THE Nyah floodplain has been earmarked as a priority site for environmental water in this year’s Seasonal Watering Plan, released last week by the Victorian Water Environment Holder (VEWH).
Water delivery to some sites listed in the plan will depend on whether the next 12 months is wet, average or dry, but Nyah floodplain is to receive environmental water next autumn regardless of seasonal conditions.
The news was welcomed by Cr Nicole McKay, who gained support at last month’s Swan Hill Rural City Council meeting to ask for a boost in environmental flows to areas between Swan Hill and Robinvale.
But Cr McKay said the planned watering would be more effective if it piggybacked on the already higher Murray River levels to deliver connected flows.
“I think we need more consultation with the community,” she said. “People from this region would prefer to have a higher river at the right time.
“It would be much healthier to have it high for a couple of months, fill up everything, have the environmental water go on top of it to get somewhere and then let the river run lower.”
Cr McKay said this also would stop the banks of the Murray River collapsing as much as they do when water levels go up and down more quickly.
“Over the next few weeks we’ll be watching this higher river and where it goes,” she said. “What’s making it perfect at the moment is there’s decent flows coming down the Murrumbidgee.”
The seasonal watering plan noted the Nyah floodplain had dried between 2018-19 and 2020-21 and was inundated by unregulated Murray River flows during 2021-22.
“Vegetation at Nyah floodplain will benefit from a second inundation in two years, which will improve the condition of the site ahead of proposed construction works that will prevent deliveries of water for the environment in 2023-24,” the plan said.
The watering, which is scheduled for next autumn, involves increasing water levels in Parnee Malloo Creek to 63.2m (Australian height datum).
The objectives are to improve vegetation and habitat for birds and frogs, promote herbs and shrubs on the adjacent floodplain and improve the condition of river red gum trees.
Unless it is naturally flooded, the Vinifera floodplain will be allowed to draw down during 2022-23 to support “dry-phase ecosystem processes”.
According to the seasonal watering plan, deliveries of environmental water for the lower Murray wetlands were managed in line with a dry climate scenario at the start of 2021-22 but shifted to an average scenario in spring in response to increasing flows in the Murray River.
“Most of the potential watering actions planned in 2021-22 were fully achieved,” the plan said.
“Environmental flow objectives at Nyah floodplain, Vinifera floodplain, Bidgee Lagoons and Fishers Lagoon were met by natural inflows from the Murray River.”
Watering of the Gunbower Forest floodplain was planned to start last month and continue into 2022-23.
● A report in the June 24 edition of The Guardian incorrectly stated there was 8953 gigalitres of environmental water available to Victoria in the Murray River system and storages, and 3556GL in the Goulburn system. Those figures were the total storage volumes. The error occurred when the statement from the VEWH spokesperson was misinterpreted.
