2 Renmark to border LAP area assessment - EPA - Sa.gov.au

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River Murray and Lower Lakes catchment risk assessment for water quality: Results and management options Management option 39 EPA to consider auditing petrol station (in close proximity to the river) records and monitoring data to assess risk of fuel leakage. Transport infrastructure (bridges and causeways) 248 Status of implementation: Not started Risk level: low Possible options: capital works, research and development Suggested lead stakeholders: local councils, DTEI Bridges over the river or backwaters were generally rated as low risk due to the low likelihood of an accident that would release a fuel spill; however, a large spill entering the river may have major effects on the ecosystem or water supplies. Management option 40 Preventative measures such as bridge cages (to prevent trucks transporting diesel and other contaminants from entering the river as result of accidents) and barriers warrant investigation, as does investigation of spill response capability. Quarries Status of implementation: Not started Risk level: low Possible options: capital works, capacity building Suggested lead stakeholders: EPA, facility owners/operators Few quarries were identified and the majority of these were identified as a low potential risk to water quality (through runoff of sediment to the river). Uncertainties in the risk assessment: Individual sites were not inspected leaving some uncertainty as to the risk level. 9.2 General recommendations Several general recommendations that arose out of the risk assessment consultation and research (but were not specifically related to a particular hazard) are discussed below. Cumulative water quality impacts Cumulative impacts must also be considered, particularly in the current context of increasing development along the river. An example might be septic tanks on the floodplain of the river: while one septic tank may have a low overall risk, several septic tanks in a defined area could have a very detrimental impact. Alternatively, one pathogen source could have a low risk on the upper reaches of the river but further downstream pathogen risks could accumulate to create a higher overall level of risk. The end point of allowing risks to accumulate to adverse levels is ‘death by a thousand cuts’. In the
River Murray and Lower Lakes catchment risk assessment for water quality: Results and management options current study, the GIS-based maps allow assessment of the density of risks and hazards. In the next stage of the study, the cumulative impact will be analysed in more detail and compared to water quality trends. General recommendation 1 The relative cumulative impact of water quality risks is examined for each environmental value during Stage III of the project. Water quality information Status of implementation: Underway Studies on water quality were last undertaken for the river in the period 1990–1999 (EPA 2001a), the lakes in the period 1995–1997 (EPA 1998b), and Salt Creek and Coorong up to 2005 (DWLBC 2005). Basic information on pollutant concentrations and loads from various sources (eg rivers, houseboats, stormwater, Lower Murray irrigation areas) is lacking in most cases. It would be beneficial to re-examine monitoring data, particularly exceedences for different environmental values and hazards identified in this report. This may enable a refinement of action and area priorities. General recommendation 2 The EPA and SA Water research existing data and produce an updated water quality report for the River Murray, Lower Lakes and Coorong. Where possible this report should include basic load calculations from various inputs (eg rivers/creeks, Lower Murray flood irrigated areas, houseboats, groundwater, stormwater). Links to the risk assessment project outcomes should be explored in the data analysis. Status of implementation: Not started but ongoing monitoring data collected for a number of sites and activities Processes affecting water quality The fate and transformation of nutrients in the river, Lower Lakes and Coorong was largely unknown, making assessment of nutrient consequences difficult. In particular the influence of bottom sediments as a nutrient source or sink, influence of wetlands and riverbank vegetation in removing nutrients, relative importance of denitrification for removing nitrogen from the system, and cross-sectional and depth distribution of nutrient levels. General recommendation 3 The EPA, SA Water and DWLBC to investigate uncertainties in information and options for developing a water quality model for the river. A funding submission should be prepared to federal bodies to fund more detailed water quality monitoring and construction of the model. Status of implementation: A scoping-level monitoring study on horizontal and depth distribution of nutrients is underway at selected locations (SAMDB NRMB). 249
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E N V I R O N M E N T P R O T E C T
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The River Murray and Lower Lakes ca
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6 Mannum to Wellington LAP area ass
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Table 6.5 Frequency of risk to recr
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Figure 7.2 Example of hazard to wat
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Roz Becker, Riverland Tourism Assoc
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Abbreviations 10 ADWG Australian Dr
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Executive Summary The River Murray
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River Murray and Lower Lakes catchm
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Current and potential future option
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2 Renmark to border LAP area assessment - EPA - Sa.gov.au

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