Footnotes
Chapter 1 - Introduction
[1]
Senate Standing Committee on Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport, Water
management in the Coorong and Lower Lakes (including consideration of the
Emergency Water (Murray-Darling Basin Rescue) Bill 2008, October 2008.
Chapter 2 - Governance arrangements under the Intergovernmental Agreement on Murray-Darling Basin Reform
[1]
Intergovernmental Agreement on Murray-Darling Basin Reform (IGA), 3 July
2008. Available at http://www.coag.gov.au/coag_meeting_outcomes/2008-07-03/docs/Murray_Darling_IGA.pdf.
[2]
Murray-Darling Basin Reform, Memorandum of Understanding, 26 March 2008, p. 1. Available at http://www.coag.gov.au/coag_meeting_outcomes/2008-03-26/docs/attachment_a.pdf.
The Basin Plan is discussed in detail in Chapter 3.
[3]
IGA, Preamble, paragraph 17.
[4]
See IGA, 3 July 2008, pp 10-19, and Schedules B and C.
[5]
Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts (DEWHA), Submission
1A, Part 1 of the inquiry, pp 3-4.
[6]
Committee Hansard, 10 September 2008, pp 46-7.
[7]
Submission 40, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 7. See also:
MainStream Environmental Consulting and RiverSmart Australia, Submission 12,
Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 4; Southern Alexandrina Business Association, Submission
13, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 3; Ms Sarah Moles, Submission 1,
p.1; Ms Liz Yelland, Submission 8, p. 2; Mr David Tipping, Submission
16, p. 13.
[8]
Submission 57, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 8.
[9]
Submission 24, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 5.
[10]
Submission 46, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 4.
[11]
Submission 13, p. 7.
[12]
Submission 13, p. 7.
[13]
Submission 1A, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 4.
[14]
Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, p. 57.
[15]
Submission 13, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 3. See also: Mr Mitch Williams, MP, South Australian Shadow Minister for Water Security, Submission 24,
Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 5.
[16]
Submission 14, p. 1. See also: Mr Mitch Williams, MP, South
Australian Shadow Minister for Water Security, Submission 24,
Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 5; and Bruce and Annette Allnutt, Submission 29,
Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 1.
[17]
Submission 8, p. 3. See also: Mr David Tipping, Submission
16, p. 14.
[18]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 20. See also: Mrs Deborah
Kerr, National Farmers' Federation, Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, pp
11-12; and Ms Beverly Smiles, Inland Rivers Network, Committee Hansard,
13 March 2009, p. 50. The focus of the discussion on this issue in the inquiry
was in relation to the Australian Government's water entitlement buyback
policy, Restoring the Balance in the Murray-Darling Basin, and
infrastructure program, the Sustainable Rural Water Use and Infrastructure
Program. This issue is discussed further in Chapter 5 of the report.
[19]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 26.
[20]
Submission 6, pp 1-2.
[21]
Committee Hansard, 10 September 2008, p. 47.
[22]
Committee Hansard, 10 September 2008, pp 47-48.
[23]
Section 100 of the Constitution provides: The Commonwealth shall not, by
any law or regulation of trade or commerce, abridge the right of a State or of
the residents therein to the reasonable use of the waters of rivers for
conservation or irrigation.
[24]
Committee Hansard, 10 September 2008, p. 48.
[25]
Committee Hansard, 10 September 2008, p. 49.
[26]
Coorong, Lakes and Murray Waterkeeper, Submission 57, Part 1
of the inquiry, p. 9.
[27]
Bruce and Annette Allnutt, Submission 29, Part 1 of the
inquiry, p. 1.
[28]
Acheron Valley Watch Inc, Submission 44, Part 1 of the
inquiry, p. 4 (emphasis in original). See also: Mr Kenneth Pattison, Plug the
Pipe, Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, pp 40-41. The committee's
report into water management in the Coorong and Lower Lakes discusses the
development of the pipeline from the Goulburn River to the Sugarloaf Reservoir
to supply water to Melbourne. See: Senate Standing Committee on Rural and Regional
Affairs and Transport, Water management in the Coorong and Lower Lakes (including consideration of the Emergency Water (Murray-Darling Basin Rescue) Bill 2008, October 2008, pp 47-48.
[29]
Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, pp 58-59.
[30]
Submission 15, p. 6.
[31]
Submission 15, pp 6-7, and 12. See also: Inland Rivers
Network, Submission 9, p. 2; and National Parks Association of
NSW, Submission 10, pp 10-11.
