Water Storage and Irrigation
Small-scale pumping plants began drawing water from the Murray in the 1850s and the first large-volume plant was constructed at Mildura in 1887. The introduction of pumping stations along the river promoted an expansion of farming and led ultimately to the development of irrigation areas (including the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area).
In 1915 the three Murray states — New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia — signed the River Murray Agreement which proposed the construction of storage reservoirs in the river's headwaters as well as at Lake Victoria near the South Australian border. Along the intervening stretch of the river a series of locks and weirs were built. These were originally proposed to support navigation even in times of low water, but river-borne transport was already declining due to improved road and rail systems.
Four large reservoirs were built along the Murray; in addition to Lake Victoria (completed late 1920s). These are Lake Hume near Albury-Wodonga (completed 1936), Lake Mulwala at Yarrawonga (completed 1939) and Lake Dartmouth, which is actually on the Mitta Mitta River upstream of Lake Hume (completed 1979). The Murray also receives water from the complex dam and pipeline system of the Snowy Mountains Scheme.
From 1935 to 1940 a series of barrages were built near the Murray Mouth to stop seawater egress into the lower part of the river during low flow periods. They are the Goolwa Barrage(632m), Mundoo Channel Barrage(800m), Boundary Creek Barrage(243m). Ewe Island Barrage(853m) and Tauwitchere Barrage(3.6km).
These dams inverted the patterns of the river's natural flow from the original winter-spring flood and summer-autumn dry to the present low level through winter and higher during summer. These changes ensured the availability of water for irrigation and made the Murray Valley Australia's most productive agricultural region, but have seriously disrupted the life cycles of many ecosystems both inside and outside the river, and the irrigation has led to dryland salinity that now threatens the agricultural industries.
The disruption of the river's natural flow, run-off from agriculture, and the introduction of pest species like the European Carp has led to serious environmental damage along the river's length and to concerns that the river will be unusably salty in the medium to long term — a serious problem given that the Murray supplies 40% of Adelaide's domestic water. Efforts to alleviate the problems proceed but disagreement between interested groups stalls progress.
In 2006 the state government of South Australia revealed their plan to investigate the construction of the controversial Wellington Weir.
Read more about this topic: Murray River
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