Water is deeply entwined with Aboriginal culture, and healthy waterways are critical to the culture and wellbeing of Aboriginal communities across NSW. From 2017 to 2020, NSW experienced some of the warmest temperatures on record, while rainfall was very low, resulting in large areas of NSW facing severe water shortages.
The Department of Planning and Environment commissioned us to determine if there have been changes to Aboriginal social, cultural and health outcomes between wet and dry periods in NSW. We worked with hydrologist and statistician Floris Van Ogtrop on this project.
To do this, we analysed a wide range of health, social and cultural data to examine correlations with river flows, dam storage levels, rainfall and temperature across NSW. Our work is being taken forward into DPE planning and water allocations.
Suggested citation
Williams, M., van Ogtrop, F., & Ragg, M. (2023) Drought, rivers flows and outcomes fro Aboriginal people. Department of Planning and Environment – Water. Commercial-in-confidence.
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