The upper catchment of the Murrumbidgee River comprises the watershed upstream of the Burrinjuck Dam wall. The headwaters of the Murrumbidgee River originate within the Fiery Range of the Snowy Mountains and the river flows southward towards Cooma before turning northward flowing through the ACT to Burrinjuck Dam and beyond.
The Upper Murrumbidgee Catchment covers over 14,000 square kilometres and takes in urban, peri-urban and rural land over two states – New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory. Catchment population is over 560,000 residents. Land uses include sheep and cattle grazing, agriculture, horticulture, viticulture, forestry, reserves and urban and peri-urban development.
Canberra, lying within the ACT, is Australia’s largest inland city and the only major city in Australia located in the headwaters of the catchment. Other growing population centres include Queanbeyan, Cooma and Yass.
