Floods

=Floods = media type="custom" key="6882365" Real Time Info on River Heights Community Support and News What to do in an Emergency Regulations History and Records Defences Ecology Hydrology Student Tasks



Warnings and Updates

 * Flood Warnings - Murray River - Campaspe River
 * Victorian Weather and Warnings

BOM River Heights

 * Murray River - Tocumwal - Gulpa Creek - Barmah - Echuca - Torrumbarry
 * Goulburn River - Seymour - Murchison - Shepparton - McCoys Bridge
 * Campaspe River - Redesdale - Eppalock - Barnadown - Rochester Syphon

Dam levels

 * Storage levels in dams on Murray, Goulburn and Campaspe Rivers



[[image:http://www.abc.net.au/emergency/flood/img/abc_local_radio_logo.jpg align="right" caption="ABC Local Radio"]]
> //ABC Local Radio is uniquely placed to communicate emergency updates to communities affected by natural disasters.// > //Listen to your [|ABC Local Radio] station for information, advice and updates.//
 * //With its network of more than 60 local radio stations throughout Australia,//

Flood News on Twitter

 * [|Victoria Police] ,
 * [|CFA], or
 * type "Echuca Floods" into the search bar

News Websites:

 *  [|ABC News Feed] ,
 *  [|News.com.au 24-7 Flood info] ,

 What To Do In An Emergency > - [|Campaspe Shire]
 * types of flooding [|State Emergency Service - FloodSafe - Floods in Victoria - Types of Floodin]
 * flood management [|State Emergency Service - FloodSafe - Floods in Victoria - Flood Management]
 * North West Region Flood Response Plan
 * [[file:After the flood - fact sheet.pdf]] - [|Campaspe Shire]



Flood Zoning

 * Flood Map (Echuca, Moama) [[file:campaspe flood extent 2011.pdf]] (94.7m on Campaspe River Gauge)
 * Is your house in an urban floodway ? (www.land.vic.gov.au)
 * MOAMA -
 * Murray Shire Council - Moama Floodplain Management Plan
 * ECHUCA -
 * Flood Response Plan -
 * Floodplain development plan Oct 2010 -
 * Economic Benefits of land use planning in flood management 2002 pdf
 * [|NLA Australian]





Flood records at Echuca Wharf (source: Port of Echuca)
1870 – 96.19 meters 1867 – 95.34 meters 1916 – 94.79 meters <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">1975 – 94.79 meters <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">1993 – 94.77 meters <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">1956 – 94.57 meters <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">1974 – 94.51 meters <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">1917 – 94.50 meters <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">1889 – 94.35 meters <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">1906 – 94.32 meters

Jan 2011 Floods

 * [|Campaspe shire Flood Info Page]
 * January 2011 Campaspe Flood Peak (when and where) [[file:Campaspe Rvr Major Flood Warning.pdf]]

//In times of need, people in our rural areas// //are famous for pulling together and supporting each other.// //In 1956 towns along the River Murray were tested to their limits// [|Story]

EMagazine: Echuca Most Memorable Flood s

**Interviews George Negus Tonight: the story of a 200 year flood**



<span style="color: #ff0000; display: block; font-family: Helvetica,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: center;">Personal stories:
<span style="font-family: Helvetica,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Community Stories: <span style="background-color: initial; font-family: Helvetica,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Wentworth <span style="font-family: Helvetica,helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 12px;">Video: Wentworth floods 1956 National Library of Australia Museum Victoria








 * === The Argus [|Newspapers - article display] ===
 * === 1932 [|CAMPASPE RIVER OVERFLOWS] (Rochester) ===
 * === 1917 The Argus: THe Murray Flood: River Still to rise - Danger to Echuca - Immense areas submerged ===
 * === [|Newspapers - article display] ===
 * === 1894 [|THE FLOOD IN THE MURRAY.] ===
 * === 1887 [|THE STATE OF THE RIVER MURRAY.] ===
 * === 1875 [|FLOOD AT ECHUCA.] ===
 * === 1870 [|THE FLOOD AT ECHUCA.] ===



