Wetlands disaster at the mouth of Australia’s Murray River
By MARIAN WILKINSON ENVIRONMENT EDITOR
November 23, 2009 THE collapse of the Coorong wetlands at the mouth of the Murray River is shaping up to be one of the Australia’s worst environmental disasters, an author of a report on the region said yesterday. Bird numbers in the region have fallen dramatically and freshwater turtles continue to die in large numbers. Professor Richard Kingsford said estimates of waterbirds for the region were 250,000 in November 2007 but a similar survey last year showed numbers had declined 48 per cent. Professor Kingsford, who also advises the Federal Government on the Coorong and Lower Lakes, said one of the most disturbing developments in the wetlands has been the explosion of tubeworms in the freshwater lakes. The marine worms attach themselves to the backs of the turtles, colonising them until they are so weighed down they drown. ”It is the most poignant example of the collapse of the system,” he said. ”Because there is not enough fresh water coming down the river, the lakes are becoming more salty and this marine tubeworm is invading the freshwater lakes.” ”Down along the lakes there are schoolchildren that go out and try to rescue them with buckets and try to chip off the worms. That tells the story about what is happening in this system”. …
