TODAY marks the 30th anniversary of the Coorong and Lower Lakes being listed as a Ramsar wetland of international significance.
Water and the River Murray Minister Ian Hunter said today also marked five years of continuous flows to the Coorong - made possible with environmental flows at the end of the Millennium drought - and the opening of the Boundary Creek Fishway.
“These are noteworthy milestones that show the progress we have made in helping return this beautiful region to health following the drought," he said.
“State and Federal governments and the local community have all been vital in restoring the region and building its resilience, however its future is dependent on environmental water.
“This is one of the many reasons why the State Government is calling for the Murray Darling Basin Plan to be implemented on time and in full."
Mr Hunter said the delivery of environmental water under The Living Murray Initiative was essential to maintaining freshwater releases to the Coorong.
"These flows are critical to supporting the ongoing recovery of native fish, waterbirds, vegetation and maintaining the site’s ecology and international importance," he said.
“We must continue to highlight the importance of continued, careful management by SA to make the most efficient use of environmental water.
“But we still have more work to do to sustain the Coorong, Lakes Alexandrina and Albert wetland as a Ramsar site, as well as supporting its role in recreation, tourism, agriculture and fishing, and as an area central to Aboriginal culture and spiritual beliefs."
The Coorong and Lakes Alexandrina and Albert wetland was listed under the Ramsar Convention in 1985, and has a surface area of 242,500 hectares.
The Ramsar Convention aims to halt the world-wide loss of wetlands and to conserve, through wise use and management, those that remain.
