| Macquarie River | |
|---|---|
Macquarie River flowing under the Evans Bridge in Bathurst |
|
| Mouth | Barwon River |
| Basin countries | Australia |
| Length | 626 km |
| Source elevation | 671 m |
The Macquarie River is one of the main inland rivers in New South Wales. Its headwaters rise in the central highlands of New South Wales near the town of Oberon. The river travels generally northwest past the towns of Bathurst, Wellington, Dubbo, Narromine, and Warren to the Macquarie Marshes. The Macquarie Marshes then drain into the Darling River via the lower Barwon River.
Burrendong Dam is a large dam (capacity 1,190,000 Megalitres) near Wellington which impounds the waters of the Macquarie River and its tributaries the Cudgegong River and the Turon River for flood control and irrigation. The dam creates Lake Burrendong.[1]
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From its origin the Macquarie River flows for 626 kilometres and drops around 517 metres over its length.[2] Lake Burrendong (346m) is the only dam along the length of the river.
The Macquarie River starts below the locality of White Rock near Bathurst at an elevation of 671m.[2]
It is a combination of three water systems which are Davy's Creek, the overflow from Chifley Dam which fed by the Campbells River, and the Fish River which flows into and out of the Oberon Dam.
Six rivers flow into the Macquarie River they are; Fish River (670m), Turon River (406m), Cudgegong River (342m), Bell River (285m), Little River (271m), and Talbragar River (257m)[2]
Along its course 19 creeks flow into the Macquarie River they are; Winburndale Rivulet (484m), Tambaroora Creek (398m), Pyramul Creek (360m), Curragurra Creek (351m), Triamble Creek (342m), Wuuluman Creek (302m), Wambangalong Creek (265m), Cumboogle Creek (263m), Mogriguy Creek (257m), Whylandra Creek (255m), Coolbaggie Creek (246m), Brummagen Creek (239m), Gin Gin Creek (217m), Greenhide Creek (209m), Bulla Bulla Creek (202m), Five Mile Cowal (187m), Marebone Break (184m), Bulgeraga Creek (179m) and Oxley Break (171m). (decending elevation shown in brackets)
The Macquarie system covers an area of more than 74,000 square kilometres. Over 72% of land is flat, with an additional 17% undulating to hilly. The remainder is steep to mountainous, rising progressively to elevations above 900 metres. To the east the boundary is formed by the Great Dividing Range, this boundary extends from near Oberon in the south to Coolah in the north. A well defined ridge extends north-west from the Great Dividing Range for around 400 kilometres, then the boundary turns north.[6]
From Bathurst, near the formation of the river it passes the following geographic areas:
Rainfall varies across the catchment of the Macquarie River, generally the peaks and tablelands receive higher rainfall due to the shadowing effects of the surrounding ranges. The Great Dividing Range area receives between 750 to 900 mm annual median rainfall. This is distributed relatively uniformly throughout the year. Where breaks in the Dividing Range allow the intrusion of moist easterly air streams inland, annual median rainfall of 750 mm or more is experienced further westward. Further north-west in the Castlereagh and middle portions of the Macquarie valleys the annual median rainfall is 300 to 400 mm.[6]
Rainfall can vary dramatically over several years. As an example of this records show a variation from >200% to <50% of the average annual figure. Evaporation varies from less than 1000 mm south-east of Bathurst up to more than 2000 mm at Bourke.[6]
| Area Total | 12,300 km² |
| Total storage volume | 1,559,620 ML |
| Total surface water use | 406,840 ML/yr |
| Development Category | over developed |
| Mean annual run-off | 0 ML/yr |
The Wiradjuri people are the original inhabitants of the area that includes the Macquarie River catchment.[7] The Wiradjuri knew the river as the Wambool.[8] The noted Wiradjuri warrior Windradyne came from the upper Macquarie River region, and was fatally wounded in a tribal battle alongside the river in 1829.[9]
Near Carinda between the Macquarie River and Marra Creek the oldest evidence of bread making in the world (approximately 30,000 years old) was found at an ancient lake known as Cuddie Springs.[10]
The upper reaches of the Macquarie River were first sighted by Europeans in 1813 and the river was named for the then Governor of New South Wales, Lachlan Macquarie. In 1813 surveyor George Evans wrote in his journal:
Tuesday, 30th November 1813. I have at length reached the Ridge I so much wished to do after walking about 2 Miles, where I had a prospect to the North for a great distance; A Mist arises from a part I suppose to be a River or a large Lagoon about 20 Miles Off;
Thursday, 9th December 1813. I have called the Main Stream "Macquarie River".[11]
The Macquarie River catchment is a regulated Water Management Area and includes private irrigation as well as several public irrigation schemes[13]
The Macquarie River has a history of flooding, some significant events are listed below. After major floods water can flow past the Macquarie Marshes and into the Barwon-Darling river system upstream of Brewarrina.[14]
Recreational activities are popular along the length of the river particularly in the communities it passes by.