RIVER MURRAY WEEKLY REPORT
FOR THE WEEK ENDING WEDNESDAY, 21ST JANUARY 2016
Trim Ref: D15/2088
Rainfall and Inflows
Humid weather and rain contracted to the northern Basin at the beginning of the week, with quite dry
conditions persisting until week’s end when a new trough system brought scattered showers to eastern
areas. Highest weekly rainfall totals were recorded across the far northern Basin in Queensland and in
north-eastern NSW; with lighter rain in the NSW Riverina and north-eastern Victoria. Most of the western
Basin remained dry (Map 1).
The highest rain totals in Queensland included 96 mm at Miles, 60 mm at Mungallala, 54 mm at
Goondiwindi and 48 mm at Texas. Totals in NSW included 48 mm at Gravesend, 39 mm at Inverell,
34 mm at Grong Grong and 33 mm at Ardlethan. In north-eastern Victoria, there was 37 mm at Wodonga
and 26 mm at Barnawartha.
Map 1- Murray-Darling Basin rainfall for the week ending 21st January 2015 (Source: Bureau of Meteorology).
Stream flows in the upper tributaries are steadily receding following the previous week’s good rainfall.
Upstream of Dartmouth Dam, the Mitta Mitta River at Hinnomunjie Bridge fell from 700 ML/day to 300
ML/day. On the upper Murray, the flow at Biggara fell from 1,200 ML/day to 400 ML/day; whilst on the
Ovens River, the flow at Wangaratta peaked at 700 ML/day before receding to 340 ML/day.
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Page 1 of 9
River Operations


Navigation via Lock 7 lock chamber unavailable from 27 January for 10-12 weeks;
Flow to South Australia increased as environmental water is sent to the Coorong.
MDBA total storage decreased by 118 GL this week, with the active storage now 4,963 GL (59%
capacity). This is around 1,000 GL less than the long-term average active storage for this time of year
(Figure 1).
At Dartmouth Reservoir, the storage decreased by 26 GL to 3,159 GL (82% capacity). The release,
measured at Colemans gauge, will be reduced over the coming week from 4,800 ML/day to 3,000
ML/day before increasing back to 4,500 ML/day in late January (see attached flow advice).
At Hume Reservoir, the storage volume reduced by 64 GL this week with the total storage now at 1,536
GL (51% capacity). The release was increased during the week from 9,400 ML/day to 16,000 ML/day
in response to rising downstream demand.
Figure 1- MDBA active storage: June 2005 to present.
Diversions at the major irrigation offtakes from Lake Mulwala increased this week from 3,000 to
6,500 ML/day. In the absence of rain, diversions are expected to remain reasonably high over coming
weeks with many rice crops in the region reaching ‘panicle initiation’ stage. Panicle initiation indicates
the start of the reproductive phase of rice development, and represents a cue to rice growers to increase
water depths across crops (see Figure 2). The pool level in Lake Mulwala is currently 124.77 m AHD
and the downstream release from Yarrawonga Weir is steady at 10,100 ML/day.
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On the Edward River system, the combined flow through the Edward River and Gulpa Creek offtakes
is steady at around 1,900 ML/day. Diversions to Wakool Main Canal gradually rose throughout the week
from 500 ML/day to 950 ML/day. The flow downstream of Stevens Weir has averaged around 1,500
ML/day over the past week, but will be increasing over coming days to around 2,100 ML/day as
increased flow is passed into the Edward River from the Edward Escape. Flow down Colligen Creek,
which comes off Stevens Weir pool, was raised to around 650 ML/day following rainfall last week and is
now being gradually lowered back towards 200 ML/day. Environmental water has been provided by
NSW Office of Environment and Heritage to enable this gradual recession, which is similar to how the
creek would have responded following rain under natural conditions.
Figure 2 – Rice crop near Deniliquin earlier in the season (image taken in November). Photo: Alisha Caldwell, MDBA.
On the Goulburn River, the flow at McCoys Bridge is 2,650 ML/day as a combination of environmental
and inter-valley transfer (IVT) water is delivered into the Murray. This flow is planned to recede to
approximately 1,000 ML/day by late January, then remain steady during the first week of February.
At Torrumbarry Weir, diversions at National Channel are 2,000 ML/day. The flow downstream of
Torrumbarry is 7,600 ML/day and forecast to remain around 7-8,000 ML/day over the coming week.
The flow in the Murrumbidgee River at Balranald rose this week from 1,650 ML/day to 1,900 ML/day
following recent rainfall which added to IVT water already en-route to the Murray. The flow at Balranald
is expected to gradually reduce over coming weeks towards 180 ML/day, which is the usual end-ofsystem target for February.
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At Euston Weir, the flow is currently at a peak of around 11,000 ML/day due to a pulse of water released
from the Goulburn River earlier in the month.