[32]
Submission 15, pp 4-5.
Chapter 3 - Implementation of the Basin Plan and water sharing arrangements
[1]
Explanatory Memorandum, Water Bill 2007, p. 3.
[2]
Water Act 2007, s.22 and s.86B.
[3]
Water Act 2007, s.42.
[4]
Water Act 2007, s.43.
[5]
Water Act 2007, s.43A.
[6]
Water Act 2007, s.44.
[7]
Intergovernmental Agreement on Murray-Darling Basin Reform (IGA), clause
11.1.
[8]
Submission 1A, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 5.
[9]
Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, p. 75.
[10]
Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, p. 23.
[11]
The Australian Network of Environmental Defender's Offices, Submission
11, p. 2. See also: Professor Diane Bell, Submission 46,
Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 6; Coorong, Lakes and Murray Waterkeeper, Submission
57, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 9.
[12]
Committee Hansard, 10 September 2008, p. 21.
[13]
Committee Hansard, 10 September 2008, pp 21-22.
[14]
Mr Stewart Ellis, Murray Irrigation Ltd, Committee Hansard, 19
September 2008, p. 16.
[15]
Submission 13, p. 7. See also: Cotton Australia, Submission 50, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 5; Mr Andrew Gregson, NSW
Irrigators Council, Committee Hansard, 9 September 2008, p. 33.
[16]
Submission 1, p. 2.
[17]
Submission 71, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 8. See also:
Conservation Council of South Australia, Submission 14, p. 7; Dr
Arlene Buchan, Australian Conservation Foundation, Committee Hansard, 26
September 2008, pp 18-19.
[18]
Submission 71, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 18.
[19]
Submission 1, p. 2.
[20]
Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, p. 75.
[21]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, pp 52-53.
[22]
Submission 1A, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 6. See also:
Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Water, Submission 12,
pp 2-3.
[23]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 39. See also: Dr Arlene
Buchan, Australian Conservation Foundation, Committee Hansard, 26
September 2008, pp 18-19.
[24]
Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, p. 59.
[25]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 53.
[26]
Mr Tony Slatyer, DEWHA, Committee Hansard, 19 September 2008, pp
74-75. See also: Mr Rob Freeman, Murray-Darling Basin Authority, Committee
Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 57.
[27]
Submission 13, p. 7 (emphasis in original).
[28]
Submission 50, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 5.
[29]
Mr David Harriss, New South Wales Department of Water and Energy, Committee
Hansard, 18 September 2008, p. 31.
[30]
Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, p. 57.
Chapter 4 - Long-term prospects for the management of Ramsar wetlands in the Murray-Darling Basin
[1]
Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar
Convention) website: http://www.ramsar.org/.
[2]
Ramsar Convention, Ramsar information paper No. 4: The List of Wetlands
of International Importance ('Ramsar List'). Available at: http://www.ramsar.org/about/info2007-04-e.pdf.
[3]
Australian Bureau of Statistics, Water and the Murray-Darling Basin,
A Statistical Profile, 2000–01
to 2005–06,
15 August 2008, p. 20. Available at: http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/4610.0.55.007Main+Features12000-01%20to%202005-06?OpenDocument.
[4]
See Senate Standing Committee on Rural and Regional Affairs and
Transport, Water management in the Coorong and Lower Lakes (including
consideration of the Emergency Water (Murray-Darling Basin Rescue) Bill 2008,
October 2008, pp 21-24.
[5]
Submission 10, p. 2.
[6]
Committee Hansard, 9 September 2008, p. 105.
[7]
Intergovernmental Agreement on Murray-Darling Basin Reform (IGA),
Preamble, paragraph 2.
[8]
Submission 1A, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 10.
[9]
Department of the Environment, Water, Heritages and the Arts (DEWHA), National
Report on the Implementation of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands: National
Report to be submitted to the 10th Meeting of the Conference of
Contracting Parties, Republic of Korea, 28 October – 4 November 2008 (2008
Report to Ramsar Secretariat), p. 15. Available at: http://www.environment.gov.au/water/publications/environmental/wetlands/ramsar-report10.html.
[10]
Submission 2, p. 5.
[11]
Submission 13, p. 8.
[12]
Committee Hansard, 9 September 2008, p. 17.
[13]
Submission 4, p. 1.
