The Basin is home to more than 2 million people; it grows more than one third of Australia’s food and is often called Australia’s Food Bowl. The agricultural and associated industries of the Basin have given rise to, and continue to support many important regional service centres and communities that have a diverse and rich history. The Basin is home to about 30 Aboriginal nations whose spiritual connection to their land, water and environment has extended over many thousands of years.
The Basin’s diverse landscapes — including over 77,000 km of rivers, more than 25,000 wetlands, many important floodplain forests and the Coorong and Lower Lakes — support a wide range of complex and dynamic ecosystems. Under the Australian Government’s The Living Murray program, there are six icon sites — most of which are also listed under the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance (the Ramsar Convention). These wetlands are environmental assets that support many species of native fish, iconic vegetation such as river red gums and many species of water-birds; they also have great cultural significance for Indigenous people and the broader community.