<span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 30px;">Defences





 * <span style="background-color: initial; font-family: Helvetica,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">[|Kanyapala basin]
 * <span style="font-family: Helvetica,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Loch Garry: map, procedure , interview & Explanation
 * <span style="font-family: Helvetica,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Torrumbarry Wier



Levees


 = Ecology =

Barmah Forest and floods


==== <span style="color: #010101; font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">** H ** undreds of years ago the Murray flowed north of Echuca, along the course of what is today called Green Gully. It was the Goulburn River that flowed through what is now Echuca. Tectonic activity caused the land to the west of the present Barmah-Millewa Forest to be uplifted by between 8 and 12 metres along a north-south fault line, sloping back down to the west (the Cadell Tilt Block). The Cadell Fault Line runs between Deniliquin and Moama. The same fault may continue south from Echuca to, say, Runnymeade (Lake Cooper and Green Lake lay immediately east of this fault). The westward course of the Murray was blocked and a huge lake formed as a result. Earth movements along this fault are still occurring. The uplift was thought to have occurred about 16,000 years ago, give or take a few thousand years. ==== ====  Over the years, the Murray tried to escape from this lake. Gulpa Creek is an early attempt. Eventually the waters flowed around the northern edge of the tilt block as The Edward (alongside which Deniliquin is now built) and south as The Narrows. The Edward rejoined the old course of the Murray near Barham. The Goulburn may have also blocked for a time. Eventually, the Murray also found an escape to the south (The Narrows) and flowed into the Goulburn. The Narrows is a perched river with natural silt jetties separating it from the remnants of a once larger large, Moira Lake and Barmah Lake. Most rivers flow in a valley but The narrows is actually higher than the land either side, its natural levees preventing the river from spreading out over a vast area. In flood times, The narrows (Barmah Choke) cannot carry as much water as other parts of the river system, so the surrounding flat land is flooded. The fault also created numerous braided channels which distribute flood waters throughout the forest. ==== ==== Frequent flooding enabled a red gum forest to be created, with Banksia and native Pine dominating aeolian sand ridges which mark the retreating edge of prior lakes. Local rainfall alone cannot support the forest. ====



 = Hydrology =

River Formation




= How floods shape rivers =


 * [[image:image.aspx.jpeg caption="currrents undercut a redgum at the Campaspe junction (Riv Herald)"]] || [[image:image-1.aspx.jpeg caption="gradually changing the river's shape"]] ||
 * <span style="font-family: Helvetica,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">river beds move over time
 * <span style="font-family: Helvetica,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">cut and deposit
 * <span style="font-family: Helvetica,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">billabongs

== = **Student Tasks** =

Zoning and Flood Risk

 * 1) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px;">Find out which zone your house is in by reading through the above documents and the Flood map from the Shire of Campaspe.
 * 2) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px;"> How flood prone is your house?



//<span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">1. What is the current height of the river now? // ====<span style="font-size: 1.066em; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">//<span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">2. Is the river rising or falling? Explain how you can tell this. // ==== ====<span style="font-size: 1.066em; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">//<span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">3. Copy the graph from both the area where you live and somewhere upstream to your notes. // ==== ====<span style="font-size: 1.066em; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">//<span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">4. Compare these. // ==== ====<span style="font-size: 1.066em; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">//<span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">5. What do you expect to happen in the next week to the river near where you live? // ==== ====<span style="font-size: 1.066em; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">//<span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">6. Why? // ==== ||
 * //<span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Using the information on real time heights of the river answer the following questions //



= = =<span style="font-size: 1.4em; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">**Media Articles** = ===<span style="font-size: 1.1em; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">**<span style="font-family: Helvetica,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">Current News Articles ** ===
 * 1) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Make a folder with the news articles you find by searching your local paper and the links below.
 * 2) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Don’t forget to say where you found the article and what year it is from.



