Environment
Participants in this slideshow examine the importance of caring for their local environment and their understanding of issues around natural resource management.
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Middleton Point through to Goolwa Beach
This shot shows the stretch of beach from Middleton Point to Goolwa Beach
Aleppo pine, Richard (Goolwa)
Feral pines on Hindmarsh Island
Aleppo pines (Pinus halipensis) are the major tree species on Hindmarsh Island. These were introduced to the island by the MacBeath family in the 1880s as an attempt to prevent erosion of the sand dune areas and have since spread far and wide, forming several major forests on the northern part of Hindmarsh Island. The island has a number of indigenous tree species but these have been removed over the past century and a half as land was cleared for agriculture and fuel was needed for paddle steamers, etc.
Goolwa Barrage Murray Darling Basin Commission (MDBC) sign, Richard (Goolwa)
Entrance to barrage reserve
The barrages were the last ditch attempt to prevent sea-water entering the lakes and the river, polluting the fresh water increasingly needed for irrigation and stock watering. That they were urgently needed is an indication of the expansion of irrigation upstream in New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia with the result that far less water was flowing down the river to the mouth. Built in the 1930s, there are five barrages preventing salt water incursion into the lakes: Goolwa, Mundoo, Boundary Creek, Ewe Island and Tauwitcherie.
Goolwa barrage, Richard (Goolwa)
Goolwa Barrage structure
The Goolwa Barrage is constructed using stop logs, removed to allow water to flow into the estuary. This barrage contains a lock allowing water craft to pass through.
Dredge at Murray mouth, Richard (Goolwa)
New dredge launched at Mundoo
Initially one dredge in the Goolwa Channel was used but the mouth continued to threaten closure, so a second dredge was located in the Coorong Channel. This has successfully enabled the mouth to be kept open.
Landcare group sign, Richard (Goolwa)
Murray mouth estuary restoration project signage
Murray Mouth Estuary Restoration (MMER) Project sign at the Murray mouth
This project, of the Hindmarsh Island Landcare Group, commenced in 2001/2 and has continued now for four years. Presently it is revegetating over 40 sites on the southern part of Hindmarsh Island, near the Murray Mouth. In 2001/2 it was only working on 12 sites. Using project funding from the Australian Government Envirofund, the project will have planted over 50,000 plants by the end of 2005. It is focussing on the restoration of saline wetlands and the re-establishment of habitat, particularly indigenous trees like the swamp paperbark.
