Irrigators call for ‘off farm’ push to save Murray-Darling water

FARMERS should not have to sacrifice water for the Murray, they say, as they call for “off-farm” projects to deliver the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.

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FARMERS should not have to sacrifice water for the Murray, they say, as they call for “off-farm” projects such as city savings to deliver the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.

Federal Water Minister David Littleproud will meet state ministers including South Australia’s David Speirs tomorrow for a Ministerial Council that is set to deliberate on how to deliver the water needed to save the Coorong and the Lower Lakes.

The 450 gigalitres needed has been contentious, with upstream states threatening to quit the plan rather than promise to deliver it.

But a tentative peace has been declared and today’s meeting is intended to work on the details.

Meanwhile, irrigators have planned to bus in and protest the 450GL, saying it will ravage their communities if they have to give up water for the environment.

The National Irrigators’ Council is more circumspect, saying there are “tough challenges” and that they want water to come from “urban, industrial and other off-farm savings”.

Council chief executive officer Steve Whan said it was “pleasing” that the plan was back on track but that environmental water should not come from farms. “Irrigators want to see strong acknowledgment from Ministers that on-farm efficiency projects can have flow-on impacts in communities and districts,” he said.

Mr Littleproud said that the 450GL would “only be delivered with neutral or positive social and economic outcomes”.

There is scientific, academic and community debate about the delivery of the water outcomes. It is not literally water necessarily being delivered; the plan’s aims are to save the ecosystems of the Murray and Mr Littleproud says that can only happen without hurting communities.

The headline figure of the $13 billion plan is 3200GL; 2750GL to be delivered by next year and the 450GL to be delivered by 2024. SA Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said “relying on water efficiency projects to deliver water for the environment is like banking on fools’ gold.”

“There is no guarantee any of this water will ever reach SA,” she said.