The Dammed and the Saved: a Conservation Triage Framework for Wetlands under Climate Change in the Murray-Darling Basin, Australia.

ABSTRACT: As the impacts of climate change and water demands from irrigation continue to increase in the Murray-Darling Basin, water for the environment is becoming more scarce and the ecological conditions of many wetlands is poor. With water scarcity, conservation triage is becoming an increasingly relevant management option for environmental watering of wetlands. However, triage is controversial; being considered contrary to current conservation objectives and practices. We assessed environmental watering at two Ramsar wetlands, Macquarie Marshes and Gunbower Forest, based on international environmental treaty obligations and domestic policy settings, changes to flow regimes, wetland condition and current management. Triage decision making was found to be in tacit use at Macquarie Marshes, based

SUBMITTER: Schweizer V 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9439973 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature