The Burnett River is a river in the Wide Bay–Burnett and Central Queensland regions of Queensland, Australia.

Course and features

thumb|The Burnett River at [[Mundubbera, Queensland|Mundubbera]]

thumb|Bridges across the river in Bundaberg

The Burnett River rises in the Burnett Range, part of the Great Dividing Range, close to Mount Gaeta and east of Monto. It drains a basin covering 33,210 km² which is 1.9% of the total area of Queensland.

The river flows generally south past Eidsvold and Mundubbera before heading east, adjacent to the townships of Gayndah and Wallaville before entering the city of Bundaberg. The river flows into the Coral Sea at Burnett Heads, roughly from Bundaberg. The river descends over its course.

Dam construction

Construction of the Paradise Dam on the Burnett River, upstream from Bundaberg, was completed in November 2005. The dam reservoir has a capacity of . Named after the old gold mining township of Paradise, which is now submerged under the waters of the reservoir, all of the structures and artefacts found at the site were transferred to the nearby town of Biggenden. The design of the dam complies with environmental guidelines and includes a fish ladder that allows fish such as the Queensland lungfish to travel upstream as well as downstream from the dam wall.

Paradise Dam was damaged in 2013 floods, and currently operates at reduced capacity. In early 2024, the Queensland Government announced it would be replaced by a new Paradise Dam rather than attempting further repairs.

Fish

The Burnett River, together with the nearby Mary River, is home to the Queensland lungfish, one of the most ancient of the extant vertebrate species. The longest-lived known individual known for the Queensland lungfish, a male nicknamed "Granddad", was born and captured in the Burnett River before being transported to the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, Illinois in 1933, where he lived to the estimated age of 109 years old before he died of natural causes in 2017.

See also

  • Auburn River Dam
  • Bundaberg

References

  • Map of Burnett and its tributaries from the Bureau of Meteorology Australia
  • Burnett Water Pty. Ltd.