A year after MIA farmers lamented about the water quality in irrigation channels, some feel little has changed.
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Concerns have again been raised about the health and viability of Barren Box Storage and Wetlands
Despite blue green algae levels being listed as “red alert” on Murrumbidgee Irrigation’s (MI) website, water is still flowing from Barren Box Storage and Wetland to the outfall channel for use on farms, sparking concerns from wetland expert Geoff Sainty.
Blue-Green Algae blooms can produce harmful toxins and is considered unsuitable for livestock, domestic or recreational purposes.
“Their is water being drained out of Barren Box, travelling all the way to Goolgowi,” Mr Sainty said.
“These channels are being used for farming and goodness-knows-what when the water flowing is totally unfit for being used.”
The Barren Box Storage and Wetlands redevelopment was launched by MI in 2005, as an attempt to restore the site.
It serves as the MIA’s main irrigation and urban drainage water recycle point.
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According to MI’s website, the shallow nature of the site meant a lot of water was lost to evaporation.
Mr Sainty is critical of the way the project was developed, believing it has been largely unsuccessful.
“In making the site deeper they removed any chance of making it into a proper wetland. These kinds of plants need shallow water to survive,” he said.
“They’ve also replanted a lot of trees that aren’t native to a wetland area. It’s an ecological failure and it’s lost the majority of it’s aquatic vegetation.”
He said bacteria levels are high enough “to prohibit the use of the water for any human and animal purpose”
Despite this, a spokesman for MI says Barren Box Swamp has had practical and ecological benefits.
“As a result of the project, 20,000 megalitres of water savings is returned annually to the Snowy and Murray Rivers and our Wah Wah customers have a more reliable and secure water supply,” he said.
Blue-Green Algae levels within Barren Box’s wetland cell also sit at red-alert.
MI did not comment on the quality of the water flowing out of Barren Box and into channels.
The NSW Government approved the $29 million redevelopment in 2005.
MI say there are no further plans to develop the site, but repairs are currently being carried out.
“There are no plans to further develop Barren Box. We are currently undertaking works at Barren Box to repair some structural damage which occurred during the 2016 floods.”
