Blog Review: Murray River Locks, Weirs and Barrages

Great read Stephen. I spent the years 2002 until 2010 working in the lower Murray researching the effect of the drought on the associated wetlands and ways to ameloriate or manage these issues. The water situation became so dire that many of the wetlands and lakes were being closed off to the river to decrease evapourative losses e.g. Lake Bonney. At Cobdogla the drying sediments in the disposal basin were emitting noxious gases and the caravan park had to close, for a chemist it was fascinating, one of the gases emitted was methyl bromide, the gas used to treat fruit and vegetables. In the still of the winter pre-dawn, phosphine gas was being generated, this is the gas used to fumigate silos. As well as the usual sulfur gas stinkers, hyrogen sulfide, methyl mercaptan and dimethyl sulfide. Couldn't get any funding to take the work further unfortunately. Another weir related problem was the acidification (pH<4) of Bottle Bend Billabong when the Mildura Weir pool was drained for maintenance.