[14]
Mr Tony Slatyer, DEWHA, Committee Hansard, 19 September 2008, p.
74. See also: Sarah Moles, Submission 1, p. 5.
[15]
2008 Report to Ramsar Secretariat, p. 15.
[16]
Submission 1A, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 10.
[17]
The National Framework and Guidelines for Describing the Ecological
Character of Australian Ramsar Wetlands is the second module under the
National Guidelines for Ramsar Wetlands – Implementing the Ramsar Convention in
Australia, which is discussed in paragraph 4.31 below.
[18]
The six Icon sites are: Barmah-Millewa Forest; Gunbower and
Koondrook-Perricoota Forests; Hattah Lakes; Chowilla Floodplain and
Lindsay-Wallpolla Islands; Lower Lakes, Coorong and Murray Mouth; and the River
Murray Channel. The February 2009 progress report on the Living Murray
Initiative stated that 167.68 gigalitres of water has been recovered. See
Murray-Darling Basin Authority, The Living Murray: Environmental Water
Recovery Progress Report, February 2009, p.2. Available at: http://www.mdba.gov.au/files/TLM_WR_prog_rep_FEB09.pdf.
[19]
Submission 1A, Part 1 of the inquiry, pp 10-11.
[20]
Submission 9, Attachment: Protecting Australia's
Endangered Wetlands: A Proposal for a National Wetlands Initiative, p. 2.
[21]
Submission 1, p. 5.
[22]
Submission 12, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 5.
[23]
Submission 1A, Part 1 of the Inquiry, p. 11.
[24]
DEWHA, answers to questions on notice, 13 March 2009 (received 9 April
2009); and Submission 1A, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 11.
[25]
Submission 10, p. 6.
[26]
Dr Bill Phillips, Mainstream Environmental Consulting and Riversmart
Australia, Committee Hansard, 9 September 2008, p. 107.
[27]
W. Phillips and K. Muller, Ecological Character Description: Coorong,
Lakes Alexandrina and Albert Wetland of International Importance, South
Australian Department for Environment and Heritage, 2006, p. 8. Available at: http://www.environment.sa.gov.au/biodiversity/pdfs/coorong_exec_summary.pdf.
[28]
Submission 9, Attachment: Protecting Australia's
Endangered Wetlands: A Proposal for a National Wetlands Initiative, pp 1-2.
The IRN's National Wetlands Initiative was also supported by the National Parks
Association of NSW, Submission 10, p. 1.
[29]
Submission 10, pp 2-3.
[30]
Submission 1, p. 5. Section 16 of the Environmental
Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 imposes approval
requirements on activities that are likely to have a significant impact on the
ecological character of a Ramsar wetland. See also: Mainstream Consulting and
RiverSmart Australia, Submission 12 to Part 1 of the inquiry, p.
5.
[31]
2008 Report to Ramsar Secretariat, p. 12.
[32]
BMT WBM Pty Limited for the Department of the Environment and Water
Resources, Ramsar Snapshot Study – Final Report 2007 (Ramsar Snapshot
Study), released 2 February 2009. Available at: http://www.environment.gov.au/water/publications/environmental/wetlands/ramsar-snapshot-study.html.
[33]
Ramsar Snapshot Study, p. I.
[34]
Ramsar Snapshot Study, p. I.
[35]
Ramsar Snapshot Study, p. IV.
Chapter 5 - Environmental water in the Murray-Darling Basin
[1]
Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts (DEWHA), Water
for the Future: Restoring the Balance in the Murray-Darling Basin Program
Factsheet, March 2009. Available at: http://www.environment.gov.au/water/publications/mdb/pubs/restoring-balance.pdf.
[2]
DEWHA website, Outcomes from 2007-08 Restoring the Balance in the
Murray-Darling Basin Program (water entitlement purchasing, updated 1 June
2009. Available at: http://www.environment.gov.au/water/policy-programs/entitlement-purchasing/2007-08.html.
[3]
The Hon. Kevin Rudd MP, Prime Minister, and Senator the Hon. Penny Wong,
Minister for Climate Change and Water, 'Historic purchase of water for the
environment', Media Release, 28 May 2009.
[4]
DEWHA website, Water entitlement buyback in the Murray-Darling Basin
(water buybacks), updated 24 April 2009. Available at: http://www.environment.gov.au/water/mdb/entitlement-purchasing/index.html.
[5]
See: Murray-Darling Basin Commission, Annual Report 2007-08, p.
