There is another Mary River in the Northern Territory.

The Mary River is a river system in South East Queensland, Australia. The river rises at Booroobin in the Sunshine Coast hinterland, west of Caloundra. From its source, the Mary River flows north through the towns of Kenilworth, Gympie, Tiaro and Maryborough before emptying into the Great Sandy Strait, a passage of water between the mainland and Fraser Island, near the town of River Heads, 17 km south of Hervey Bay. Major tributaries of the Mary River include Obi Obi Creek and Yabba Creek.

The endangered Mary River Turtle (Elusor macrurus) lives in the river. Other marine life native to the river include the Queensland Lungfish (Neoceratodus forsteri) and the endangered Mary River Cod (Maccullochella peelii mariensis).

The River was traditionally named Moocooboola by local Aborigines (the Kabi Kabi people). The river was subsequently named Wide Bay River by early European explorers. The official name was changed in 1847 (prior to Queensland becoming a separate colony) by Charles Augustus FitzRoy, then Governor of New South Wales, to Mary River after his wife Lady Mary Lennox. Place Names Search Queensland Government Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Water

In light of the region's longest drought in one hundred years, the Queensland Government announced on April 27, 2006 its intention to dam part of the Mary River at Traveston Crossing south of Gympie. This action is being planned to create a reservoir "almost as big as the Wivenhoe Dam" by 2011. The proposed Traveston Dam is projected to inundate an area of fertile farmland, endangered regional ecosystems and small towns approximately 1.3 times the area of Sydney Harbour . Local residents oppose the dam proposal on a variety of grounds including: the dislocation of the local community in the inundated area; adverse effects on downstream communities; and, environmental impacts such as removing one of the few remaining habitats for the vulnerable Queensland Lungfish. More than 20,000 residents have formally petitioned the Queensland State Parliament to halt the dam. There have been further concerns that the geomechanics of the proposed site are not suitable for damming due to potentially signifcant leakage (due to the predominantly sandy substrate) and evaporation problems.

References

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External links

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• Map of Mary River catchment from the Bureau of Meteorology Australia
• Save The Mary River

Rivers of Queensland