Past articles

 * Video:
 * 2010 - Jan 15 Rochester Floods - 9 MSN News
 * Flood watch in Echuca (ABC)
 * Floods continue to threaten Victorian towns (ABC News)
 * Towns brace for flood arrival (ABC)
 * Murray to burst bank at Echuca (The Age)
 * Levee Bank Warning for Goulburn River (Sky News)
 * [|Stateline video],
 * [|Flood waters begin to recede] (ABC)
 * Floodwaters breathe life into lower
 * Floods could stay water reform (ABC)
 * Vic Floods good for farmers and fishermen (ABC)
 * Flood waters breathe life into lower lakes (ABC)
 * Farmer see silver lining to grey clouds (ABC)
 * Articles:
 * [|Floodwaters to enliven Victorian parks] (ABC)
 * [|Boat operators confident authorities won't repeat ban] (ABC)
 * [|River peak still to come] Riverine Herald
 * [|Floodwaters recede across Victoria] ABC News
 * <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat; cursor: pointer; padding-right: 10px;">[|Flood review held up in red tape] The Age
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,'Lucida Grande','Bitstream Vera Sans',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat; cursor: pointer; padding-right: 10px;">[|Soldiers sandbag Echuca ahead of flood peak] ABC News
 * <span style="font-family: Verdana,'Lucida Grande','Bitstream Vera Sans',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat; cursor: pointer; padding-right: 10px;">[|Floodwaters bring relief for parched Murray] ABC News
 * <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat; cursor: pointer; padding-right: 10px;">Floods bring Murray back from the brink ABC News
 * [|Flood warning for lower Goulburn River]<span style="font-family: Verdana,'Lucida Grande','Bitstream Vera Sans',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;"> ABC News
 * [|Concerns shift as floodwater moves] ABC News
 * [|Flooding prompts contaminated water fears] ABC News
 * [|Flood threat moves to Echuca, Kerang] ABC News

= = = = =<span style="font-size: 1.4em; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">**What To Do In An Emergency** = <span style="font-family: Helvetica,helvetica,sans-serif;">VISUAL COMMUNICATIONS / ENGLISH
 * 1) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Make a safety broschure to be handed out to people in flood prone areas.
 * 2) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Include pictures, phone numbers and websites where they can look for information
 * 3) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Construct a simple graphic with three or four steps

= = = GEOGRAPHY = = =
 * 1) ====<span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: Helvetica,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;">Why does having three rivers make Echuca particularly suseptable to rapid flooding? ====
 * 2) ==== How does the Kanyapala basin protect Echuca from floods? ====
 * 3) ==== How did it form? ====

Levees
= = =GEOGRAPHY / SCIENCE= =How floods shape rivers=
 * 1) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Where are the biggest levee banks in Echuca and Moama?
 * 2) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Draw their positions on a map of the town.
 * 3) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Take a walk along the levees and discuss their height, position, function and potential problems.
 * 4) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">For which flood were they built?
 * 5) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">How have they been changed since that time?
 * 6) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Levee banks are sometimes controversial. Why could this be so?


 * 1) <span style="color: #ff0011; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px;">find a picture on Google Earth / Maps showing how the Murray River meanders and moves over time.
 * 2) <span style="color: #ff0011; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px;">Copy this and your favorite graphic explaining why rivers meander to your notes
 * 3) <span style="color: #ff0011; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px;">Explain how billabongs and beaches form.

= = = ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE = = =

How do floods affect our natural environment? Discuss how floods

 * dictate where forests are and what trees dominate them...
 * influence which animals that are able to live in our forest and riverine environment...
 * contribute to biodiversity...
 * affect the fertility of farmland...
 * counteract salinity...
 * recharge the water-table...
 * assist carbon capture by the environment...

= = = HISTORY = = =
 * 1) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Write down a story that you have either heard from someone about the floods, or research one.
 * 2) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Send it to your teacher and we will see if we can include it on this website.
 * 3) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Read about how the little grey fergie saved the town of Wentworth.
 * 4) <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; list-style-type: decimal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Copy a picture of a <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-color: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat; cursor: pointer; padding-right: 10px;">little grey fergie and write a poem about what happened.