20, available at: http://www.mdbc.gov.au/subs/annual_reports/AR_2007-08/pdf/MDBC-AR-0708.pdf.
For general information on The Living Murray Initiative see: http://www.mdba.gov.au/programs/tlm.
[6]
DEWHA website, Sustainable Rural Water Use and Infrastructure.
Available at: http://www.environment.gov.au/water/programs/srwui/index.html.
[7]
See Intergovernmental Agreement on Murray-Darling Basin Reform (IGA),
clause 4.11.
[8]
DEWHA website, Sustainable Rural Water Use and Infrastructure.
Available at: http://www.environment.gov.au/water/programs/srwui/index.html.
[9]
The Torrumbarry Irrigation Area encompasses the Cohuna, Kerang and Swan
Hill regions from the Torrumbarry Weir to Nyah.
[10]
The Hon. Carmel Tebbutt, NSW Minister for Climate Change and the
Environment and Senator the Hon. Penny Wong, Minister for Climate Change and
Water, 'Commonwealth and NSW purchase Toorale', Joint Media Release PW 175/08,
10 September 2008.
[11]
Senator the Hon. Penny Wong, Minister for Climate Change and Water,
'Toorale purchase delivers 11.4 billion extra litres of water for the Darling
River', Media Release PW 57/09, 4 March 2009.
[12]
Mr Geoff Williams, Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport CommitteeCommittee – Murray Darling Basin inquiry, 12 March 2009 – Teleconference
Link, Powerpoint presentation, tabled 16 March 2009, pp 10-13. See also:
Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF), Land and water reform in the
Murray-Darling Basin, 16 October 2008, pp 4-5, tabled 10 March 2009.
[13]
See Mr Geoff Williams, Committee Hansard, 16 March 2009, pp 22,
25-27. For more information on the Northern Victorian Irrigation Renewal
Project (NVIRP), see the NVIRP website: http://www.nvirp.com.au/index.html.
[14]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 50.
[15]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 53. See also: Inland Rivers
Network (IRN), Submission 9, p. 2.
[16]
Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, p. 91.
[17]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 11.
[18]
Committee Hansard, 16 March 2009, p. 10.
[19]
Committee Hansard, 16 March 2009, p. 10.
[20]
ACF, Land and water reform in the Murray-Darling Basin, 16 October
2008, pp 1-2, tabled 10 March 2009.
[21]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 30.
[22]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 10. See also Ms Louise Burge,
NSW Farmers Association, Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, p. 15; Mr
Trevor Randall, Committee Hansard, 16 March 2009, p.34.
[23]
The Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists (Wentworth Group), Opening
Statement, tabled 10 March 2009, p. 3. See also: Mrs Deborah Kaulder,
Australian Floodplain Association, Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008,
pp 48-49; Dr John Williams, Wentworth Group, Committee Hansard, 10 March
2009, p. 51; IRN, Submission 69, Part 1 of the inquiry,
Attachment: IRN and ACF, Opportunities to deliver immediate & ongoing
water for the ecological crisis in the internationally significant Lower Lakes
and Coorong, p. 4.
[24]
Ms Mary Harwood, DEWHA, Committee Hansard, 13 March 2007, p. 18.
[25]
Ms Mary Harwood, DEWHA, Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, pp 16-17.
[26]
Submission 71, Part 1 of the inquiry, pp 15-16. The
Wentworth Group's proposal for an Interim Basin Plan is discussed in Chapter 3.
[27]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 27. See also: National
Farmers' Federation (NFF), Submission 13, p. 8.
[28] See: The
Senate Standing Committee on Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport, Water
management in the Coorong and Lower Lakes (including consideration of the
Emergency Water (Murray-Darling Basin Rescue) Bill 2008), October 2008, pp
38-39.
[29]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 43.
[30]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 26. See also: Professor Mike
Young, Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, pp 27 and 31.
[31]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 26.
[32]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, pp 19-20.
[33]
Committee Hansard, 16 March 2009, p. 54.
[34]
Committee Hansard, 16 March 2009, pp 6-7.
[35]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 18. See also: Mr Bruce Brown, Committee
Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 20; Murray-Darling Basin Water Crisis Management
Council, Submission 61, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 5.
