On July 24 ABC TV investigative program Four Corners screened an expose of rorts and illegal practices happening in water extraction in the Murray-Darling Basin in north-western NSW and elsewhere along the Basin. These actions are torpedoing the Murray-Darling Plan which was developed to improve the health of the river systemas well as ensuring a fair allocation of water to irrigators along the Basin. What is also of concern is that there is a strong stench of corruption about this matter.
The Four Corners program is Pumped:Who is benefitting from the billions spent on the Murray-Darling?
There have been very strong reactions to this expose around the nation as well as calls for an independent inquiry.
Following the program's screening, the peak NSW environment group the Nature Conservation Council of NSW issued the media statement printed below.
NATURE CONSERVATION COUNCIL OF NSW
Berejiklian must remove
Nationals from resource portfolios and order an ICAC inquiry
The Nature
Conservation Council and Inland Rivers Network are calling on Premier Gladys
Berejiklian to remove National Party MPs from natural resources portfolios and
refer the issues raised in last night’s Four Corners report to the ICAC
for investigation.
Four Corners found serious maladministration by
managers of the Department of Primary Industries (Water) in the allocation and
enforcement of water licences in NSW, and of compliance actions in the state’s
northwest.
“The rules governing
water sharing in NSW have been manipulated to favour a few big irrigators at
the expense of the environment and downstream communities,” Nature
Conservation Council CEO Kate Smolski said. “This is an absolute
disgrace.
“The government has
turned a blind eye to illegal behaviour like meter tampering water theft. This
scandal has happened on the watch of National Party Ministers who must be held
to account for their mismanagement of one of the key natural resource agencies
in NSW.
“Premier Gladys
Berejiklian should remove National Party Ministers from natural resources
portfolios and refer these issues to ICAC for a full investigation.
“The ecosystems along
the whole length of the Murray-Darling are declining because too much water is
being extracted.
“Waterbird
populations in parts of the Murray-Darling have declined by more than 80%, and
we have lost 90% per cent of the Basin’s floodplain wetlands. This can’t go
on.”
Inland Rivers Network
spokesperson Bev Smiles said: “We’ve taken far too much water out of the Murray-Darling for far too
long. Mismanagement and overuse of water revealed last night are damaging the
Murray Darling’s life support systems and must stop.
“The National Party
has overseen possibly the biggest theft of water in the state’s history. They
have been captured by a small lobby of big agribusiness irrigators who are
putting their commercial interests ahead all other users and the environment.
“Putting the National
Party in charge of natural resource management portfolios was never going to
end well. Now we have the proof that the irrigation industry in NSW has a
powerful and unhealthy relationship with bureaucrats and political leaders.
This has led to poor water management for the health of rivers and the
weakening of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.
“If this is not
criminal, it is morally reprehensible. People want the government to bring our
rivers back to health, not give public resources to large private companies.”
