River Murray at Mannum

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Introduction

Mannum is about 150 km upstream of the Murray Mouth. One of the main pumping stations supplying water to Adelaide is sited there. Mannum is also a popular location for houseboats.

The River Murray Operations Unit, (RMOU) part of the Bulk Water Division of SA Water Corporation collects daily salinity and flow data. >> More

The South Australian Murray Darling Basin Natural Resources Management Board also has a large amount of useful information on the River Murray in South Australia.

>> More information on issues affecting the River Murray in South Australia.

Water quality assessment

Water quality data at Mannum is collected weekly by the Murray Darling Basin Commission (MDBC). The indicators that are measured in the River Murray at Mannum are nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus), turbidity, bacteria and salinity. The concentrations of these indicators are used to classify the water quality as being in good, moderate or poor condition, according to the needs of aquatic ecosystem protection and recreational environmental values. >> More

Water quality classification for April to September 2006

Indicator	Ecosystem	Recreational
Oxidised Nitrogen	Good	NA
Total Nitrogen	Good	NA
Soluble Phosphorus	Good	NA
Total Phosphorus	Moderate	NA
Turbidity	Good	Poor
Bacteria	NA	Moderate

Notes NA = not applicable

The water quality results for the Mannum site were generally consistent with previous results. The total phosphorus at Mannum was elevated, although the soluble phosphorus was quite low. The phosphorus was probably bound up in suspended particles or algae in the water.

Turbidity was considered good for the protection of the ecosystem, although it was poor for recreational activity. Elevated turbidity can make it difficult to see submerged obstacles, reducing the safety of some recreational activities. It also makes water look less appealing for swimming. Much of the turbidity in the River Murray is due to water sourced from the Darling River, which tends to carry fine clay particles.

The bacterial (Enterococci) levels at Mannum were also elevated for recreational uses (e.g. incidental contact during boating activities). This could have been due to discharges from houseboats, wastewater treatment plant discharges and dairy farms near the river. The South Australian Department of Health has useful information on the safe use of recreational waters.

>> Archived results

Download water chemistry graphs (courtesy of the MDBC)

• Oxidised nitrogen in the Murray River at Mannum
  
• Total nitrogen in the Murray River at Mannum
  
• Total phosphorus in the Murray River at Mannum
  
• Soluble phosphorus in the Murray River at Mannum
  
• Turbidity in the Murray River at Mannum
  
• Salinity in the Murray River at Mannum
  
• Bacteria in the Murray River at Mannum

Download raw chemistry data (courtesy of the MDBC)

• All chemistry data for the Murray River at Mannum

What is being done to improve the condition of the River Murray

The River Murray is South Australia's most important river system. The South Australian Government is implementing a strong commitment to improve the condition of the Murray through the Living Murray Initiative. This initiative aims to return 500 gigalitres of water over five years to the river system. The recovered water will be used to improve the ecological health of six significant ecological assets across the Basin, three of which are the Chowilla Floodplain; the Murray Mouth, Coorong and Lower Lakes; and the River Murray channel. Funds raised by the levy will also be used to support other Murray-Darling Basin Commission programs to accelerate the recovery of the river.

The EPA has a regional office at Murray Bridge. Significant projects being run through the Murraylands office are:

• audits of milking shed effluent systems
  
• water quality monitoring programs
  
• a major water quality risk assessment >> More
  
• river vessel wastewater system audits
• marina and slipway audits.

South Australian Murray-Darling Basin Natural Resources Management Board is also developing strategies for improving water quality in the River Murray. >> More

Reports

River Murray and Lower Lakes catchment risk assessment for water quality
	Introduction and methods (960KB PDF)
	Results and management options
		Acknowledgements, Definitions, Abbreviations, Executive Summary & Introduction (327KB PDF)
		Renmark to border LAP area assessment (400KB PDF)
		Berri–Barmera and Loxton–Bookpurnong LAP areas assessment (450KB PDF)
		Riverland West LAP area assessment (526KB PDF)
		Mid Murray LAP area assessment (577KB PDF)
		Mannum to Wellington LAP area assessment (580KB PDF)
		Goolwa to Wellington and Coorong District LAP areas assessment (1329KB PDF)
		Summary of risk assessment results, Risk management options & References and data sources (212KB PDF)
River Murray 1990-1999 Report No. 1 (Jan 2002) (1.5MB PDF)
Ambient Water Quality Monitoring of The River Murray 1990-1999 (1.5MB PDF)
Cowirra Surface Irrigation Reuse Trial (1.3MB PDF)
Riverboat Waste Disposal Options (616KB PDF)

This page was last modified 14-10-2008