Murray-Darling

Freshwater systemsAction: Protect catchments and restore natural water flows in freshwater systems, particularly the Murray-Darling Basin

Biodiversity 100: actions for Australia Guillaume Chapron 2010

"This plan isn't about returning the rivers to their natural state," Craig Knowles , chairman of the Murray-Darling Basin Authority said in the report.

Australia's Breadbasket Faces Water Squeeze Ray Brindal 2011

The release of a draft plan to cut the supply of irrigation water in the Murray-Darling Basin, an area about the size of Texas and California combined, has angered both sides.

Australia's Breadbasket Faces Water Squeeze Ray Brindal 2011

Description: The rivers in the Murray-Darling Basin in south-east Australia are currently flowing at only 40 per cent of their natural capacity, even in an average non-drought year, due to extensive water extraction for agriculture.

Biodiversity 100: actions for Australia Guillaume Chapron 2010

The new plan, published over the weekend, proposes to recover 2,750 gigaliters of water a year—more than five times the volume found in the Sydney Harbour area—from irrigators in the Murray-Darling Basin.

Australia's Breadbasket Faces Water Squeeze Ray Brindal 2011

Carla Gottgens/Bloomberg News An irrigation channel fed from the Murray-Darling water system "The guide last year didn't deliver that balance and now, after another 12 months, the draft has also failed to live up to promises made," Matt Linnegar , the federation's chief executive, said in a statement.

Australia's Breadbasket Faces Water Squeeze Ray Brindal 2011

The territory hardest hit is prime agricultural land in the Murray-Darling basin, which spans parts of Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria states, covering an area bigger than Germany.

Australia Grapples With Heavy Rains Rebecca Thurlow 2010

At the very end of the pipe, more than 1 million citizens of Adelaide rely on the Murray-Darling system for 90 percent of their drinking water.

Jim Lauria: When it Comes to Water, the Land Down Under Is Way on Top of the US Jim Lauria 2010

At the very end of the pipe, more than 1 million citizens of Adelaide rely on the Murray-Darling system for 90 percent of their drinking water.

Jim Lauria: When it Comes to Water, the Land Down Under Is Way on Top of the US Jim Lauria 2010

Australia is already facing this – in the Murray-Darling Basin.

Earth Policy Institute: Raising Water Productivity 2008