At Menindee Lakes, the storage volume has decreased 18 GL to 156 GL (9% capacity). Releases at
Weir 32 are steady at 150 ML/day, whilst local rain on the lower Darling last week has contributed to
boosting the flow at Burtundy to 160 ML/day.
At Wentworth Weir, the release is 9,000 ML/day and forecast to remain above 8,500 ML/day over the
coming week. The weir pools at Locks 8 and 9 are gradually being lowered below their full supply levels
and more information on the changing weir pool heights is available on the MDBA website.
Due to essential maintenance work, navigation via the Lock 7 lock chamber will be unavailable from
Tuesday 27 January for 10 to 12 weeks (see attached media release). The lock chamber will be dewatered during this time and boat users will be unable to pass through the lock.
At Lake Victoria, the storage volume has decreased by 11 GL to 462 GL (68% capacity). The flow to
South Australia was increased this week from 7,500 ML/day to around 10,000 ML/day. These increased
flows are a result of additional environmental water made available to sustain higher barrage outflows
into the Coorong.
At the Lower Lakes, the 5-day average water level in Lake Alexandrina increased this week from 0.63
to 0.64 m AHD. Following improvements to the Lower Lakes water level over the past fortnight, barrage
releases were increased towards the end of this week from 1,000 ML/day to around 2,000 ML/day.
For media inquiries contact the Media Officer on 02 6279 0141
ANDREW REYNOLDS
Acting Executive Director, River Management
GPO Box 1801 Canberra ACT 2601
Email: engagement@mdba.gov.au
Telephone: 02 6279 0100
Web: www.mdba.gov.au
Facsimile: 02 6248 8053
ABN 13679821382
Page 4 of 9
Water in Storage
Week ending Wednesday 21 Jan 2015
Full
Supply
Level
MDBA Storages
Dartmouth Reservoir
Hume Reservoir
Lake Victoria
Menindee Lakes
Total
Total Active MDBA Storage
Current
Storage
Level
Full Supply
Volume
(m AHD)
486.00
192.00
27.00
(GL)
3 856
3 005
677
1 731*
9 269
Major State Storages
Burrinjuck Reservoir
Blowering Reservoir
Eildon Reservoir
Current
Storage
(GL)
3 159
1 536
462
156
5 313
%
82%
51%
68%
9%
57%
584
542
2 479
57%
33%
74%
(m AHD)
474.72
183.22
25.13
1 026
1 631
3 334
Dead
Storage
Active
Storage
(GL)
71
23
100
(- -) #
--
(GL)
3 088
1 513
362
0
4 963
59% ^
3
24
100
581
518
2 379
Change in
Total
Storage
for the
Week
(GL)
-26
-64
-11
-18
-118
-11
+17
-30
* Menindee surcharge capacity – 2050 GL
** All Data is rounded to nearest GL **
# NSW takes control of Menindee Lakes when storage falls below 480 GL, and control reverts to MDBA when storage next reaches 640 GL
^ % of total active MDBA storage
Snowy Mountains Scheme
Storage
Lake Eucumbene - Total
Snowy-Murray Component
Target Storage
Snowy diversions for week ending 20 Jan 2015
Active Storage
(GL)
2 278
1 134
1 520
Weekly Change
(GL)
+3
+15
Diversion (GL)
From 1 May
2014
215
196
20
464
This Week
Snowy-Murray
Tooma-Tumut
Net Diversion
Murray 1 Release
+3
+2
1
+2
Major Diversions from Murray and Lower Darling (GL) *
New South Wales
This Week
Murray Irrig. Ltd (Net)
Wakool Sys Allowance
Western Murray Irrigation
Licensed Pumps
Lower Darling
TOTAL
21.2
2.4
0.5
5.0
1.5
30.6
From 1 July
2014
548
37
15
163
45
808
Victoria
This Week
Yarrawonga Main Channel (net)
Torrumbarry System + Nyah (net)
Sunraysia Pumped Districts
Licensed pumps - GMW (Nyah+u/s)
Licensed pumps - LMW
TOTAL
4.3
9.2
1.7
4.3
20
39.5
From 1
July 2014
176
393
68
43
180
860
* Figures derived from estimates and monthly data. Please note that not all data may have been available at the time of creating this report.
** All data above is rounded to nearest 100 ML for weekly data and nearest GL for cumulative data**
Flow to South Australia (GL)
* Flow to SA will be greater than normal
entitlement for this month due to the delivery of
additional environmental water.
Salinity (EC)
Entitlement this month
Flow this week
Flow so far this month
Flow last month
217.0 *
60.7
165.8
255.1
(8 700 ML/day)
(microSiemens/cm at 25o C)
Current
Swan Hill
Euston
Red Cliffs
Merbein
Burtundy (Darling)
Lock 9
Lake Victoria
Berri
Waikerie
Morgan
Mannum
Murray Bridge
Milang (Lake Alex.)
