This week on water watch we are travelling south in the Murray Darling Basin to a special little spot on the Murray. Nyah Vinifera is a beautiful red gum and black box forest nestled on the Victorian side of the Murray River near swan hill, where the red sands of the Mallee descend into mud of the mighty Murray.
As a Murray floodplain recognised for its ecological and cultural significance, Nyah and Vinifera have both been identified as sites for Victorian Sustainable Diversion Limit Adjustment Mechanism Projects or SDLAM. These projects aim to artificially flood the forest to reverse decades of environmental decline. But these engineering projects are hotly contested, and some believe they may even cause ecological and cultural damage to these special water places.
Take a journey with us as Dan walks through the forest with Wadi Wadi Traditional Owner, Vincent Kirby and members of Friends of Nyah Vinifera, Nicole McKay and Jaquie Kelly.