Up to a million fish, including 100-year-old Murray cod, have died in one of the biggest environmental catastrophes to hit the river. Australia’s Murray-Darling Basin river system is the life blood of much of Australia's agriculture industry and supports thousands of communities through Queensland, New South Wales, ACT and South Australia. An outbreak of blue-green algae, a severe drought and allegations of water theft are some of the factors believed to have left the river with very little oxygen.

