Menindee Lakes Full December 2010

I took pictures at the Menindee lakes in November 2007, when they were empty during a long drought. On November 28 2010, I took some video shots at the same location, and more pictures. These illustrate the quantity of water that was in the lakes in December 2010, and are posted here together as a comparison. Australia will always as in the past, be a continent of dry times and rainy times. So called environmentalists would obviously prefer to have us believe that we are rather drying up but these pictures show we are not. Great schemes such as the Murray Darling River scheme, and the Snowy scheme save water in good times and flows can then be regulated in dry times. Such schemes ensure so called environmental flows because many rivers would dry up without such schemes as they did before the institution of such schemes.
One of the locals at Menindee told me that in recent years, those down stream were asking them to send down more water but they had to keep being told there was no more to send down. But now, those downstream keep asking to have water held back as they are getting too much. They have to be told the lakes are to capacity and they can't hold any more water back. Quite a contrast! But such storages and controlled flows support farmers, as without such flows, which would be the case without such river regulative schemes, there would not only be lack of flow,
in dry times, but also excessive floods downstream in periods of heavy rainfall. Regulated water is particularly used for food production. This system as well as the others in operation, is obviously far more benificial to the people of the country and to the environment than the situation would be had such systems not be in place.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• menindee
• lakes
• water
• channel
• river
• murray
• darling
• floods

[mick111helen]

Thanks for showing that footage. I left Menindee in 2007 when it was looking pretty poor. Can't believe I am actually seeing water back in Lake Menindee again, after it being dry for many years. Can't wait to get back out there a bit later on in the year

[reidgck]

@mick111helen  -- When I first visited the Menindee lakes in late 2007 for the first time, which was something I had always wanted to do, it was quite amazing to see them practically dry. With that in mind, visiting them again in late 2010 and seeing them full, was again amazing. Australia certainly is a fantastic land subject to its age old climatic cycles and consequent incredible contrasts.

[reidgck]

@Robweja There certainly is the possibility there are more fish in the lakes now than when they were dry back in 2007 but I think there would be a lot of water surrounding each fish. I don't know how quickly they can multiply and grow to eating size but there is perhaps hope a few fish are there. There are a number of big lakes. They do seem to become rough when windy as they are rather open to weather.