Empty rivers in Australia

I took this photo from a highway bridge over the Gascoyne. The longest river in Western Australia  abuts farms and orchards. In late August, it was completely dry. For the past two years, much of Australia has been suffering from drought. Driving north, we crossed many more bridges over dry rivers; some, like the Ashburton, below, had bits of water in them.

As road signs suggest, rivers spill over in the wet season. In 2010-11, the Gascoyne rose and inundated a vast area. Government estimated soil erosion as about 9 million tonnes.