Mungindi and Collarenebri to benefit from the temporary lifting of water restriction orders
As rainfall makes it way south, the state government has lifted temporary water restriction orders in some parts of the local region.
Towns to benefit include Mungindi and Collarenebri, which were facing less than three months of water.
As a result of the pumping and floodplain harvesting restrictions in the Northern Basin, the long-awaited flows to the northern parts of NSW are now expected to meet critical needs along the full length of the Barwon-Darling River, and the target of 60-70 gigalitres in Lake Wetherell.
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This will enable a connectivity event to the end of the Lower Darling River.
Emma Solomon from the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment, said that the department had been closely monitoring the flows and the forecasts.
"I'm really pleased that substantial flows have made its way downstream, as a result of the rainfall and the embargoes that we put in place to protect those flows," Ms Solomon said.
"The recent sustained rainfall and flows in the northern Murray-Darling Basin, including from the Namoi and other northern tributaries, have seen flows down the Barwon River all the way to Brewarrina and Bourke, providing critical relief to communities along the way.
"The flow is now forecast to reach Wilcannia and Menindee and flow into Lake Wetherell.
"Access has been given to some upstream parts of the northern river valleys, as those flows are no longer required to meet target volumes along the Barwon-Darling and in Lake Wetherell," she said.