SOUTH AUSTRALIA’S 2008-09 REPORT TO THE BASIN SALINITY MANAGEMENT STRATEGY ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The Water Resources Group, Department of Water, Land and Biodiversity Conservation (DWLBC) would like to acknowledge and thank the following agencies/organisations for their contribution to this year’s report: South Australian Murray- Darling Basin Natural Resources Management Board SARDI SA Water PIRSA CSIRO Future Farm Industries CRC Australian Water Environments Other divisions within DWLBC Paiwalla Wetland, Nov 2006 (pump shed now removed) Cover photograph: Tumi Bjornsson WATER RESOURCES GROUP Disclaimer Department of Water, Land The Department of Water, Land and Biodiversity Conservation and its employees do not warrant and Biodiversity Conservation or make any representation regarding the use, or results of the use, of the information contained herein as regards to its correctness, accuracy, reliability, currency or otherwise. The Department 25 Grenfell Street of Water, Land and Biodiversity Conservation and its employees expressly disclaims all liability or GPO Box 2834 responsibility to any person using the information or advice. Information contained in this document Adelaide South Australia 5001 is correct at the time of writing. Telephone © Government of South Australia, through the Department of Water, Land and Biodiversity National (08) 8463 6946 Conservation 2009 International +61 8 8463 6946 This work is Copyright. Apart from any use permitted under the Copyright Act 1968 (Cwlth), no part Fax may be reproduced by any process without prior written permission obtained from the Department National (08) 8463 6999 of Water, Land and Biodiversity Conservation. Requests and enquiries concerning reproduction International +61 8 8463 6999 and rights should be directed to the Chief Executive, Department of Water, Land and Biodiversity Website Conservation, GPO Box 2834, Adelaide, South Australia 5001. www.dwlbc.sa.gov.au ISSN 1447-6843 Preferred way to cite this publication 2009, South Australia’s 2008-09 Report to the Basin Salinity Management Strategy, DWLBC Report 2009/15, Government of South Australia, through Department of Water, Land and Biodiversity Conservation, Adelaide Download this document at: http://www.dwlbc.sa.gov.au/publications/annual_reports/mdb_salinity_ar_html Contents ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 1.3 Setting Salinity Targets 22 Monitoring Targets 22 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 8 Acoustic Flow Measurements 23 1. Nine Elements OF THE Basin Salinity Salt Load Investigations 24 Management Strategy 12 Riverland Watertable Time Series Maps 30 1.1 Developing Capacity 13 Dryland Salinity 32 Pike River Case Study 13 Understanding Surface Water – Ground Water Interactions to Bookpurnong Lock 4 Case Study and IRES 13 Help Manage Wetlands 34 Irrigator Annual Reporting and Baseline Information Major Monitoring, Evaluation, Reporting and Improvement for Irrigated Land 14 Achievements 35 Updating Land and Water Management Plans 14 Community Stream Sampling 36 How Efficient Are We? Historical Improvements in Water 1.4 Managing Trade-offs 39 Use Efficiency Since 1960 14 Murray Futures Riverine Recovery Project 39 1.2 Identifying Values and Assets at Risk 15 1.5 Implementing Plans 41 Bookpurnong Floodplain Pilot Project 15 South Australia’s Strategic Plan 41 Salinity Impacts of The Living Murray Actions 17 South Australian River Murray Salinity Strategy 2001 – 2015 43 Chowilla Floodplain Icon Site Environmental Management Plan 18 South Australian Murray-Darling Basin Natural Resource Management Plan 43 Environmental Watering 19 Unbundling Water Rights 44 Floodplain Health and Salinity Risks of Future Flooding 20 Water Allocation Plan for the River Murray Prescribed South Australian Weir Pool Manipulation Program 20 Watercourse 45 Salinity Management Below Morgan 21 Implementation of the Salinity Zoning Policy 45 Market-Based Instruments (MBI) 46 PikeBookpurnong, at the Simarloo July Pump2006 1.6 Redesigning Farming Systems 47 2. VALLEY REPORTS 60 On Ground Support to Achieve Irrigation Efficiency in the SA 2.1 End-of-Valley Report Card 61 MDB 47 2.2 Summary of Monitoring Sites 62 Future Farm Industries Cooperative Research Centre 48 Border (A4261022) 62 1.7 Targeting Reforestation and Vegetation Management 51 Berri (A4260537) 62 Revegetation Activities in the SA MDB NRM Region 51 Morgan (A4260554) 62 Sustainable Farming Vegetation Management 51 Murray Bridge (A4261003) 62 The River Murray Forest 51 3. RESPONSE TO INDEPENDENT AUDIT GROUP 64 1.8 Constructing Salt Interception Works 52 3.1 Response to the IAG-Salinity Recommendations Pike River Salt Interception Scheme 52 2007-08 64 Murtho Salt Interception Scheme 52 3.2 Response to Past IAG-Salinity Recommendations 69 Bookpurnong Salt Interception Scheme 52 APPENDIX A 70 Waikerie