1. Water use in the Murray Darling Basin

3. Key Knowledge and Skills
Importance of water as a resource in Australia
Distribution of water resources
Factors affecting water use
Factors affecting the pattern of water use

4. Europeans influence
Europeans settled in some regions of the MDB in the 19th century, at a time when there had been a series of wet years
Make the desert bloom
Didn’t have long term rainfall records
Ignorant of highly variable climate and river flows

5. Land Use
Sheep and cattle were introduced to the region in large numbers
Crops requiring large amounts of water were planted
The country's growing population had to be fed
Export markets needed to be established

6. Clearing ~15 billion trees were cleared to: Establish farms
Supply fuel for the paddle steamers which moved goods from the inland farms to the ports

7. Irrigation
The application of water to crops or pasture, especially in dry regions, to supplement rainfall
Began in the 1880’s in Mildura
Idea from California

8. Human uses Water is required to: Generate power Domestic Industrial
Stock
Forestry
Mining
Recreation
Tourism
Irrigation, and….

9. Natural uses Water also provides a habitat for: Mammals, Birds
Reptiles
Frogs and
Freshwater fish.
Some of these species are now endangered

10. The Murray river has been described as one of the hardest working rivers in the world, in terms of the amount of water that is taken out of it, and the variety of natural and human needs it supports

11. Important The Basin is Australia’s most important agricultural region
Producing over 1/3 of the country's food supply
Providing 39% of the national Income from agricultural production

12. There is a strong spatial association between the basins dry land farming regions and the production of beef cattle, sheep and wheat.

13. There is a strong spatial association between land that is irrigated and the production of dairy products, cotton, rice, fruit and vegetables
Irrigation areas Cotton

14. Irrigation
Majority of all water used in Australia is consumed in the MDB (52% in 2009) mainly for irrigation
Almost 90% of the water is diverted for use
The basin contains:
65% of Australia’s total irrigated land
50% of the nations sheep
25% of its cattle

15. Water needed in agricultural production
To produce 1 kg of:
wheat = 715 – 750 litres
maize = 540 – 30 litres
Soybeans = 1650 – 2200 litres
Rice = 1550 litres
Beef = – litres
Wool = litres

16. Agricultural land use in the MDB
See page 49 of your text

17. Water use for agriculture and income generated, Australia wide
What uses the most water?
What makes the most money?
What has the best return?

18. State and territory shares of the basin and their water use

19. Human and natural uses
In the past, the main role allocated to the river was to provide water for human use.
Little thought was given to the needs of the river itself
An unhealthy river = economical and social impacts & environmental
Hume in 2008, Dying river red gum, drying river in NSW

20. Unhealthy river Dying river red gums Declining fish numbers
Algal blooms
River not reaching the mouth
Drought

21. Environmental Flows Water allocated to the river for a healthy river
This water has to come from somewhere
Suggested 4000 gigalitres a year needs to be returned to the river from farm allocations
Gigalitre = 1,000,000,000 litres = 1,000 Megalitres = 1 million litres

22. Concerns with Environmental flows
Concerns that returning the water to the river could lead to the decline of small towns
Loss of thousands of jobs
Loss of hundreds of millions of dollars in economic growth

23. Does water for the environment have any value?
A healthy river can have benefits for regional economies and employment
Providing soil moisture for healthy plant life on riverbanks and flood plains
Enabling insects to flourish and pollinate crops
Replenishing aquifers and stabilising river banks through improved tree cover
Trees help keep the water table low, which reduces salinity and improves the level of carbon storage

25. Importance of the MDB
10.9% of Australia's population live within the basin
10 % of all people employed in the basin work in agriculture, compared to 3 % Australia wide
38 % of Australian farmers live in the basin

26. The mean household income for people in the basin in 2006 was $675, compared to $732 for Australia
3% of Australia’s electricity and 33% of the nations hydro electricity is generated in the basin
The Gross value of agricultural production (GVAP) in the basin was $15 billion (late 2000) or 39% of Australia’s total value of agricultural products

27. 52% of Australia’s total water consumption was used by industries (including agriculture) and households in the basin
Agriculture uses 83% of water in the basin; households and other industries use 2% each; the water supply industry uses 13%

28. Who uses the water? Water use is unevenly distributed
Biggest regional users on average per year are located in the southern basin:
Murray (4338 Gl)
Murrumbidge (2257 Gl )
Goulburn – Broken (1071 Gl)

29. Division of water
Adelaide receives 42% of its water supply from the Murray and up to 90% in drought years

30. The MDB contains 65% of Australia's irrigated land.
The long term average use of the basins 1.65 million hectares of irrigated land is

31. Movement of water
Water is pied to users located outside the MDB in towns like Whyalla, Keith and Woomera in SA

32. Movement
In Victoria water is piped from the Goulburn river to Bendigo and Ballarat, and through the North – South pipeline to Melbourne
otherwise known as the sugarloaf pipeline
See page 54 of text

33. Snowy Mountains Scheme
The snowy mountains scheme diverts water from the snowy river to generate hydro electricity
Increases water supplies in the Murray and Murrumbidgee rivers

34. Recreation Boating Fishing Camping Water skiing Golfing
Require clean reliable flows and a healthy river

35. Produce People in Australia and overseas consume agricultural products
Volume of water used for crops and pastures varies from year to year depending on:
Volume available for irrigation
Trading
Commodity prices

36. Discuss answers to questions 1 – 8 as a class Activity 9
Discuss answers to questions 1 – 8 as a class Activity 9. only Agricultural products which produce very high value returns to irrigators should be allowed in the MDB; all other products should be imported or produced elsewhere in Australia