Tanya Plibersek runs dry on $40m water vow to Indigenous

Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek has made little progress to deliver on Labor’s commitment to provide $40m in water rights to Indigenous people.

Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek. Picture: Martin Ollman / NCA NewsWire​

Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek has made little progress in delivering on Labor’s commitment to provide $40m in water rights to Indigenous people, despite repeatedly attacking the former Coalition government for “failing to deliver a cent”.

As the government prosecutes its case for a voice to parliament as “good manners”, The Australian can reveal Labor has not paid out any money to Indigenous people despite being elected 15 months ago.

The delay has prompted a backlash from Indigenous groups, who have been urging the government to deliver the water urgently amid concern they are being short-changed.

The $40m – first announced by the Coalition government in 2018 – was set up to allow Indigenous Australians access to economic and cultural benefits of the water market.

But infighting among more than 40 clans across the Murray-Darling Basin has in part prevented the government from distributing the funds.

A new financial analysis of the national water index found a $40m investment in 2018 would now be worth $67m if the government had invested five years ago when first promised.

Leading Indigenous elder and water advocate Fred Hooper blasted the Albanese government for dragging its feet on delivering the water, and questioned Labor’s decision to carry out more consultation rather than distribute it.

Mr Hooper, chair of the Murrawarri Peoples Council, said First Nations water being delivered was essential for Aboriginal people to be able to “maintain the health of the country” while also developing economic opportunities such as tourism.

“Now they’re doing another round of consultations to work it out. It’s totally annoying because it’s been six years of consultation and six years of inaction,” Mr Hooper told The Australian.

“We want to work with the community for practical outcomes, establishing cultural activities plus looking at some economic spin-off such as tourism or other enterprises.

“The minister will need to put another couple million dollars a year over the next 30 years to manage that water, we’re not going to make any money out of it but we’ve got to pay fees, storage fees, licence fees, and set up processes and infrastructure to deliver that water.”

Waterfind founder Tom Rooney said water markets had experienced very strong growth in the past two decades amid a decrease in supply and strong demand for entitlements off the back of windfall revenues in the Australian farming sector.

“The value of water has gone up because it‘s driven by scarcity. They’re not making any more water and if the commonwealth buys back water or takes water back for the environment, then the market price goes up,”

Ms Plibersek said she was frustrated the money had not been delivered and pledged to work with First Nations communities to “iron out the final details” and deliver the water “as soon as possible”.

Independent senator Lidia Thorpe in June requested the Department Environment and Water determine how much $40m of cultural flows would be worth if delivered today.