Schools out: Federal water buyouts drain classrooms of students

Federal water buybacks are not only affecting jobs, but also draining classrooms of their students, according to the NSW Irrigators Council.

An entire high school class worth of students has been lost in every NSW southern Murray-Darling Basin region following the mass water buybacks a decade ago.

Federal water buybacks have not only drained Murray Darling Basin communities of jobs, but classrooms of their students, according to NSW Irrigators Council analysis of My Schools enrolment data from 2014 to 2022.

The analysis found Albury’s primary and secondary student enrolments had fallen 1.7 per cent, Deniliquin 18.2 per cent, Griffith 25.9 per cent, Hume 10.5 pre cent, Narrandera 5.5 per cent and Wagga Wagga 5.8 per cent.

NSWIC admitted that “it is difficult to determine causation due to a range of contributing factors, there is strong evidence of a correlation between communities impacted by water reforms and poorer school outcomes”.

The analysis comes as the federal government pushes ahead with amendments to the Water Act that will remove hurdles to it stripping even more water out of basin communities, who have already lost 2100GL in past buyouts by the former Rudd and Gillard federal Labor governments.

Federal water buyback have drained students from classrooms, according to the NSW Irrigators Council.

The NSWIC followed up its analysis by interviewing school principals, many of who linked falling enrolments and subject choices to the lasting socio-economic impacts of past government water purchases.

“In the small communities like Finley and Blighty, it had a huge impact on the school,” one principal told NSWIC. “The funding we received lowered, teaching and school admin position entitlements lowered.”

Principals made several comments reflecting on the impact of water reforms on their communities, including:

“I do think government policy and the impacts of the basin plan are having impacts on the local community.”

“Local kids went to rallies with their families about the impacts of the basin plan. Post-Covid it’s gone quiet though.”

“Those who are making the policies [across the board] have no lived experiences in the affected communities.”

“There’s no whole of government approach to these issues.”

NSWIC CEO Claire Miller said one principal told them the water buybacks created anxiety and worry, creating a lot of angst in the community.

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The Murray-Darling Basin Authority has previously attributed more than 3260 full-time-equivalent job losses across the southern Basin as being directly related to water buyouts, most of which occurred.

“Each job lost can mean a family leaves town, and schools lose students,” Ms Miller said.

“As one principal said, ‘Losing one family – that is three kids – could drop you a class or a teacher’.”

“It becomes a downward spiral – as another principal explained, ‘It impacts on the local stores, the football/netball clubs etc. Then families start leaving because there are no longer enough boys, girls or students in their grade’.

The analysis reveals that on average, an entire high school class worth of students has been lost in every NSW southern Murray-Darling Basin region following the mass water buybacks a decade ago.

“Water buybacks inevitably lead to fewer family farms, which school principals observing a correlating decline in enrolments. Fewer students then flow through to fewer staff, fewer subject options and fewer resources allocated to the school,” said Ms Miller.

“Regional students deserve a better education but are being denied by the Government’s determination to push through with unnecessary and damaging additional water buybacks.