Final report of the Independent Assessment of the 2018-19 fish deaths in the lower Darling

The Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources requested an independent panel assessment of the deaths of fish in the lower Darling River in December 2018 and January 2019. The independent panel was chaired by Prof Rob Vertessy, University of Melbourne and Chair of the Murray–Darling Basin Authority’s independent Advisory Committee on Social, Economic and Environmental Sciences (ACSEES) and involved experts in fish ecology and was informed by the investigations being undertaken by New South Wales Department of Fisheries. The objective of the independent panel’s assessment was to identify the likely causes of the 2018-19 lower Darling fish deaths and make appropriate recommendations within the operating mandate of the Murray–Darling Basin Plan and Murray–Darling Basin Agreement (Basin Agreement). The review will also help inform the development of the recently announced Native Fish Management and Recovery Strategy.