[36]
Mr Geoff Wise, General Manager, Bourke Shire Council, Draft Report
prepared by Bourke Shire Council for the property Toorale, 21 September
2008. Tabled 16 March 2009.
[37]
Mr Geoff Wise, General Manager, Bourke Shire Council, Structural
Adjustments for the Bourke community to deliver social, economic and cultural
offsets to address land use change at Toorale, 21 October 2008. Tabled 16
March 2009.
[38]
Committee Hansard, 16 March 2009, pp 32 and 37.
[39]
Committee Hansard, 16 March 2009, pp 23-24.
[40]
Submission 1A, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 3; and DEWHA,
Answers to questions on notice, 13 March 2009 (received 9 April 2009).
[41]
Water Act 2007, s. 21(4)(c)(v).
[42]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 54.
[43]
Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, p. 11. See also: Mr John
Clements, Namoi Water, Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, pp 18-19.
[44]
Murray Darling Basin Commission, Brief assessment of the merits of
purchasing water entitlements during a time of low water availability,
April 2008. Available at: http://www.thelivingmurray.mdbc.gov.au/__data/page/1327/SERPadvice_water_purchases.pdf.
[45]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 11. See: Report for the Rural
Industries Research and Development Corporation, National Water Commission and
the Murray-Darling Basin Commission, The Economic and Social Impacts of
Water Trading: Case studies in the Victorian Murray Valley, September 2007.
Available at: http://www.nwc.gov.au/resources/documents/Economic-Social-impacts-Water-Trading-PUB-1107.pdf.
[46]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 17.
[47]
Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, p. 49. See also: Ms Amy
Hankinson, IRN, Committee Hansard, 18 September 2008, p. 22; Ms Ilona
Millar, Wentworth Group, Committee Hansard, 19 September 2008, p. 26; Dr
Arlene Buchan, ACF, Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 29; and Mr
Terence Korn, Australian Floodplain Association, Committee Hansard, 10
March 2009, p. 40.
[48]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 3. Words in bold indicate a
correction to the proof hansard received from the witness. See also: Mr Andrew
Gregson, NSW Irrigators Council, Committee Hansard, 9 September 2008, p.
44.
[49]
Committee Hansard, 18 September 2008, p. 17. See also: Ms Ilona
Millar, Wentworth Group, Committee Hansard, 19 September 2008, p. 30; Dr
Arlene Buchan, ACF, Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, p. 18;
Australian Network of Environmental Defender's Officers, Submission 11,
p. 3.
[50]
Committee Hansard, 19 September 2008, p. 30.
[51]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 5.
[52]
Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, pp 91-92.
[53]
Answers to questions on notice, 13 March 2009 (received 18 March 2009).
[54]
Answers to questions on notice, 10 March 2009 (received 23 March 2009).
Emphasis in original.
[55]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 31.
[56]
Answers to questions on notice, 10 March 2009 (received 23 March 2009).
See also: Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 31.
[57]
Ms Mary Harwood, DEWHA, Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 16.
[58]
Answers to questions on notice, 13 March 2009 (received 9 April 2009).
[59]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, pp 35-36. See also: Mr Geoff
Williams, TRAMS Working Group, Committee Hansard, 16 March 2009, p. 26.
[60]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 29. Mr Kent Martin, South
Australian Farmers Federation, Committee Hansard, 10 September 2008, p.
88; IRN, Submission 69, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 3.
[61]
Committee Hansard, 19 September 2008, pp 19-20; and Submission
71, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 15.
[62]
See for example: Mr Peter Cosier, Committee Hansard, 19 September
2008, p. 25; Ms Ilona Millar, Committee Hansard, 19 September 2008, p.
26. For more information on the acceleration of the Water Entitlement Buyback,
see: The Hon. Kevin Rudd, Prime Minister of Australia, 'New measures to deal
with the critical situation in the Murray-Darling Basin', Media Release, 14
August 2008,
[63]
Submission 71, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 15.
[64]
See: Senator Nick Xenophon, Senate Hansard, 12 February 2009, p.
971; Appropriation Act (No. 6) 2008-09, Schedule 2; The Hon. Mr Gary
Gray, Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Development and Northern Australia, House
of Representatives Main Committee Hansard, 16 March 2009, p. 2765.
[65]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 21.
[66]
Committee Hansard, 10 September 2008, p. 32. See also: Mr John
Clements, Namoi Water, Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 21, who
indicated that a four per cent cap may not be inappropriate if all States had a
similar cap. The fact that the cap did not exist in New South Wales meant that
the obvious outcome is that more water entitlements will be purchased by the
Commonwealth in New South Wales compared to Victoria.
