Environmental Flows for Victorian Estuaries
Freshwater inflow to an estuary is a key process determining its physical and ecological character. For Australian estuaries, interactions between freshwater inflows and estuarine response is more complex than in many countries around the world because of the flood-drought character of the Australian climate.
Research undertaken by the Water Research Laboratory (primarily in collaboration with Dr Keith Bishop) has been investigating how freshwater inflows influence the saline structure of estuarine systems along the east coast of Australia. Simulations undertaken using climatic data gathered over the past 100 years have clearly revealed the role of flood and drought in determining estuarine habitat.
In 2002, with Dr Bishop and Dr David van Senden, WRL staff undertook a national review of the role of fresh water in Australian estuarine ecology and developed a framework for assessing the effects of diverting freshwater flows from estuaries.
Australian states have since being implementing methodologies for assessing environmental flows to estuaries. Dr Bill Peirson has been engaged by the Victorian Government to act as an independent review of the methodology that is being developed for their state.
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