Poltalloch (Lake Alex.)
Meningie (Lake Alb.)
Goolwa Barrages
Average over the last week
50
90
120
110
790
130
190
240
260
270
350
370
800
670
2 340
1 190
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Email: engagement@mdba.gov.au
Average since 1 August 2014
100
80
120
120
680
130
210
240
270
270
340
370
780
660
2 340
1 210
Telephone: 02 6279 0100
Web: www.mdba.gov.au
90
100
130
130
790
140
210
220
290
280
340
370
750
590
2 390
1 140
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Page 5 of 9
River Levels and Flows
Week ending Wednesday 21 Jan 2015
7.3
-
1.22
2.62
3.15
3.07
2.12
3.36
1.66
2.24
2.56
1.58
3.70
1.97
2.94
4.01
0.83
207.74
219.51
156.78
151.54
149.56
129.38
116.70
106.08
81.11
64.50
52.82
43.81
27.70
20.94
-
(ML/day)
390
1 530
5 010
15 240
15 640
16 530
10 100
9 350
7 630
8 600
11 050
10 850
9 000
9 900
5 070
F
F
R
F
F
R
S
R
S
F
S
R
R
R
F
(ML/day)
750
2 680
4 450
14 670
15 450
14 030
9 700
9 190
8 600
9 160
10 250
10 160
9 150
8 020
6 230
Average
Flow last
Week
(ML/day)
1 670
3 210
2 050
11 330
11 940
14 290
11 030
10 510
8 080
6 580
7 860
7 920
7 230
6 780
5 400
2.7
11.9
9.0
5.0
-
0.86
7.87
2.39
1.62
2.77
1.52
2.25
3.28
3.67
0.73
154.09
145.55
93.81
81.39
58.15
55.01
58.21
-
340
340
2 650
1 470
2 260
660
1 880
230
0
160
F
S
R
F
R
R
R
S
F
S
550
480
2 260
1 530
2 100
520
1 670
470
0
140
570
340
2 640
2 290
1 870
420
1 610
1 000
0
40
3 280
4 580
Minor Flood
Stage
River Murray
Khancoban
Jingellic
Tallandoon ( Mitta Mitta River )
Heywoods
Doctors Point
Albury
Corowa
Yarrawonga Weir (d/s)
Tocumwal
Torrumbarry Weir (d/s)
Swan Hill
Wakool Junction
Euston Weir (d/s)
Mildura Weir (d/s)
Wentworth Weir (d/s)
Rufus Junction
Blanchetown (Lock 1 d/s)
(m)
Tributaries
Kiewa at Bandiana
Ovens at Wangaratta
Goulburn at McCoys Bridge
Edward at Stevens Weir (d/s)
Edward at Liewah
Wakool at Stoney Crossing
Murrumbidgee at Balranald
Barwon at Mungindi
Darling at Bourke
Darling at Burtundy Rocks
Gauge
local (m)
4.0
4.2
5.5
5.5
4.3
3.8
6.4
6.4
7.3
4.5
8.8
8.8
Height
(m AHD)
Flow
Trend
Average Flow
this Week
Natural Inflow to Hume
(i.e. Pre Dartmouth & Snowy Mountains scheme)
Weirs and Locks Pool levels above or below Full Supply Level (FSL)
Murray
Yarrawonga
No. 26 Torrumbarry
No. 15 Euston
No. 11 Mildura
No. 10 Wentworth
No. 9 Kulnine
No. 8 Wangumma
Lower Lakes
FSL (m AHD)
124.90
86.05
47.60
34.40
30.80
27.40
24.60
u/s
-0.13
+0.00
+0.06
+0.03
+0.05
-0.08
-0.23
d/s
+0.24
+0.30
-0.10
+0.18
FSL (m AHD)
22.10
19.25
16.30
13.20
9.80
6.10
3.20
No. 7 Rufus River
No. 6 Murtho
No. 5 Renmark
No. 4 Bookpurnong
No. 3 Overland Corner
No. 2 Waikerie
No. 1 Blanchetown
u/s
+0.04
+0.08
+0.02
-0.00
+0.04
+0.01
-0.10
d/s
+1.69
+0.19
+0.35
+1.05
+0.26
+0.16
+0.08
FSL = 0.75 m AHD
Lake Alexandrina average level for the past 5 days (m AHD)
Barrages
0.64
Fishways at Barrages
Openings
Level (m AHD)
No. Open
Goolwa
128 openings
0.61
4
Mundoo
26 openings
0.60
All closed
Boundary Creek
6 openings
0.1
Ewe Island
111 gates
All closed
Tauwitchere
322 gates
0.60
6
AHD = Level relative to Australian Height Datum, i.e. height above sea level
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Vertical Slot
Open
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Week ending Wednesday 21 Jan 2015
State Allocations (as at 21 Jan 2015)
NSW - Murray Valley
High security
General security
Victorian - Murray Valley
97%
52%
NSW – Murrumbidgee Valley
High security
General security
95%
46%
NSW :
VIC :
SA :
100%
0%
Victorian - Goulburn Valley
High reliability
Low reliability
100%
0%
South Australia – Murray Valley
NSW - Lower Darling
High security
General security
High reliability
Low reliability
100%
100%
High security
100%
http://www.water.nsw.gov.au/Water-management/Water-availability/Waterallocations/Water-allocations-summary/water-allocations-summary/default.aspx
http://www.nvrm.net.au/allocations/current.aspx
http://www.environment.sa.gov.au/managing-natural-resources/river-murray
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Page 7 of 9
Flow advice
22 January 2015
Reducing February flows in the Mitta Mitta
Landholders and river users on the Mitta Mitta River are advised that late-January and early-February
flows in the river will be lower than previously notified, as a result of recent rainfall.