[67]
Professor Young notes that analysis suggests that in order to secure a low
chance of restoring health to the Southern Connected Murray System, at least 15
per cent of all entitlements need to be held by environmental water holders.
However, it also needs to be taken into account that some contribution to
environmental water supplies will be made by programs such as the Living Murray
Initiative and water efficiency improvements from the Infrastructure Program.
[68]
Answers to questions on notice, 13 March 2009 (received 18 March 2009).
[69]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 29.
[70]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 29.
[71]
The Hon. Phillip Costa, NSW Minister for Water and Regional Development,
'NSW Government to guarantee environmental water purchasing is fair', Media
Release, 28 May 2009.
[72]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 28
[73]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 29, See also: Ms Beverly
Smiles, IRN, Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 45, who provided an
example of shepherding environmental water through the Macquarie Valley.
[74]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, pp 30- 31.
[75]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 29
[76]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 56.
[77]
Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, p. 26.
[78]
Committee Hansard, 19 September 2008, p. 15. See also: Mr Dick
Thompson, Murrumbidgee Irrigation Ltd, Committee Hansard, 26 September
2008, p. 29.
[79]
Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, p.10.
[80]
Committee Hansard, 10 September 2008, p. 6.
[81]
Mr Tony Slatyer, DEWHA, Committee Hansard, 19 September 2008, p.
87.
[82]
See for example: Senator the Hon. Penny Wong, Minister for Climate Change
and Water, 'Next water buyback tender to open 15 September', Media Release PW
167/08, 8 September 2008; DEWHA, Water for the Future: Restoring the Balance
in the Basin Factsheet, March 2009. Available at: http://www.environment.gov.au/water/publications/mdb/pubs/restoring-balance.pdf.
[83]
See for example: Ms Jenni Matilla, Bondi Group and National Irrigation
Corporation Water Entitlements Register, Committee Hansard, 19 September
2008, p. 65; Dr Arlene Buchan, ACF, Committee Hansard, 26 September
2008, p. 20; Mr Richard Anderson, Victorian Farmers Federation, Committee
Hansard, 26 September 2008, p. 93; and Mr Terence Korn, Australian
Floodplain Association, Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 41.
[84]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 12. See also: Mr Kenneth
Pattison, Plug the Pipe, Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, p. 41.
[85]
Committee Hansard, 16 March 2009, p. 26.
[86]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, pp 3-4
[87]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 3.
[88]
Answers to questions on notice, 13 March 2009 (received 31 March 2009).
[89]
Clause 4.11.2
[90]
Clause 4.5.3
[91]
Clause 4.13
[92]
Answers to questions on notice, 13 March 2009 (received 31 March 2009).
[93]
Answers to questions on notice, 13 March 2009 (received 31 March 2009).
[94]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 3. See also: Mr Richard
Anderson, Victorian Farmers Federation, Committee Hansard, 26 September
2008, p. 93.
[95]
Answers to questions on notice, 13 March 2009 (received 31 March 2009).
[96]
See: Mr Stewert Ellis, Committee Hansard, 19 September 2008, pp
15-16.
Chapter 6 - The impacts of climate change and the likely future availability of water in the Murray-Darling Basin
[1]
Submission 1A, Part 1 of the Inquiry, p. 14.
[2]
For information on the CSIRO's Sustainable Yields Project see: http://www.csiro.au/partnerships/MDBSY.html.
[3]
See for example: Murray-Darling Basin Commission, Submission 4,
p. 3; Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Water, Submission 12,
p.6.
[4]
CSIRO, Water Availability in the Murray-Darling Basin: A report from
CSIRO to the Australian Government (Sustainable Yields Project Report),
2008, p. 28. The relative level of use is the ratio of surface water use to
surface water availability, see Sustainable Yields Project Report, p.
32.
[5]
Sustainable Yields Project Report, 2008, p. 5.
[6]
Committee Hansard, 16 March 2009, p. 2.
[7]
Sustainable Yields Project Report, p. 38. Annual surface water
use includes diversions for irrigation, rural stock and domestic use and urban
town supply, the pipe and channel losses associated with this supply, and the
eventual stream flow impacts of groundwater extraction. The assessment also
includes additional farm dams and commercial plantation forestry. See Sustainable
Yields Project Report, p. 32.
[8]
Sustainable Yields Project Report, p. 8.
