Over $274 million has been committed to enhancing environmental flows in the Murray-Darling Basin.

The Federal Government says the investment represents the largest to date under the Reconnecting River Country Program and aims to remove barriers preventing water from reaching wetlands and floodplains in New South Wales.

This funding will be used to upgrade infrastructure in the Murray and Murrumbidgee valleys, addressing physical and operational constraints that have long hindered environmental flows. 

The program, part of the broader Sustainable Diversion Limit Adjustment Mechanism (SDLAM), seeks to improve environmental outcomes with less water recovery under the Basin Plan, ensuring that native habitats for threatened species such as the Australasian bittern, Murray cod, and superb parrot can be repaired and restored.

The program has been in development for years, including significant community consultations. 

The new funding will allow works to begin, including projects like replacing four outdated regulators to enhance environmental watering at Werai Forest - a site of international significance, especially for First Nations communities. 

Additionally, the program will address critical low-lying public infrastructure, with projects such as the construction of a new Mundarlo Bridge near Gundagai and the raising of Mundowy Lane near Collingullie.

The government says these efforts are crucial for reconnecting floodplains with river systems, particularly in areas like the mid-Murrumbidgee wetlands between Wagga Wagga and Hay, and in the Yanco/Billabong Creek system and Lowbidgee. 

Such improvements are expected to significantly benefit the overall health of the rivers and the communities that depend on them.

Further information on the program and its developments can be accessed through the NSW Department of Planning and Environment.