Are engineering solutions our best approach?
Abstract
There are currently three separate groundwater pumping schemes in the Sunraysia region (located in northern Victoria and south west NSW) that prevent saline groundwater inflows to the River Murray. An extensive study has recently been undertaken that included the assessment of new opportunities to limit the export of salt from irrigation areas in Sunraysia to the river. This paper discusses the process and key outcomes of the calculation of benefits and costs for selection of a preferred salt interception option on the basis of economic efficiency. The assessment highlighted the importance of engineering options, specifically saline groundwater interception adjacent to the river, in providing the interception potential required to prevent large inflows of salt to the river in a timely, cost-effective manner. There are however some concerns regarding planning aspects and sustainability of groundwater interception and disposal design. This paper discusses the importance of groundwater interception whilst highlighting the need for assessment of options against a range of criteria, rather than just economic efficiency alone, in the development of longterm solutions to manage river salinity.
Authors
A. E. Mannix, K. Collett & G. Hoxley