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Murray–Darling Healthy Rivers Program

Applications for Round 1 of the small grants stream for the program are now closed.

We consulted Basin communities on the program design. Read the community feedback.

The Australian Government’s $20 million Murray–Darling Healthy Rivers Program is funding community-led grants for on-ground projects that improve the health and ecological condition of rivers and wetlands across the Basin, while supporting economic development and jobs.

This program is part of the Murray–Darling Communities Investment Package.

The Murray–Darling Healthy Rivers Program is being delivered in 2 streams:

  • a small grants stream, for projects between $5,000 and $50,000
  • a large grants stream for projects over $50,001.

Round 1 of the small grants stream is now closed for applications. 

Successful grant applicants will be announced in the coming months.

Round 2 of the small grants stream and the large grants stream will open in mid-2021.

Community feedback on program guidelines

We consulted Basin communities on program design, including the draft guidelines between 18 December 2020 and 22 January 2021.

You can read the feedback received and the changes made to the guidelines in the report below.

Who participated: There were 4,600 visits to the webpage and 513 downloads of guidelines. We received 48 survey responses, with 18 from New South Wales, 18 from Victoria, 6 from Queensland, 5 from South Australia and 1 from the Australian Capital Territory, as well as 10 written submissions. There were a wide range of respondents, with the most applicants identifying as private citizens, non-profit non-government organisations, land managers and natural resource management organisations. Smaller numbers of respondents identified as dryland farmers, irrigators, Indigenous organisations and environmental groups. Eligibility: 70% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the draft guidelines clearly explain eligibility requirements. 64% agreed or strongly agreed that the lists of eligible entities in both the small and large grants guidelines are broad enough to enable wide community participation (only 13% disagreed or strongly disagreed). Projects: 80% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that they can identify potential projects that will address river and wetland health in their community. 71% agreed or strongly agreed that the range of funding amounts available will allow a wide range of projects to be supported. 69% would be able to source all local goods and services to deliver a project under the program, 22% would be able to source some local services. 60% agreed or strongly agreed that $50,000 is a suitable maximum funding amount for the small grants stream, while only 22% disagreed or strongly disagreed. Applying: The biggest barriers to participating in the program were: confidence in the application and assessment process; concerns about red tape in managing the grant; time needed to apply and difficulty in understanding the guidelines. 52% of respondents said they needed 4 weeks to apply under the small grants stream, 31% said they needed 6 weeks to apply and 17% said they needed 8 weeks to apply.

Download the community feedback report

Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, 2021

Document Pages File size
Murray–Darling Healthy Rivers Program – Community feedback report PDF 39 1.2 MB
Murray–Darling Healthy Rivers Program – Community feedback report DOCX​​​​​ 39 1.1 MB

If you have difficulty accessing these files, visit web accessibility for assistance.

Written submissions received

A number of stakeholders and individuals also made written submissions.

We would like to thank all those who made a submission.

Disclaimer: Submissions have been published below unless authors have not authorised publication of their submission on the department’s webpage. Personal information has been redacted in some submissions, including where the submitter did not wish to be identified.

Views or opinions expressed in submissions reflect those of the organisation or individual making the submission. The Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment does not endorse the views or opinions expressed in any submission.

The Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment makes no representations or warranties regarding the contents of submissions published on this website, including with respect to factual accuracy and intellectual property. Intellectual property in submissions is held by the author of the submission and the author is responsible for factual accuracy. The Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment disclaims all liability in relation to the publication of the submissions on this website.

Submissions

Published submissions may not meet Australian Government accessibility requirements as they have not been prepared by the department.

Document Pages File size
Commonwealth Environmental Water Office PDF 1 133 KB
Deidentified submission PDF 2 109 KB
Fiona and Phil Murdoch PDF 1 10 KB
Fiona Hamer PDF 3 131 KB
Murray Valley Private Diverters PDF 5 123 KB
OzFish PDF 2 299 KB
Peter S Bourn PDF 1 51 KB
Timothy Ashton PDF 3 43 KB

 

 

 

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Last reviewed: 30 March 2021
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