Merbein Common is a floodplain reserve, nestled in a bend of the Murray River just north-west of Mildura.
It is made up of a series of nationally-significant wetlands, such as Cowanna Billabong, and diverse landscapes of river red gum and black box.
Building on the success of providing water for the environment across the site, current investment in the Merbein Common responds to strong community support for enhancing recreational values. This includes improving facilities for bushwalking, cycling and canoeing.
A Cowanna bushwalk. Image courtesy Mallee CMA
An important element of the Flagship Waterways approach is to better demonstrate the social and cultural benefits of investment in waterways and catchments. To achieve this, user and stakeholder surveys have been undertaken to benchmark a range of indicators, such as recreational access and visual amenity prior to significant works.
Cowanna Bend cutting before (May 2016) and after works (July 2018). Stripped and eroded riparian banks were revegetated and mulched. Drainage was installed to prevent surface water runoff from continuing to erode the river bank. The revegetation is supported by a drip irrigation system to manage the risk of rainfall variability. Images courtesy of Mallee CMA.
There’s nothing common about the Merbein Common (video)
The Merbein Common project was celebrated by local community and Government in December 2020. Watch the above video by visiting the Mallee CMA Facebook page.
Page last updated: 13/02/20