Belyando River

Belyando
Belyando River (Western Branch)
River
The Belyando River, in 2012
Country Australia
State Queensland
Region Central Queensland
Part of Burdekin River
Tributaries
 - left Carmichael River
Landmark
Primary source Drummond Range
 - location below Mount Narounya
 - elevation 397 m (1,302 ft)
 - coordinates 24°02′49″S 147°09′27″E / 24.04694°S 147.15750°E / -24.04694; 147.15750
Secondary source Belyando River (Western Branch)
 - location west of Lochington
 - elevation 447 m (1,467 ft)
 - coordinates 23°55′56″S 147°02′21″E / 23.93222°S 147.03917°E / -23.93222; 147.03917
Mouth confluence with the Suttor River
 - location Lake Dalrymple
 - elevation 179 m (587 ft)
 - coordinates 21°25′26″S 146°53′8″E / 21.42389°S 146.88556°E / -21.42389; 146.88556Coordinates: 21°25′26″S 146°53′8″E / 21.42389°S 146.88556°E / -21.42389; 146.88556
Length 1,054 km (655 mi)
Basin 35,000 km2 (13,514 sq mi)
National parks Narrien Range National Park; Epping Forest National Park
Location of Belyando River mouth in Queensland
[1][2][3]

The Belyando River, including the Belyando River (Western Branch), is a river system located in Central Queensland, Australia. At 1,054 kilometres (655 mi) in length and with a catchment area of 35,000 square kilometres (14,000 sq mi), the Belyando River system is one of the longest rivers in Queensland.

It is pronounced Bel-yando.[4]

Course and features

Comprising a mix of anabranches from source to mouth, the Belyando River and the Belyando River (Western Branch) rise below Mount Narounyah in the Drummond Range, part of the Great Dividing Range in the area southeast of Alpha. The river flows generally in a northerly direction, joined by twenty-nine tributaries including the Carmichael River. The Belyando River flows through a series of waterholes and lagoons including Grays Lagoon, Bakoolama Waterhole, Ten Mile Waterhole, Boadles Waterhole, Georges Waterhole, Broadna Waterhole, Alinya Waterhole, Sandy Camp Waterhole, Bygana Waterhole, Dunjarrobina Waterhole and Yarmina Waterhole. The river reaches its confluence with the Suttor River before flowing into Lake Dalrymple and joining the Burdekin River.[5] The river system descends from a peak elevation of 447 metres (1,467 ft) over its combined 1,054-kilometre (655 mi) course.[1][2][3]

The river system has a catchment area of a little more than 35,000 square kilometres (14,000 sq mi).[6] Land use in the catchment is dominated by grazing with some cropping. Some of the catchment is included in the Narrien Range National Park and the Epping Forest National Park.[6]

History

The traditional custodians of the land surrounding the Belyando River are the various indigenous Wakelbura people, including the various smaller Auanbura, Dorobura, and Metherabura clans.[7]

The river was discovered and named by the explorer Thomas Mitchell in 1846 on his fourth and last expedition.[8]

The 2010–2011 Queensland floods caused widespread flooding along the river and the extended isolation of properties from inundation which needed food supply drops.[9]

In 2015 the Adani Group applied for a water licence to extract up to 12.5 gigalitres (2.75×109 imp gal; 3.30×109 US gal) per year from the Belyando River for use at the Carmichael coal mine.[10]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Map of Belyando River, QLD". Bonzle Digital Atlas of Australia. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  2. 1 2 "Map of Belyando River, QLD (2)". Bonzle Digital Atlas of Australia. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  3. 1 2 "Map of Belyando River (Western Branch), QLD". Bonzle Digital Atlas of Australia. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  4. ↑ "The history of names: Mackay district". www.abc.net.au. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
  5. ↑ "Water resources - Overview - Queensland - Surface Water Management Area: Belyando / Suttor". Australian Natural Resources Atlas. Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts. Archived from the original on 22 June 2009. Retrieved 19 May 2009.
  6. 1 2 "Belyando River Basin". NQ Dry Tropics. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  7. ↑ Howitt, Alfred William (1904). The Native Tribes of South-East Australia. London: Macmillan and Co. p. 62.
  8. ↑ "Moranbah". Isaac Regional Council. Retrieved 19 May 2009.
  9. ↑ "Stranded residents may need more food drops". ABC News. Australia. 6 January 2011. Retrieved 26 September 2011.
  10. ↑ "SEIS Appendix 20 - Application to take water from the Belyando River" (PDF). Adani Group. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
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