Murray River National Park

Not to be confused with Murray Valley National Park in New South Wales or Murray-Sunset National Park in Victoria.

Murray River National Park
South Australia
IUCN category VI (protected area with sustainable use of natural resources)[1]
Murray River, Murray River National Park, March 2010
Murray River National Park is located in South Australia
Murray River National Park
Murray River National Park
Nearest town or cityBerri
Coordinates34°23′13″S 140°32′23″E / 34.38694°S 140.53972°E / -34.38694; 140.53972
Established20 June 1991 (1991-06-20)[2][3]
Area135.92 km2 (52.5 sq mi)[4]
Managing authoritiesDepartment for Environment and Water
WebsiteMurray River National Park
See alsoProtected areas of South Australia

Murray River National Park is a protected area in South Australia located between 180 kilometres (110 mi) and 240 km (150 mi) north east of the Adelaide city centre, lying along the Murray River. The national park is classified as an IUCN Category VI protected area.[1] As of 2022 the national park comprises more than 14,879 ha (36,770 acres), and includes a vast network of Murray River wetlands and floodplains.[5]

The national park was proclaimed on 20 June 1991 under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972,[6] "to conserve a significant proportion of South Australia’s floodplain environments which are not represented widely in other reserve systems".[7]

The national park originally consisted of the first three sections listed below,[6] with the following three in existence (six in total) as of 2022. All of the sections adjoin the Murray River, extending from near Loxton in the south west to near Renmark in the north-east.[8][5]

  • Katarapko (9,500 ha (23,000 acres)), on the north side of the river between Loxton in the south and Berri in the north
  • Lyrup Flats (2,000 ha (4,900 acres)), on the north side of the river midway between Berri and Loxton
  • Bulyong, or Bulyong Island, on the west side of the river upstream from Renmark, accessible only by boat
  • Paringa Paddock (1,161 ha (2,870 acres)), including Goat Island, between Renmark and Paringa
  • Gurra Gurra (520.8 ha (1,287 acres)), just across the river south of Berri, directly opposite Katarapko
  • Kingston-on-Murray (931 ha (2,300 acres)), next to the township of Kingston-on-Murray

Katarapko section includes the Ngak Indau Wetland trail, with a bird hide;and the Rilli Island, Media Island, and Kapunda Island Conservation Parks are also part of Katarapko.[5]

The protected areas provide for a number recreational activities such as walking, bike riding, canoeing, bird-watching and bush camping. There are parking facilities, designated camping areas with some toilets, walking trails, and a self-guided drive trail.[5]

In 2021, a group of people in the Riverland region started a campaign to rename Goat Island to Ruby Hunter Island to honour the legacy of singer-songwriter Ruby Hunter. As Goat Island is part of the Murray River National Park, the Department for Environment and Water has the final say.[9]

  1. ^ a b "Terrestrial Protected Areas of South Australia (refer 'DETAIL' tab )". CAPAD 2020. Australian Government, Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment. 2020. Retrieved 19 March 2022. (Access from this web page.
  2. ^ Blevins, F.T. (20 June 1991). "NATIONAL PARKS AND WILDLIFE ACT 1972 SECTIONS 28 (2) AND 43 (2): MURRAY RIVER NATIONAL PARK ALTERATION OF BOUNDARIES" (PDF). The South Australian Government Gazette. Government of South Australia. p. 1920. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
  3. ^ Blevins, F.T. (20 June 1991). "NATIONAL PARKS AND WILDLIFE ACT 1972 PART III: RECONSTITUTION OF CERTAIN RESERVES AS NATIONAL PARKS" (PDF). The South Australian Government Gazette. Government of South Australia. p. 1920. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
  4. ^ "Protected Areas Information System - reserve list (as of 25 November 2014)" (PDF). Department of Environment Water and Natural Resources. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  5. ^ a b c d "Murray River National Park". National Parks and Wildlife Service South Australia. 15 November 2021. Retrieved 19 March 2022. Text may have been copied from this source, which is available under a Attribution 3.0 Australia (CC BY 3.0 AU) licence.
  6. ^ a b "Murray River National Park Management Plan (including Rilli Island, Media Island and Kapunda Island Conservation Park)" (PDF). Department for Environment and Natural Resources. 1994. pp. vi–vii. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 April 2019. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
  7. ^ "Murray River National Park (Including Rilli Island, Media Island and Kapunda Island) Management Plan Amendment 2010" (PDF). Department for Environment and Natural Resources. 2010. p. 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 April 2016. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
  8. ^ Murray River National Park (PDF) (Map). Government of South Australia, National Parks and Wildlife Service South Australia. 2020.
  9. ^ Bradbrook, Sam (18 March 2022). "Push to rename Murray River island after iconic Aboriginal musician Ruby Hunter". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 19 March 2022.