The Sustainable Rivers Audit: assessing river ecosystem health in the Murray - Darling Basin, Australia

Abstract

The Sustainable Rivers Audit (SRA) is a systematic assessment of the health of river ecosystems in the Murray–Darling Basin (MDB), Australia. It has similarities to the United States’ Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program, the European Water Framework Directive and the South African River Health Program, but is designed expressly to represent functional and structural links between ecosystem components, biophysical condition and human interventions in the MDB. Environmental metrics derived from field samples and/or modelling are combined as indicators of condition in five themes (Hydrology, Fish, Macroinvertebrates, Vegetation and Physical Form). Condition indicator ratings are combined using expert-system rules to indicate ecosystem health, underpinned by conceptual models. Reference condition, an estimate of condition had there been no significant human intervention in the landscape, provides a benchmark for comparisons. To illustrate, a synopsis is included of health assessments in 2004–2007. This first audit completed assessments of condition and ecosystem health at the valley scale and in altitudinal zones, and future reports will include trend assessments. SRA river-health assessments are expected to play a key role in future water and catchment management through integration in a Basin Plan being developed by the Murray–Darling Basin Authority for implementation after 2011. For example, there could be links to facilitate monitoring against environmental targets.

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“…These five parameters were similar with previous researches (Ladson et al 1999;Davies et al 2010) (Fig. 4).…”

“…Biological assemblages respond to many types of disturbance, and assessments of biological condition would be based on multiple biological assemblages, thereby providing insight into the overall biological condition of an ecosystem (Carlisle et al 2008). Also, some papers (Davies et al 2010) pointed out that ecosystem health is currently determined primarily on the basis of fish and macroinvertebrate condition, and recommend to include condition of vegetation in future. Thus, macroinvertebrate and diatom condition will be added to assess ecosystem health in the future research.…”

“…Assessment of the relative performance of the various indicators groups can be used to interpret probable causal processes (Bunn et al 2010), knowing that some indicators (e.g., water quality) respond more closely to riparian zone, while others appear to respond to land use activities at the broader catchment scale (e.g., fish). Key processes link the five groups at various scales (Davies et al 2010). It is reliable to reflect ecosystem health by integrating them.…”

“…is a fundamental and increasingly important water management issue around the world, especially in Australia (Davies et al 2010;Bunn et al 2010), USA (Barbour et al 1999), and Europe (Hering et al 2010). There are two controversial concepts about ecosystem health recently.…”

“…For example, the objective of the federal Clean Water Act in the USA is to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's waters. While many have argued that a healthy stream is an ecosystem that is sustainable and resilient, maintaining its ecological structure and function over time while continuing to meet societal needs and expectations (Meyer 1997;Norris and Thoms 1999;Davies et al 2010). The second concept of river health is incorporating both ecological integrity (maintaining structure and function) and human values (what society values in the ecosystem) (Meyer 1997;Karr 1999).…”