The amount of water in Hume Reservoir is currently higher than expected due to recent rain in the
upper catchments and reduced demand for water downstream. This means less water needs to be
released from Dartmouth Reservoir via the Mitta Mitta to top-up Hume Reservoir.
Flows will continue to be variable over the coming weeks, however, and people along the Mitta Mitta
River are advised to adjust their river activities as necessary.
The flow at Colemans gauge will be around 3000 megalitres per day (ML/day) during 23 to 26
January, which is 1.9 metres local gauge height. On Tuesday 27 January the flow will begin to
increase and will reach 4500 ML/day on Friday 30 January (down from the 7000 ML/day previously
advised).
The flow of 4500 ML/day will be maintained until Thursday 5 February, and will be gradually reduced
over the following weeks until flows reach 2500 ML/day at the end of February (see graph below).
Releases at Colemans for February 2015
4.00
4500
3.50
4000
3500
3.00
3000
2500
2.50
2000
2.00
1500
1000
Gauge Height
Flow at Colemans Gauge (ML/day)
5000
1.50
500
0
1/22/2015
1.00
1/28/2015
2/3/2015
2/9/2015
Flow (ML)
2/15/2015
Gauge Height
2/21/2015
2/27/2015
Throughout the remainder of February, if conditions remain dry, the flow in the Mitta Mitta River at
Tallandoon is expected to be slightly greater than at Colemans gauge. However, this could change if
flows from Snowy Creek increase due to rain.
Water is continuing to be transferred from Dartmouth to Hume Reservoir to help meet water demands
downstream of Hume. On 20 January, the volume stored in Dartmouth Reservoir was 3163 GL (82 per
cent capacity) compared with 1545 GL (51 per cent capacity) in Hume Reservoir.
ENDS
For more information, contact the MDBA Media office at media@mdba.gov.au or 02 6279 0141
Follow @MD_Basin_Auth on Twitter: http://twitter.com/MD_Basin_Auth
Join the discussion on the MDBA blog: http://freeflow.mdba.gov.au
Page 8 of 9
19 January 2015
TEMPORARY CLOSURE OF LOCK SEVEN
SA Water, on behalf of the Murray Darling Basin Authority, will soon begin planned maintenance at the last of
nine River Murray locks scheduled for refurbishment.
Work is expected to begin at Lock Seven at Rufus River in New South Wales on the 27th of January and take up
to 12 weeks to complete.
SA Water’s Senior Manager of River Murray Operations, Garry Fyfe, said during this time, boat users will be
unable to pass through the lock.
“We’ve organised for the work to start after the summer school holidays so as to have minimal impact on people
visiting and using the river.
“The project will involve pumping all of the water out of the lock chamber and inspecting and repairing the
underwater components as necessary.
“Refurbishment of the locks is vital to the longevity of the structures and will ensure their continued safe and
efficient operation,” Garry said.
“Although people won’t be able to travel the full length of the river during the maintenance period, they will still be
able to enjoy using the river either upstream or downstream of Lock Seven.
Local stakeholders have been advised of the closure, including River Murray tourism operators.
The community will be notified when the lock chamber is back in operation or if there are significant changes to
the timeline of works.
The grounds and facilities at Lock Seven will also be temporarily closed to the general public during the
maintenance.
“We apologise for any inconvenience while the work is being undertaken and appreciate the public’s cooperation
during this period,” Garry said.
For more information, people can contact staff at Lock Seven on (03) 5027 8225 or SA Water’s River Murray
Operations office at Berri on (08) 8595 2222.
Page 9 of 9