A giant ‘sand slug’ born from mining and land clearing is slowly choking the Murray River

A build up of sand at Fisherman's Bend in Murray River, a short distance upstream of Picnic Point and the Barmah Choke. Photograph: Supplied/Streamology

Deep in the Barmah-Millewa forest on the New South Wales-Victorian border, a giant “sand slug” is slowly choking the Murray River.

The sand is up to 4m deep and has accumulated through a narrow section of the river known as the Barmah Choke, or the Barmah-Millewa Reach.