[9]
Sustainable Yields Project Report, p. 8.
[10]
Sustainable Yields Project Report, p. 10.
[11]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, pp 15-16.
[12]
Sustainable Yields Project Report, pp 47, and 49.
[13]
Sustainable Yields Project Report, p. 52.
[14]
Sustainable Yields Project Report, p. 52.
[15]
Sustainable Yields Project Report, p. 52.
[16]
Sustainable Yields Project Report, p. 53.
[17]
Submission 2, p. 5.
[18]
Submission 4, p. 2.
[19]
Submission 4, p. 3.
[20]
Committee Hansard, 10 September 2008, p. 14
[21]
Submission 71, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 12. See also: Dr
John Williams, Wentworth Group, Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, pp
49-50.
[22]
Submission 71, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 1.
[23]
Submission 71, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 1. See also: Mr
Peter Cosier, Wentworth Group, Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 46.
[24]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 43.
[25]
Committee Hansard, 10 September 2008, pp 25-26.
[26]
Committee Hansard, 10 September 2008, pp 25-26. See also: Dr John
Williams, Wentworth Group, Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, pp 47-48.
[27]
Sustainable Yields Project Report, p. 8.
[28]
Committee Hansard, 16 March 2009, p. 9.
[29]
Sustainable Yields Project Report, p. 8.
[30]
Professor Mike Young and Mr Jim McColl, Grounding Connectivity: Do
rivers have aquifier rights?, Droplet No. 13, 28 September 2008, tabled 13
March 2009.
[31]
Sustainable Yields Project Report, p. 10.
[32]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 53.
Chapter 7 - Unregulated water interception activities
[1]
Intergovernmental Agreement on a National Water Initiative (NWI),
paragraph 55.
[2]
Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts (DEWHA), Submission
1A, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 12.
[3]
Submission 2, p. 5. See also: Submission 1A,
Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 12.
[4]
Submission 2, pp. 5-6.
[5]
Submission 4, p. 2.
[6]
Submission 13, p. 9. The National Farmers' Federation (NFF)
contend that with the implementation of floodplain harvesting legislation in
NSW there is no 'unregulated' water interception activities in that State. The
NFF also state that all flood plain harvesting in Queensland is regulated or
authorised. See Submission 13, pp 8-9.
[7]
Submission 2, p. 6.
[8]
Submission 14, p. 8.
[9]
Submission 12, pp 4-5.
[10]
Submission 1, p. 6.
[11]
NWI, paragraph 56.
[12]
NWI, paragraph 57.
[13]
Submission 1A, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 13.
[14]
National Water Commission, National Water Initiative: First Biennial
Assessment of Progress in Implementation, 2007, p. 3.
[15]
Submission 1A, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 13.
[16]
Submission 1A, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 13.
[17]
Submission 4, p. 3.
[18]
Submission 4, p. 3.
[19]
Submission 4, p. 4.
[20]
Murray-Darling Basin Commission, Risks to Shared Water Resources. FAQ: Murray-Darling Basin Risks Strategy, May 2008, p. 2.
[21]
DEWHA, Submission 1A, Part 1 of the inquiry, pp 13-14.
However, the Water Act 2007 provides for a greater Commonwealth role
through the Murray-Darling Basin Authority in the enforcement of illegal taking
of water in the MDB, once the Basin Plan is in place and current plans expire.
[22]
Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, pp 47-48. See also: Ms Sarah Moles, Submission 1, p. 6.
[23]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 38. See also: Mrs Deborah
Kaluder, Australian Floodplain Association, Committee Hansard, 26
September 2008, p. 50.
[24]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 42.
[25]
Committee Hansard, 19 September 2008, p. 8.
[26]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 24.
[27]
NSW Department of Water and Energy, Floodplain harvesting policy to
provide security for NSW rivers and communities, Media Release, 3 July
2008.
[28]
NSW Department of Water and Energy, Floodplain harvesting policy to
provide security for NSW rivers and communities, Media Release, 3 July
2008.
[29]
Submission 9, Attachment: Inland Rivers Network, Submission
to Department of Water and Energy on Draft Floodplain Harvesting Policy,
2008, pp 1-2.
[30]
Answers to Questions on Notice, 18 September 2008 (received 9 October
2008).
[31]
Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Water, Overland flow
water: Fact sheet, September 2008; Queensland Department of Natural
Resources and Water, Submission 12, p. 4; and Mr Greg Claydon,
Queensland Department of Natural Resources, Committee Hansard, 9
September 2008, p. 48.
