The recently released Australian State of the Environment report includes a reference to the Barmah Choke on the Murray River and an investigation by the Yorta Yorta Nation.
The choke, also known to the Yorta Yorta as Pama Narrows, has been the subject of a number of reports by river authorities in the past 10 years.
The Barmah Choke restricts the flow capacity of the Murray River to around 9600 megalitres per day.
The Elders of Yorta Yorta Nation have begun an investigation into water impacts on the Pama Narrows to determine the impact of flow regulation on Yorta Yorta knowledge, stories, people and sites, including middens, mounds and scarred trees.
The Yorta Yorta has engaged a drone specialist to assist with telling their story visually.
“The investigation aims to preserve their traditional story, culture and identity intact,” the report in the State of the Environment said.
The Murray-Darling Basin Authority is currently investigating the discovery of a sand slug moving down the bed of the river which could affect channel capacity along the Barmah National Park section of the Murray River.
Some reports argue that the channel capacity is diminishing, although detailed investigations failed to find conclusive evidence of a decline, from either hydrographic records or geomorphic data.
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