<< BACK TO CONTENTS Managing blackwater Water for the environment was used to lessen the effects of blackwater which developed in the Goulburn River in summer 2016, following an extreme and rare summer storm . Up to 100 millimetres of rain fell across parts of the catchment on one day — 29 December 2016 — and run-off from Castle, Pranjip and Seven creeks entered the Goulburn River near Shepparton. Water from the creeks, containing decaying leaf litter and other debris, made its way into the Goulburn River. When a large amount of leaf litter enters a waterway, the micro-organisms that break it down use oxygen. If the oxygen is consumed faster than it can be replenished, oxygen levels in the water can drop to such low levels that deaths of fish and other river life may occur. The water looks blackish, hence the name. During the Goulburn blackwater event, water for the environment was used to increase flows along the Goulburn to help replenish dissolved oxygen levels and disperse the blackwater, providing relief for native fish and other river life. Click here to watch this video from North Central CMA about the causes and effects of blackwater: https://youtu. be/OyKhsKCvIqw Goulburn River near swing bridge Shepparton, by Goulburn Broken CMA Maddie the platypus, by Paul Carracher of The Weekly Advertiser Reflections – Environmental watering in Victoria 2016–17 | 62
66 Publizr Home