THE Murray-Darling Basin Commission has started releasing up to 1.395 gigalitres of environmental water to protect critical drought refuges in South Australia and Victoria.

Critical refuge areas on the Chowilla Floodplain will receive 895 megalitres and another 500 megalitres will go towards protecting critical drought refuges in Barmah Forest.

MDBC chief executive Dr Wendy Craik said the water was available through the Living Murray program.

“It consists of Living Murray water allocation on the Environmental Water Register and some small carry-over from last year," she said.

“This water is not available for irrigation use and will not impact on the availability of water for other users."

Dr Craik said the MDBC partner governments agreed these sites were among the highest priority sites for use of the very small volume of environmental water available in the Murray system this season.

Dr Craik said six high priority sites on the Chowilla Floodplain, that received water in previous years, would also be watered.

Since 2004 environmental water has been provided to 24 sites across the Chowilla Floodplain to halt the decline in health of floodplain vegetation, including river red gums.

“The river red gums, black box and many other species that occur in this system are threatened by these prolonged drought conditions and need some respite,” Dr Craik said.

Dr Craik said that the water for Barmah Forest, which could be delivered under current flow conditions, would replenish the last remaining freshwater pools to maintain critical refuges in Gulf Creek for native fish and turtles.

She said without the water, the pools would dry out this year, most likely in early summer.

Dr Craik said the top-up watering would provide habitat at a single refuge site in Barmah Forest and would link a group of deep pools.

“Unfortunately there will still be large areas of Living Murray icon sites that will continue to decline through lack of water,” Dr Craik said.

“But we hope the small areas of Chowilla Floodplain and Barmah Forest receiving top-up water will provide a vital life support for important species.”