WATER releases from Menindee Lakes will increase by almost 30 per cent as WaterNSW makes space for up to 2700GL of water arriving down the Barwon-Darling river system.
The approaching floodwaters could add one and a half times the storage capacity (1731GL) of Menindee Lakes.
WaterNSW said it would increase releases from 28GL/day to 36GL/day as its latest modelling forecast between 2300 and 2700GL of water arriving by the end of the year.
It said it had generated about 203GL in airspace in the lakes through releases between May and October.
But the water authority said in its operations update to lower Darling communities that an exact forecast of arriving water was unavailable as a large share of upstream flows were still extending over floodplains.
Wayne Smith, who lives at Karoola Station near Pooncarie, said WaterNSW had not shown enough urgency to increase releases sooner, but welcomed the announcement.
“The forecast looks reasonable,” Mr Smith said. “(But) rain is going to change it significantly.”
He said the latest release gave some landholders a few days’ notice to move livestock to higher ground.
“People have made makeshift rafts – a couple of tinnies tied together,” he said.
“There’s only been a small number, 10 or a dozen sheep or goats on an island that need to be moved.
“You might get the boat within 40 metres of the islands and it's only two inches of water, but you've got to carry the stock to the boat.
“It's not a very fun job. That one can be pretty hard work.”
Mr Smith said lower Darling residents closer to Pooncarie were still waiting to hear from WaterNSW.
“There's probably nothing in (the update) about expectations or what's going to be Pooncarie or Burtundy levels.
“The difference at Burtundy is that the Murray is ... pushing water back up the Darling at the moment. It’s probably 300 mil higher there than they should be.”
Floodwaters on the Barwon River have resulted in warnings for Bourke, Louth and Tilpa communities that they may experience major flooding on par with flooding events in 1998.
The surge in waters led to WaterNSW updating its flow projections on the Darling River at Wilcannia.
It said flows, which were at 30GL/day, could rise to “the highest in decades”, reaching 46GL/day.
The Bureau of Meteorology expected river levels at Menindee to reach near 9.6m by November 16.
The NSW SES advised residents in low-lying areas about Menindee to prepare to evacuate.
