Despite the drought, the river in our section will continue to look
the same as it always
has since the lock system was built in the late 1920's. That is
except for the death of
many trees on the flood plain away from the river bank,
due to the lack of
flooding in
recent years. The normal
pool level is being maintained in the Upper
Riverland
to act
as an extra storage for S.A. and to prevent salt entering the
river from the creeks and
underground aquifers. This is to ensure that the water remains suitable
for drinking for
Adelaide and country towns Whyalla, Pt Augusta etc.
Unfortunately
pool levels cannot be maintained below the last lock (Lock 1) at Blanchetown.
Consequently we are already seeing by November 2007, record low levels
at Mannum and
Murray Bridge, which are currently about 1.45m lower than normal.
This equates to
just 0.12 metres above sea level and it will be
below sea level for most of
the tidal cycle.
Without substantial rains, the levels there are predicted to continue to
fall by at least
another 0.6 to 1 metre by the end of Feb 2008.
Houseboating will continue to be the same in our area as it always has been.
The only
difference
for houseboat customers is that there is even more dead wood
available for
campfires. This is because Locks 5 and 6 in our area are in
close proximity to each other
which maintains pool level regardless of flow rates. S.A.'s
guaranteed restricted
flow ensures
dilution of salt and keeps the river attractive for recreational purposes.
Sand bars are more extensive - Due to the lack of
flooding many sand bars have built up,
but there is still a navigable path right through to the N.S.W. border.
Creeks are less navigable - Without flooding, some of
the narrower creeks such as Pilby and
Racecourse, have filled with reeds and water weed making kayaking
more difficult, but the wider
creeks such as Amazon and Monoman still offer great kayaking.
Don't be alarmed by sensationalist reporting in our daily
newspapers. If the drought
continues there may well be reports of river levels dropping at Mannum
and Murray
Bridge. But this is because the first lock is at Blanchetown which
is a long way upstream.
