Who 'owns' the Murray?: Murray-Darling Basin Agreement 1992

As more understanding of the environmental problems of the Murray-Darling system was gained, it became clear that an even more holistic approach was needed for the management of the system. Ministers of the environment, land and water from the Commonwealth, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australian governments met in Adelaide in 1985. This meeting particularly focussed on the problems of land degradation and salinity. It began an intense period of discussion between the four governments which culminated in 1987 as the newly named Murray-Darling Basin Agreement which comprised major amendments to the earlier River Murray Waters Agreement.

In 1992 a totally new Murray-Darling Basin Agreement replaced the earlier 1987 agreement. The Murray-Darling Basin Commission was formed to implement the 1992 Agreement by advising on all aspects of water, land and other environmental issues throughout the whole Basin, as well as the traditional responsibility of the management of allocation and delivery of water to the three River Murray states.