A consistent vegetation classification for wetland conservation and management in the Murray–Darling Basin, Australia

Yiwen Chen; Matthew J Colloff; Michael D Doherty; Jamie Pittock

doi:10.1071/MF24205

RESEARCH ARTICLE (Open Access)

Previous Next Contents Vol 76(5)

A consistent vegetation classification for wetland conservation and management in the Murray–Darling Basin, Australia

Yiwen Chen

^A ^* , Matthew J Colloff

^A , Michael D Doherty ^B and Jamie Pittock

^A

+ Author Affiliations

- Author Affiliations

^A Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia.

^B Eucryphia Botanical Consulting, Canberra, ACT 2602, Australia.

^* Correspondence to: yiwen.chen@anu.edu.au

Handling Editor: Max Finlayson

Marine and Freshwater Research 76, MF24205 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF24205

Submitted: 17 September 2024 Accepted: 18 February 2025 Published: 20 March 2025

© 2025 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)

Abstract

Context

Wetland classifications aid decision-making for conservation purposes. Multiple classifications exist for the Murray–Darling Basin, Australia, including the Australian National Aquatic Ecosystem (ANAE) classification and ones for each Basin State. The Basin ANAE classification lacks clear definitions of wetland types and is misaligned with international conservation frameworks. Most State-based classifications cannot be used to support wetland management at Basin-scale.

Aims

Our objective was to provide a simple, consistent, standardised classification of wetlands for the Basin to support for decision-making on conservation policy and management.

Methods

We assessed the applicability and compatibility of existing classifications on the basis of principles of adequacy of definition, consistency, information quality and reproducibility. We merged datasets of vegetation communities from each Basin State into vegetation classes used by New South Wales, which aligned most closely with these principles. We mapped wetland extent within protected areas and areas that receive managed environmental flows.

Key results

We identified nine major wetland types. Only 8% of their extent was within protected areas and 12% within the actively managed floodplain.

Conclusions

Basin wetlands are poorly protected and continue to rely on occasional high, natural, unregulated flows for their persistence.

Implications

Our synthesis presents a consistent typology of wetlands that can be used to improve conservation policy and management.

Keywords: climate change adaptation, ecological representativeness, Kunming–Montreal Biodiversity Framework, Murray–Darling Basin, protected areas, spatial information, vegetation communities, wetland conservation, wetland definition and inventory.

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