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This is a technical report by Alluvium Consulting. This report contains advice to the Murray-Darling Basin Authority concerning key ecosystem functions and their water requirements.

As part of the Northern Basin review we have re-assessed the environmental water requirements for the river systems. As a result of this assessment, updates were made to the Condamine-Balonne and Barwon-Darling environmental water requirements reports.

The Murray–Darling Basin Authority met on 10 and 11 September 2019 in Canberra against the backdrop of worsening drought in the Basin, with the Bureau of Meteorology advising that winter this year had been the driest since 1982 and the fourth driest on record. These conditions are reflected in extremely low storage levels in the northern Basin and low inflows continuing in the southern Basin.

The Murray–Darling Basin Authority's Chief Executive, Phillip Glyde, welcomed the announcement that environmental water holders will be using water bought to benefit the environment in the coming weeks. 

At its meeting on 7-8 May 2019 in Canberra, the Murray–Darling Basin Authority noted the meeting was held during federal caretaker period. The Authority was able to progress a number of key items including water resource plans, river management and climate change.

As part of ongoing monitoring, the MDBA and the Commonwealth Environmental Water Office commissioned the University of Adelaide to find out if Yarra Pygmy Perch reintroduced into the Lower Lakes after the Millennium Drought were still present in the wild.

The annual outlook describes seasonal and ecosystem conditions and gives an indication of the watering priorities for the coming year.

For the first time, water for the environment has flowed through a 2000-kilometre network of rivers in the northern Murray–Darling Basin, reaching the Menindee Lakes near Broken Hill.

Improving the outlook for threatened and recreational fish are key outcomes sought from the MDBA’s Basin-wide Environmental Watering Strategy.

A study from the five-year evaluation of the Basin Plan shows early evidence that water for the environment contributes to the wellbeing of Basin residents and visitors.