Bushfires reveal ancient aquatic system in Australia

22 Jan 2020

After Australian bushfire new canals found near Budj Bim National Park

Bushfires reveal ancient aquatic system in Australia

Bushfires reveal ancient aquatic system in AustraliaWe have been reading about the disastrous Australian bushfires. But the fires have also revealed many water channels that were built thousands of years ago.

The Budj Bim Cultural Landscape in southern Victoria, Australia is one of the oldest aquaculture systems. Aquaculture or aquafarming refers to the breeding, rearing (taking care of) and harvesting of different types of fish and other water organisms.
 	The Budj Bim Cultural Landscape consists of canals, dams, etc all constructed from volcanic rocks. It was also added to the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) World Heritage list in July 2019.
 	The bushfires in southern Victoria have now revealed more waterways which were hidden earlier beneath the thick vegetation and grasses.
 	A channel about 25m long was discovered after the bushfires, along with more ponds and canals. This means the aquatic system is much larger than was earlier thought.
 	The Gunditjmara people built the aquatic system more than 6600 years ago. This makes the aquaculture system older than Egypt’s pyramids.
 	They built the canals and ponds to capture and harvest eels for food.

The Gunditjmara people were an indigenous population of Australia. The indigenous population is the original or earliest inhabitants or people living in an area.

Also, during the bushfires near the Budj Bim National Park, the firefighters worked with caution while fighting the fire. They did not use heavy machinery and made sure to best protect this world heritage site.

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We have been reading about the disastrous Australian bushfires. But the fires have also revealed many water channels that were built thousands of years ago. […]

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