Federal Member For Murray, Dr Sharman Stone is dismayed that “Murray Darling Basin irrigators are being further disadvantaged in the Federal Government’s radical new $50 million plan to buy water for the environment.”
Dr Stone wants to know what has happened to the $3 billion put on the table in John Howard’s 10 point plan for buying back over-allocated water in the Murray Darling Basin, in particular in NSW.
“It seems Senator Wong had put $50 million on the table as a tempter for any water right owner in the Murray Darling Basin, this means that irrigators in Victoria, being hounded by their lenders, will be under even greater pressures to sell off their water, destroying their chance to ever recover from the drought, and leaving less viable systems” Dr Stone said.
“Senator Wong does not seem to have taken into consideration the fact that any government entering into the open market for water, will push prices sky high, leaving drought stressed irrigators even less able to compete to buy water to keep their farms going.”
“The Murray Darling Basin needs every cent of the John Howard Government’s $10 billion committed right now to the range of measures that were put into place. So far the Victorian Government continues to thumb its nose at all the efforts of the Rudd Government to have them sign up to the Murray Darling Basin agreement, and the miserable $50 million just announced will do nothing more than to distort water markets and drive farmers to ever more desperate measures, achieving little for allocations.”
“I invite Senator Wong to immediately visit some of the Northern Victorian irrigation areas so that she can develop a much more informed and expert approach.”
“The John Howard government knew all about the potential of distorting water prices, and the fact that our food and fibre producers were some of the most efficient water users in the world, and needed investment in on farm water savings, so water could be saved to return to the environment. Simply buying back water from the most desperate farmers destroys the agri-business industry’s who depend on efficient irrigation systems.”
“Senator Penny Wong must face the fact that her inept policies could destroy the national food production capacity of the Murray Darling Basin, while not achieving any gains for the stressed environment. Meanwhile, Penny Wong’s junior Minister Peter Garrett is busy helping Victorian Premier Mr Brumby to pipe water out of the Murray Darling Basin to Melbourne by watering down the requirements of the EPBC act.”