Abstract:
The Upper Murrumbidgee River has been left behind by Federal and NSW water management reforms that are designed to improve the health of our waterways. The legislative framework for ensuring that the Murray-Darling Basin (Australia’s largest water resource) is managed in the national interest explicitly excludes structures operated by the Snowy Hydro Scheme, which means that Tantangara Dam can capture more than 90% of the water at the headwaters of the Upper Murrumbidgee each year, and as much as 99% in dry years. This leads to crises, as happened in 2019, when the Upper Bidgee at Tharwa ran dry. The Murrumbidgee, although lacking flows, is still a beautiful river and deserves to be saved. To change the future of the Upper Murrumbidgee we needed to bring the management of the headwaters of one of our largest and most significant rivers into line with contemporary best practice management and governance. We began by bringing together people and organisations who love and care for this river, but who had been unable, as individuals, to successfully advocate for change. Through these discussions The Forgotten River campaign and website was created to share knoweldge and develop resources to support decision making. This campaign meant that we were available to inform policy at the right place, right time and in the right format. In November 2023, we stood alongside Senator David Pocock as he announced a $50million dollar package to save the Upper Murrumbidgee. This presentation will show that by facilitating conversations with an open heart and enabling people to get involved by providing opportunities to collaborate, we were able to raise awareness and secure the political will we needed for change. Our experience is that we must invest in relationships first, so that a shared purpose between people with divergent views and experiences can be created. We now have the resources to work over the next five years to bring the Upper Murrumbidgee back from the brink. We also have the mandate to continue our collaborative and inclusive approach to engaging all stakeholders, government, industry, scientific and community.