[32]
Submission 12, p. 4. See also: NFF, Submission 13,
p. 9.
[33]
Mr Scott Spencer, Queensland Department of Natural Resources, Committee
Hansard, 9 September 2008, p. 52.
[34]
See R Kingsford and A Roff, A case study: floodplain development on the
Paroo River. The last free flowing river in the Murray-Darling Basin,
August 2008, pp 3-5.
[35]
Answers to Questions on Notice, 9 September 2008.
[36]
Committee Hansard, 16 March 2009, p. 17.
Chapter 8 - Other issues
[1]
National Water Commission, National Water Initiative: First Biennial
Assessment of Progress in Implementation, 2007, p. 3.
[2]
National Water Commission, National Water Initiative: First Biennial
Assessment of Progress in Implementation, 2007, p. 7.
[3]
National Water Commission, Update of progress in water reform: Input
into the water subgroup stocktake report (NWC Update on Water Reform), 15 February 2008, p. 19. Available at: http://www.nwc.gov.au/www/html/692-coag-update-report-on-water-reform.asp?intSiteID=1.
[4]
NWC Update on Water Reform, p. 20.
[5]
Submission 12, p. 5.
[6]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 51.
[7]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, pp 47-48. See also: Professor
Mike Young, Committee Hansard, 10 September 2008, p. 21.
[8]
Submission 13, p. 9.
[9]
NWC Update on Water Reform, p. 20.
[10]
MainStream Environmental Consulting and RiverSmart Australia, Submission 12, Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 4. See also: Ms Sarah Moles, Submission 1, p. 1.
[11]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 26.
[12]
Committee Hansard, 9 September 2008, p. 100.
[13]
Committee Hansard, 9 September 2008, p. 96.
[14]
Ms Sarah Moles, Submission 1, p. 6.
[15]
Submission 1, p. 6. See also Environment and Property
Protection Association, Submission 7.
[16]
Submission 10, pp 6-10.
[17]
Committee Hansard, 19 September 2008, p. 22; see also Ms Amy
Hankinson, Inland Rivers Network, Committee Hansard, 18 September 2008,
p. 17.
[18]
See for example: Professor Mike Young, Wentworth Group of Concerned
Scientists, Committee Hansard, 19 September 2008, p. 30; Dr Arlene
Buchan, Australian Conservation Foundation, Committee Hansard, 10 March
2009, p. 32. This issue is discussed further in Chapter 5 of this report.
[19]
Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, p. 93.
[20]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 5.
[21]
See: The Hon. Mr Mike Rann, Premier, South Australia, Ministerial
Statement, House of Assembly Hansard, 5 March 2009, pp 1885-1887.
[22]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 35.
[23]
Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 7.
[24]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 16.
[25]
Committee Hansard, 10 March 2009, p. 16.
[26]
Committee Hansard, 10 September 2008, p. 4. See also: Dr Tom
Hatton, CSIRO, Committee Hansard, 9 September 2008, pp 23 and 28; Dr
Kerri Muller, Committee Hansard, 10 September 2008, pp 10-11; the Hon. Karlene Maywald, Committee Hansard, 19 September 2008, p. 39; and Conservation Council
of South Australia, Submission 14, p. 7.
[27]
Submission 40 to Part 1 of the inquiry, p. 7.
[28]
Submission 9, p. 1.
[29]
Submission 9, pp 1-2.
[30]
Submission 2, p. 6. This issue is discussed in greater
detail in Chapter 6 of this report.
[31]
Committee Hansard, 16 March 2009, p. 9.
[32]
Answers to questions on notice, 13 March 2009 (received 31 March 2009).
Chapter 9
[1]
Senate Standing Committee on Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport,
Water management in the Coorong and Lower Lakes (including consideration of the
Emergency Water (Murray-Darling Basin Rescue) Bill 2008, October 2008, p. 50.
Minority Report - Australian Labor Party
[1]
Darling Basin Ministerial Council Meeting No 1, 12 June, Sydney,
Communiqué. Available at:
http://www.mdba.gov.au/system/files/MinCo-1-communique.pdf
[2]
Committee Hansard, 26 September 2008, p. 57.
[3]
See Dr Bill Young, Committee Hansard, 16 March 2009, p. 9 and Mr
Rob Freeman, Committee Hansard, 13 March 2009, p. 53.