The Murray-Darling Basin is Australia’s largest river system, named for its 2 major rivers. A system of connected rivers and lakes, the Basin comprises 23 major rivers, including the River Murray (2,508 km) and Darling River (2,739 km).
The Basin includes:
- most of New South Wales
- some of southern Queensland
- the east of South Australia
- northern Victoria
- all of the Australian Capital Territory.
The Basin has 22 catchments. These are areas of land where water collects at surface level and below. Its surface or above-ground water includes rivers, lakes and wetlands. Bores, rocks and soils store ground water below.
Catchment boundaries are set where rivers and tributaries run. Each catchment has its own rules for water use, based on size, environment and community.
The Basin is home to:
- hundreds of lizard species
- 120 species of bird
- more than 50 species of fish
- 46 snake species
- 31 frog species
- 3 species of turtle.
The Basin also has:
- 40% of Australia’s farms
- 14% of Australia’s land mass
- a 1.06 million km² span over 4 states and 1 territory
- $30 billion of food and fibre production each year
- 2.4 million residents
- more than 600,000 visitors each year
- more than 50 First Nations communities.