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A damning report into the cause of 20 million fish deaths has ignited demands to overhaul NSW's water guardian and start enforcing water laws in the Darling-Baaka River system.

The NSW chief scientist and engineer's report warned a repeat of the mass fish kill at Menindee in March remains likely as the bodies decompose amid a drying climate.

Many of the causes had been well documented in previous reports into the river system but many recommendations made in those reports have not been implemented, Hugh Durrant-Whyte said.

"This lack of action represents a clear contributing factor to ongoing system decline and fish deaths," the chief scientist said in the executive summary released on Thursday evening.

Professor Durrant-Whyte's top recommendation was enforcing environmental protections, urging the introduction of legally enforceable obligations and powers to ensure the health of the entire catchment's ecosystem was protected.

Short, medium and long-term strategies should be developed to reduce the risk of further mass fish deaths and restore river health.

The findings warranted an overhaul of the NSW water department, Greens MP and water spokesperson Cate Faehrmann said on Friday.

"The NSW water minister must look at what changes are needed within her water department to ensure the river health is prioritised," she said.

"These terrible fish kills, off the back of the carnage we saw in 2018/19, are clearly a manifestation of the overall degradation of the broader river ecosystem resulting from decades of wilful mismanagement of water in NSW."

The state's leading environmental advocacy agreed substantial action was required.

"We actually do have strong laws in NSW to make sure the river is looked after before water is pumped out but these laws are useless if they're not put into practice," Nature Conservation Council of NSW's water campaigner Mel Gray said.

"The last severe drought saw catastrophic fish kills, rivers reduced to disconnected green pools, wetlands on fire and 90 regional cities and towns staring down day zero."

Water Minister Rose Jackson accepted all findings and recommendations and said work was already underway to restore and improve river health.

That work includes water quality monitoring and more remote dissolved oxygen sensors.

"We are grateful for the work and insight the local community have put into this report and we remain committed to communicating with openness and transparency with the Menindee community," Ms Jackson said.

Any changes to the management of the Darling-Baaka will also impact many of the 2.3 million people living in the Murray-Darling Basin.

The independent authority overseeing the basin's $13 billion management plan in July admitted there is no way it could hit legislated targets by June 2024.

That caused the federal government to strike a new deal with NSW, South Australia, Queensland and the ACT to ensure promised water under the plan would be returned to the environment by 2027.

Victoria is the only basin state to not sign up to the new plan, with the government saying its opposition to water buybacks hasn't changed.

© AAP 2023

Australia is on track to record its hottest winter and forecasters are predicting spring to tip the mercury well above average.

Official records of the final two days of winter are yet to be formalised, but the season is tracking to be 1.54C above the 1961-1990 average.

That would break the previous record for warmest winter, set in 1996, of 1.46C above average for that period, according to the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM).

Meteorologists warn spring is likely to be much hotter and drier than usual.

BoM climate services manager Karl Braganza said spring was likely to have unusually warm days for most of the country, particularly Western Australia and parts of the south-east.

Noting that last year Australia had its second-wettest spring on record, Dr Braganza warned of a significant contrast in climatic conditions this year.

The first significant rains of this year's northern Australian wet season, which officially begins in October, are likely to be later than usual, according to BoM.

BoM senior climatologist Catherine Ganter explained with an El Nino weather event expected, the addition of a positive Indian Ocean Dipole could mean even drier conditions compared to either event by themselves.

"This increases our chances of below average rainfall for much of south-eastern and central Australia," she said.

With the south-west and parts of the east likely to experience drier than usual conditions comes an increased risk of bushfires.

"The recent wildfires in Canada and Hawaii underscore risks that Australians are familiar with, in particular the catastrophic potential of fires that can occur near urban areas during periods of low rainfall," Dr Braganza said.

BoM senior hydrologist Masoud Edraki said the global climate system was looking very unusual, but it was unclear how much of a role global warming would play.

"Record high warm sea surface temperatures in all of the global oceans are likely to continue to impact the weather we experience for many months," he said.

"We don't know yet how global warming, and particularly the increased warmth in the oceans, is affecting our typical climate drivers.

"We'll continue to monitor this closely and how it is likely to affect Australia's climate forecast."

© AAP 2023

As rain fell on a small Victorian town nestled among rolling hills, the son of a couple who died from suspected mushroom poisoning bid them farewell in front of hundreds of neighbours.

Almost 300 people packed the Korumburra Recreation Centre on Thursday to say goodbye to Don and Gail Patterson, who were remembered as "pillars" of the community who spread their generosity and kindness to different corners of the world.

The couple, both 70, died in hospital after their daughter-in-law Erin Patterson cooked them a beef wellington at her Leongatha home in Victoria's southeast on July 29.

Simon Patterson said his parents, who were recently laid to rest during a private burial, were devout in their faith but with humility rather than arrogance.

They lived by the mantra: "Preach the gospel at all times, use words if necessary".

They were adventurous, always open-minded about people of different faiths and cultures, and pacifists.

"Mum and Dad were very much a team," an emotional Mr Patterson told the service.

"The fact they died on consecutive days is fitting in some ways, as it reflects the togetherness as a couple that they always worked so hard to achieve."

The couple spent seven years in Botswana before they came to Korumburra.

Mr Patterson spoke about overseas trips with his father, including to the Mount Everest base camp, where younger climbers admired Don's fitness even in his 60s.

His father was fit enough to have an emergency liver transplant during his final days in hospital.

While his parents acknowledged the reality of death, they also believed it was not final.

Mr Patterson reflected how their family would say "see you later", and suggested the phrase took on new significance in their last days at Austin Hospital.

"It was comforting to know when we said see you later, we knew it was true, the only thing we didn't know was when," Mr Patterson said.

In Gail's last message to her family, she wrote: "lots of love to you all".

The couple's many grandchildren also spoke in pre-recorded messages to the service.

Reverend Fran Grimes noted such a massive gathering was not "Don and Gail's nature or style" and described them as "pillars of the community".

Neighbours greeted each other with smiles and embraces at the recreation centre and shared happy memories of the couple's lives over tea and homemade lemonade.

"They just got on with living generous lives quietly and without fanfare," Rev Grimes said.

"This community has a lot to be thankful for because of the lives of Gail and Don."

Rev Grimes reflected that while many media who flooded the town described Korumburra as a "tight-knit" community, what they found was a community which - above all - was shielding and protecting the family from heartless speculation.

"Behind every story that we hear on the news every night, there's families and communities reeling from that event," she said.

The community also had Gail's sister Heather Wilkinson, 66, in their thoughts after she too died following the July 29 lunch.

The Korumburra Baptist community has been praying for the recovery of Mrs Wilkinson's husband and local church pastor Ian Wilkinson, who remains in hospital in a critical but stable condition after he also ate the meal.

There was a small police presence outside the community hall during Thursday's service amid strong public interest.

Police believe the four people were all poisoned by death cap mushrooms.

Ms Patterson, who has not been charged, is considered a suspect.

The 46-year-old claims she made the beef wellington using button mushrooms from a major supermarket and dried mushrooms bought at an Asian grocery store.

Simon Patterson, her estranged husband, was due to attend the lunch but pulled out.

At the end of Thursday's service, he thanked local churches, friends and family, the police in attendance and the Austin Hospital's ICU and liver transplant teams.

He also thanked the broader community for giving them love, support and space.

Bob Dylan's Death is Not The End played over a slide show of photos near the end of the service.

© AAP 2023