Flow Monitoring, Evaluation and Research program (Flow-MER) 

October 3rd, 2024

The Flow-MER consortium is improving our understanding and evaluating the outcomes of Commonwealth environmental water in the Murray–Darling Basin. 

Protecting ecosystems in the Murray-Darling Basin 

The Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder (CEWH) manages the Commonwealth environmental water holdings in the Murray–Darling Basin. The Commonwealth’s water holdings are a result of government purchases of water entitlements and investment in more efficient water infrastructure. CEWH delivers water for the environment with the aim of improving outcomes for plants and animals across the Basin. We need to understand the outcomes that Commonwealth environmental water is providing for water-dependent ecosystems and native species. This understanding helps the CEWH to best manage their water holdings. 

Artist: Nina Rupena. http://www.ninarupena.studio 

Improving and evaluating environmental outcomes 

The Flow Monitoring, Evaluation and Research Program (Flow-MER) is a collaboration of people from several fields of research and many partner organisations. Most of the staff in CSIRO’s Managing Water Ecosystems (MWE) Group are or have been involved in the Flow-MER Basin-scale program! MWE staff involved in Flow-MER include Group Leader Dr Tanya Doody; Project Leader Dr Alison King, Team Leaders Dr Paul McInerney, Micah Davies, Dr Ashmita Sengupta and Dr Simon Linke; as well as Dr Malcolm Connolly, Dianne Flett, Dr Ruan Gannon, Dr Steve Gao, Sophie Gilbey, Dr Jackie O’Sullivan, Dr Micha Jackson, Dr Darran King, Dr Daryl Nielsen, Martin Nolan, John Pengelly, Dr Jodie Pritchard, Dr Danial Stratford, Jane Thomas, Dr Nikki Thurgate and Dr Brenton Zampatti. 

Flow-MER operates in seven selected areas of the Murray–Darling Basin – Junction of the Warrego and Darling rivers, Gwydir River System, Murrumbidgee River System, Edward/Kolety–Wakool river systems, Lower Murray River, Lachlan River system and Goulburn River. 

Flow-MER is providing the critical evidence to demonstrate environmental outcomes from the delivery of Commonwealth water for the environment across the Murray–Darling Basin. CSIRO leads the Basin-scale evaluation and research.  

The Basin-scale evaluation reports on the of the delivery of Commonwealth water for the environment. This reporting is legislatively mandated by the Water Act 2007. The Basin-scale research program improves the knowledge underpinning the evaluation and provides understanding to improve when and where Commonwealth water for the environment is delivered. 

The first Flow-MER program started in 2019 and is due to wrap up in 2025. The second Flow-MER program – Flow-MER2.0 – is already underway and will run until 2030.

Supporting better water management 

Every year, the Flow-MER Basin-scale Project evaluates the ecological responses to the delivery of Commonwealth environmental water. These evaluations report on the most recent water year and on cumulative outcomes since monitoring began in 2014. 

The evaluations:

  • support legislative requirements under the Basin Plan 
  • inform adaptive management 
  • support environmental water managers. 

The Basin-scale Project also conducts research through 13 projects that were funded between 2019 and 2024. The research program: 

  • leveraged research already being undertaken in the Basin 
  • informed the evaluation of outcomes of Commonwealth environmental water 
  • informed adaptive management of Commonwealth environmental water 
  • complemented science being undertaken across the Basin and integrating across the Basin and across Basin Themes. 

Find out more

  • Contact project leaders for more information: 

Primary Author

Jane Thomas