Ancient canal system exposed after forest fire

Victoria's fire burned down the dense vegetation, revealing canals of the irrigation system that were older than the Egyptian pyramids.

The canal system was built thousands of years ago by native Australians to trap and catch eels as food to expose as forest fires burn down bushy vegetation in Victoria.The Budj Bim project consists of many canals, spillways and dams built from volcanic rock, one of the oldest and largest aquaculture systems in the world , according to UNESCO. Built by the Gunditjmara people more than 6,600 years ago, this work is longer than the Egyptian pyramid.

Budj Bim dates back more than 6,000 years.(Photo: CNN).

Although archaeologists have known about this aquaculture system for a long time, the sub-branches of the new project came out when the fire broke out in Victoria in December. Gunditjmara representative, Denis Rose, manager a project by the nonprofit Gunditj Mirring Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation, says the system is much larger than previously noted.

"When we returned to the area, we found a canal hidden among the grass and many other plants. The canal was about 25 meters long. It was a relatively large size. We were surprised to find continuously. see new water channels exposed by the fire , " Rose said.

The aquaculture system located in Budj Bim National Park was built by the indigenous community with abundant volcanic rock resources from an inactive volcano in the area. Gunditjmara people use the system to regulate the water flow to maximize the production of seafood.

Fires near the national park erupted by a lightning strike down the area in late December, spreading 790 hectares, according to Mark Mellington, director of Victoria's Forest Fire Prevention Agency. To protect the UNESCO World Heritage site in July last year, firefighters collaborated with local communities to identify important sites, using less damaging fire extinguishers instead of machines. bulky. Rose shared that the fire did not cause as much damage to the region as in other parts of Australia and provided a good opportunity to explore more ancient aquaculture systems.

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