Salt Interception Scheme 53 DETAILED BREAKDOWN OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA’S Woolpunda Salt Interception Scheme 53 2008-09 SUBMISSION FOR BSMS SALINITY REGISTER 70 Loxton Salt Interception Scheme 53 REFERENCES 72 Qualco-Sunlands Groundwater Control Scheme 53 Riverland Salt Disposal Management Plan 53 1.9 Basin-wide Accountability 54 South Australia’s Entry on the BSMS Salinity Register 2008-09 54 Groundwater Models in South Australia 58 Salinity Assessment of Wetland Management Actions 59 L ist O F Figures Figure 16: Estimated volumes stored in groundwater mounds 32 Figure 1: South Australian Murray-Darling Basin 12 Figure 17: Groundwater trends in the combined SA MDB and South East regions 32 Figure 2: Visual evidence of epicormic grown on E. camaldulensis in 2005 turning into canopy Figure 18: Comparison of combined SA MDB and South East by 2007 16 groundwater trends over three decades 33 Figure 3: Visual evidence of E. camaldulensis in a low Figure 19: Presiding Member for the South Australia MDB NRM extent category transitioning to a higher crown Board, Mr Bill Paterson, and the Minister for the extent category over the duration of the study period 17 River Murray, the Honourable Karlene Maywald, at the Regional NRM Plan launch 35 Figure 4: Total salt load at Morgan 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2008-09 22 Figure 20: Water asset targets from the Regional NRM Plan 36 Figure 5: EC in South Australia during 2008-09 23 Figure 21: EC comparison between selected CSSSM surface water sites within the SA MDB NRM Board region 38 Figure 6: A4261110, continuous flow site at Morgan 23 Figure 22: South Australia’s Strategic Plan Target 3.11 Figure 7: 3D EC mapping at Bookpurnong Cliffs, looking Fact Sheet 2008-09 42 downstream 24 Figure 23: Irrigators participating in the Soils Irrigation Figure 8: 3D EC mapping at Overland Corner, Management Training Workshop 47 looking downstream 25 Figure 24: Old Man Saltbush breeding and evaluation trials at Figure 9: Location of cross sections A, B and C and the Loxton Monarto 48 Irrigation Area 26 Figure 25: The Saltland Genie web interface homepage 49 Figure 10: Track of surface salinity around the navigable edge of the Lower Lakes, June 2009 27 Figure 26: Volume of Permanent Water Trade by Reach 2008-09 56 Figure 11: Cross section at kilometre marker 193 (halfway Figure 27: Impact of Permanent Water Trade by Reach 2008-09 57 between Swan Reach and Mannum), January 2008 28 Figure 12: Run of River salinity accessions, Lock 6 to Lock 1, April 2009 29 Figure 13: Loxton Run of River salinity accessions, August 2007, October 2008 and June 2009 29 Figure 14: Pre-European water table contours 31 Figure 15: 2005 Water table contours and irrigation areas 31 L I S T O F TA B L E S L I S T O F ABBREVIATIONS Table 1: Summary of groundwater trends for the combined ADCP Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler SA MDB and South East regions 32 AHD Australian Height Datum Table 2: Status of key activities 40 BL4EA Bookpurnong Lock 4 Environment Association Table 3: On-ground work package component 40 BSMS Basin Salinity Management Strategy Table 4: Volumes of Water Traded for Irrigation 2001-2009 54 BSMAP Basin Salinity Management Advisory Panel Table 5: Permanent water trade assessed by reach in BSMS TLM Basin Salinity Management Strategy/The Living Murray 2008-09 55 CSSSM Community Stream Sampling and Salinity Mapping Table 6: Current status of MODFLOW model sub-zones in SA 58 CSIRO Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Table 7: SARMSS Monitoring Sites 60 Organisation Table 8: South Australia’s End-of-valley Summary Report DEH Department for Environment and Heritage Card for 2008-09 61 DWLBC Department of Water, Land and Biodiversity Table 9: Salinity Impact (EC at Morgan) of Permanent Conservation Water Trade Assessed 2008-09 70 EC Electrical Conductivity Table 10: Salinity Impact (Salt tonnes/day) of Permanent Water Trade Assessed 2008-09 71 FAE Field Application Efficiency FFI CRC Future Farm Industries Cooperative Research Centre GIS Geographic Information System GL Gigalitre (1 000 000 000 litres) IAG Independent Audit Group IIEP Improving Irrigation Efficiency Project IRES Irrigation Recording Evaluation System LAPs Local Action Planning Associations LWMP Land and Water Management Plan(ning) MAT Management Action Targets SIMPACT) MBI Market Based Instruments SIS Salt Interception Scheme MDB Murray-Darling Basin SL Side Looking MDBA Murray-Darling Basin Authority The PLAN Regional Natural Resource Management Plan MERI Monitoring, Evaluation, Reporting and Improvements TLM The Living Murray ML Megalitre (1 000 000 litres) TLM IGA The Living Murray Inter Governmental Agreement NAP National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality WAP Water Allocation Plan for the Prescribed River Murray Watercourse