River Landscapes

River Landscapes was a suite of programs dealing with river management issues conducted over several years, including:

• National Riparian Lands R&D Program
• National Rivers Consortium
• National River Contaminants Program
• National Eutrophication Management Program

These programs have invested in a range of research, development and knowledge exchange activities to restore, protect and enhance river and riparian environments.

For more information on each program, click on a link from Program Themes.

Managing Rivers

Rivers assume a special significance ecologically, economically, socially and culturally in Australia. There is increasing competition for use of scarce surface waters, within and between consumptive and environmental uses. At the same time, there is also abundant evidence that many Australian rivers are in poor condition, and their condition continues to deteriorate.

This situation has led to an increasing level of interest and high community aspiration in river management. However, action is limited by major knowledge gaps, and by a lack of tried and tested methods for river protection and restoration. Whilst some advances have been made in the provision of river restoration frameworks, there is much work to be done in demonstrating that these approaches are effective and economically viable. Understandably, these knowledge gaps hinder community capacity and confidence to act.

Land & Water Australia provides useful and practical information about important river management issues. First and foremost we believe it is important to protect rivers and river reaches in good condition. It is more cost effective and prudent to direct efforts to protect rivers or river reaches before undertaking rehabilitation works that are expensive and technically difficult. While it is important and necessary to tackle degraded environments where salinity, erosion and clearing have damaged rivers, it is also prudent to not let systems in good condition reach the same state of degradation due to neglect. We have produced two reports to guide and underpin river protection planning across Australia. These are

• Identifying and Protecting Rivers of High Ecological Value by Helen Dunn, and
• Guidelines for Protecting Australian Waterways by Bennett et al.

Together, this information assists people understand the key issues in river and riparian management, and enables them to adapt general management principles to their particular situation, and to know where to go for advice specific to local conditions.