It
is believed that the Murray Darling River System was formed about 60 million
years ago. From an Aboriginal perspective, dreaming stories show that the system
was created by Ngurunderi chasing Pondi, the giant cod. From
a geographical perspective, the river evolved around 6 million years ago. It
was when the sea invaded the western part of the basin and then retreated
again. After the retreat, the Murray River flowed in a shallow valley which
created the Lower Murray River.
Aboriginals
were the first to live with and use this river. Aboriginal lived in camps
around the river. They have used the Murray River for around 40000 years. The
system had been a source of fresh drinking water and had an important area for
hunting, fishing and gathering food. Aboriginals hunted everything from mammals
and birds to reptiles and crustaceans to fish and edible plants and eggs. They
hunted using spears, sticks and obviously boomerangs. Freshwater environments
have played an important role in the Aboriginal life and have influenced the
seasonal movements of Aboriginal groups. The
first European to travel the length of the Murray was Captain Charles Sturt in
1829-30. He was trying to establish a route from New South Wales to Adelaide
for a trading corridor. With the settlement of Europeans, land near the river
was cleared for many purposes, and animal and plant species not native to Australia
were introduced.In
1887, an irrigation colony to grow fruit trees and grape vines was started at
Renmark by the Chaffey brothers from Canada. By 1920, 11 irrigation projects
have started and developed. The Murray River Commission was formed in1917 to
allow construction. Weirs, locks and barrages were among the constructions. The
first pipeline of water commissioned in 1944. Since then, salinity control,
drainage disposal, groundwater interception schemes have been brought in.
