What are the issues?
There are often conflicts between the social and economic benefits
of contemporary land uses and their effect on the environmental
values of water resources. In South Australia, the two biggest
challenges we have in trying to balance this conflict are the
River Murray and the Mount Lofty Ranges Watershed.
The catchments of the Mount Lofty Ranges are used for many different
purposes including agriculture, recreation, intensive horticulture,
urban living and conservation. This diverse range of land uses
puts pressure on water resources and can affect water quality.
The Mount Lofty Ranges Watershed is a water protection area under
the Environment Protection Act 1993, and a special management
area regulated under the Water Resources Act 1997 to protect
the quality and quantity of the drinking water it supplies to
metropolitan Adelaide. Maintaining good quality water in this
environmentally sensitive region is of paramount importance.
Nutrients from urban and rural areas can run off into rivers
and streams and can cause algal blooms. Faecal contamination from
animals and poorly maintained septic tank systems is a health
risk, particularly in regions where the water is used for drinking
or recreation.
Drinking water
Deteriorating water quality in the River Murray is a major problem
for South Australia. Recent work done by the Murray-Darling Basin
Commission suggests that salinity will get worse over the next
20 to 50 years. This will have environmental, social and economic
implications, particularly for Adelaide, which relies heavily
on the River Murray to provide domestic water.
Biodiversity
Declining water quality will reduce the health of aquatic plant
and animal communities. Heavy metals, high nutrient and salinity
levels and toxic blue-green algae are all major problems.
Recreation and tourism
Polluted water jeopardises recreation and eco-tourism. Poor water
clarity is a danger to swimmers as it makes it hard to see obstacles
such as rocks and logs.
This page was last modified 21-06-2006
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