Csu Stories

“You might not have realised but there’s a war between the northern basin and southern basin. There’s already people talking about ‘Why should they get more water than we get water?’ If I look overseas, I do a lot of work in the Mekong and Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos are impacted by what happens in China, the upstream country…the water wars are already starting. What is the one thing people need to live? Good quality water.” Professor Baumgartner reflects on the Menindee fish kills one year on, the impact of the 2019-2020 bushfires on our water systems, and where we’re headed as our unrelenting desire for water impacts those around us. Professor Lee Baumgartner is a Freshwater Fish Ecologist who designs, supervises and undertakes into various aspects of the biology and ecology of freshwater fish. His research has been in several broad areas, including fish passage and fish migration, dietary interactions among native fish species, the impact of human disturbance on aquatic ecosystems and, more recently, the