material, possibly via MDBC.
It gives an excellent analysis of what is lost through evaporation, and how much is potentially trappable, and how much could be saved by altered irrigation practices.

Lake Hume is down, but we don't often see Dartmouth: what is it holding?

Qld wasn't (and still isn't?) a party to the Murray-Darling agreement, and loves to grow cotton (there is also a lot of cotton in northern NSW).
It is strange that three major cotton countries are very dry, and rely on a single river to keep the nation alive:
Egypt - Nile
Pakistan - Indus
and Australia - Darling
I don't think that Mississippi River will run dry irrigating USA cotton, so why do these other nations bother?

Traditionally, the Murray became a series of water holes every year: the river navigation was seasonal, not all year.
Even today, our boats could float on the reduced water if the river wasn't filled with snags, and the Rylah Institute is agitating to plant artificial snags.

Regards,
Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor

[anth]

I heard the dam that supplies the water to these cotton fields hold 3 times the volume of sydney harbour.....cotton makes how much? but effects so much more! and to top it off it an american company...so the profit's don't stay in the economy.. :rant

[paddlesteamerman1]

Derek - I wish someone knew the answer, it is getting too dry. Especially even out on our farm we are not having any good crops this year!! I always pray for a big rain, but it never comes.. Hopefully someone does before it is too late!!
And Roderick, I was watching the two men in a tinnie show and I was actually fairly irritated about Cubby Farm (downs?) and their cotton. I think it is ourtrageous growing cotton and rice in this dry continent. It is stupid. There are plenty of 'wetter' countries in the world suited to this.. We need to govern our water a lot better than we already do.. The Government needs to do something, not just talk!!!  :twisted:
I will try and see what Dartmoors level is!!
Oh, and Melbourne needs to become stricter on its water restrictions, in Ararat the people are on living necessities only.. Melbourne is only going onto stage 3 (?!?!?!)
Cheers for the info too!!!

[anth]

james melbourne's water  restrictions are different.
the dams that supply us water aren't taking any water from the murry river system nor are they supplying the outer country regions water for growing there crops.
Melbourne is on restriction due to the water catchment area's not receiving the required annual rainfall to meet demand.
this is the only common element through out victoria
  anthony

[paddlesteamerman1]

So Melbournes restrictions are a league of their own??
What stage are you on??
The cotton is an American company :rant!!!! Why do we grow it here when the money goes over to the States?  :
That is the stupidest thing ever, wasting our water so the American companies can have some more money.....

  James

[anth]

we are on stage 2 restrictions but it dosen't really effect us as we have an underground spring so we very rarely water the garden even in summer.



cheers anthony

[thewharfonline]

Let's not forget as well the Murray and Darling have constantly been seasonal in high and low waters. You can see in many photos the height of the rivers and the Darling is notorious for being incredibly low.

We are in a drought...the problem is many of us haven't truly seen a drought but when we look back in history they are very common. 'Of drought and flooding rains' that is Australia, a seasonal country.

We need to remember the drought will break, 93/94 the Murray was in flood ten years later a drought...it is a cycle. The water rises itself through mass rain and then empties itself again in drought then grows again. It is nature, human interference *cough* cotton *cough* doesn't help.

The two most water consuming crops in the world are grown in the Murray Darling Basin- Rice and Cotton. The largest water consumers in the driest livable continent on Earth...anyone see a problem?

Of course realising our water is literally 'going down the drain' too late by government doesn't help. Little seems to happen politically to stop future problems and instead of putting in water restrictions and water storage measures ten years ago when rivers were high we have to save water in the midst of the battle.

Next year I am doing Geography in which water usage of the Murray Darling Basin is part of the course. I will update what I learn here so that we can see what is truly happening/not happening. Above is simply my biased perspective of the situation!

[paddlesteamerman1]

Yes, I remember Dad telling me about all the droughts suffered on the farm, but he said that this one is really starting to set in... And from what I have heard, not that I particuarly believe it yet, is that this is here to stay...

It is nature, human interference *cough* cotton *cough* doesn't help.

The two most water consuming crops in the world are grown in the Murray Darling Basin- Rice and Cotton. The largest water consumers in the driest livable continent on Earth...anyone see a problem?

Sean I back that one up, I dont think that having cotton and rice farms in the driest continent is a whizz bang idea... But as you said the government is showing concern too late...

Hopefully you learn some useful stuff in Geography, our only way of doing Geography was via correspondence with a Melbourne school (cant remember which one though).. But in Legal 3 and 4 we are covering (I think, the teacher said it could be on the course) the 'legal' issues of the mass usage of the water from the Murray-Darling Basin.. hopefully it unravels something interesting!!