Morphological Change at the Snowy River Ocean Entrance, Victoria, Australia (1851–2008)

River-Dominated Coasts

“…Similarly the Snowy River, a once-mighty river draining from the Snowy Mountains, has experienced reduced flows, primarily as a consequence of a major diversion scheme constructed in the 1950s, and also as a consequence of reduced rainfall in its catchment. The mouth of this river has also experienced a reduction in the dimensions of its outlet and has also been closed periodically in the past two decades (Wheeler et al, 2009). Whereas both of these systems demonstrate the efficacy of wave processes on the wavedominated parts of the southern coasts of Australia, reduction of river flow into the Ord River as a result of dam construction in the 1970s has shown the efficiency of tidal flows in moving mud upstream with substantial sedimentation in the upper tidal reaches of the estuary as a consequence of reduced flow (Wolanski et al, 2001).…”

Response of a barrier estuary to climate change and river regulation using attractor analysis: Snowy River estuary, Australia

“…The dramatic difference between the stabilities pre‐SMS and post‐SMS is supported by the statistics of the reported closures of the entrance (Wheeler, Nguyen, Peterson, & Gordon‐Brown, , with additional data from authors): two closures in 100+ years pre‐SMS and 12 closures in 47 years post‐SMS. Of the latter, eight closures occurred during the 2000–2010 drought when the median river flow was 13% lower than the 30‐year value.…”

“…The dramatic difference between the stabilities pre-SMS and post-SMS is supported by the statistics of the reported closures of the entrance (Wheeler, Nguyen, Peterson, & Gordon-Brown, 2009, zone. Under these probable future states, it is expected that the entrance will be closed more frequently and for longer periods than currently.…”

“…Changes in (a) total annual Environmental Flow Regime (EFR) discharge targets and (b) daily mean discharge targets at Jindabyne Dam, March 1, 1998 to April 30, 2016. PMHD: period of maximum hydrological disturbance 2 EFR 2: A "Default Monthly Setting," based on fixed monthly average targets, 2006-2009; 3 EFR 3: A "Building Blocks Method," based on perceived ecological water requirements using an expert panel,2009-2013(Tharme, King, & Devilliers, 2008; and 4 EFR 4: A "Reference River" strategy, based on the hydrology of an unregulated montane river, 2013-2018.…”

The “Morning Glory” Project: A Papua New Guinea–Queensland Australia Undersea Freshwater Pipeline

“…We have no intention to repeat coastal changes initiated by construction of the Snowy Mountains Hydro-electricity Scheme-namely, a morphological change at the mouth of the Snowy River dating from 1951 to the present day (Wheeler et al, 2009). From the Carpentaria Gulf's shore, the Case A version of the PNG-QLD UFPM would reach the head of the Diamantina River's Basin headwaters area, probably at some topographic elevation ,313 m (maximum).…”