Murray Darling Basin
1. Describe the geographical location of the area you have chosen as the case study. Include data about area, population, states/territories, rivers/wetlands, climate and land use.
The Murray Darling Basin is a large geographical area that is of national significance both socially, culturally, economically and environmentally. It covers 1,061,469 square kilometers in area, which is about one-seventh of Australia’s total land mass and is home to over 2 million people. The Basin sits at the south-east corner of Australia and stretches across 4 states and 1 territory, passing through most of New South Wales, Victoria and Australian Capital Territory and only parts of Queensland and South Australia.
One of the Basin’s most valuable resources is the water, with all 3 of Australia’s longest rivers running through the Basin. The name of the basin itself is derived from its two major rivers the Murray River (approx. 2500km) and The Darling River (approx. 1545km) , with The Murrumbidgee River (approx. 1480km) being the third longest. Most of the Basin land is flat, low-lying and far inland, receiving little direct rainfall which then causes most of the rivers to have a very low gradient over most of their length. This results in slow-flowing rivers across the vast inland plains that carry a volume of water that is large by Australian standards. Within the Basin is also approximately 30,000 wetlands of various sizes with large wetland systems occurring along the Darling river.
The Murray Darling Basin is also one of Australia’s most important agricultural regions, containing over 40% of all Australian farms and produces one-third of Australia’s food supply. It provides wool, cotton, wheat, sheep, cattle, dairy produce, rice, oil-seed, wine, fruit and vegetables for both domestic and overseas markets whilst also producing over 70% of Australia’s irrigated agriculture. There is also a large variety of climatic conditions present in the basin, from sub-tropical conditions
The Murray Darling Basin is a large geographical area that is of national significance both socially, culturally, economically and environmentally. It covers 1,061,469 square kilometers in area, which is about one-seventh of Australia’s total land mass and is home to over 2 million people. The Basin sits at the south-east corner of Australia and stretches across 4 states and 1 territory, passing through most of New South Wales, Victoria and Australian Capital Territory and only parts of Queensland and South Australia.
One of the Basin’s most valuable resources is the water, with all 3 of Australia’s longest rivers running through the Basin. The name of the basin itself is derived from its two major rivers the Murray River (approx. 2500km) and The Darling River (approx. 1545km) , with The Murrumbidgee River (approx. 1480km) being the third longest. Most of the Basin land is flat, low-lying and far inland, receiving little direct rainfall which then causes most of the rivers to have a very low gradient over most of their length. This results in slow-flowing rivers across the vast inland plains that carry a volume of water that is large by Australian standards. Within the Basin is also approximately 30,000 wetlands of various sizes with large wetland systems occurring along the Darling river.
The Murray Darling Basin is also one of Australia’s most important agricultural regions, containing over 40% of all Australian farms and produces one-third of Australia’s food supply. It provides wool, cotton, wheat, sheep, cattle, dairy produce, rice, oil-seed, wine, fruit and vegetables for both domestic and overseas markets whilst also producing over 70% of Australia’s irrigated agriculture. There is also a large variety of climatic conditions present in the basin, from sub-tropical conditions