Murray-Darling Basin - stock photo

An aerial view of a portion in New South Wales of the Murray–Darling basin, a large geographical area in the interior of southeastern Australia. Its name is derived from its two major rivers, the Murray River and the Darling River, which bring water from the high ranges of the east and carry it west then south through long flat and dry inlands. The basin, which drains around one-seventh of the Australian land mass, is one of the most significant agricultural areas in Australia. Most of the 1,061,469 km2 basin is flat, low-lying and far inland, and receives little direct rainfall. The many rivers it contains tend to be long and slow-flowing.