PM Howard bids for control of the Murray-Darling ...
posted by Concerned Ratepayer at 6:36 AM
Thursday, January 25, 2007
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- Name: Concerned Ratepayer
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For many years, the 4350water blog has informed readers of plans by the Toowoomba City Council (now Toowoomba Regional Council) and the Qld government to introduce recycled water for drinking in Toowoomba. It has also looked at the issue from a State and Federal perspective and dealt with related State and Federal political issues. There continues to be a need for the Toowoomba Regional Council to be completely transparent in its dealings with the ratepayers and residents of Toowoomba. There also continues to be a need for open debate on the benefits and risks of potable reuse and long-term studies on the effects on humans of drinking recycled water. Coal seam gas water is emerging as a possible alternate water source for some uses for the region. The 4350water blog is a collective effort and thanks go to its many contributors.
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From ABC News
25 January 2007
PM pledges billions to solve water crisis
Prime Minister John Howard will today use a major address to pledge billions of dollars to overhauling water management in Australia.
With water shortages biting, Mr Howard will today outline a $2.5 billion plan, which includes seizing control of the Murray-Darling river system from the states.
The plan also includes a promise of $1.5 billion to improve water efficiency on farms.
The incoming Water Resources Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, says farmers will be expected to make significant contributions.
"The Prime Minister is determined to ensure that we make every drop count everywhere in Australia," he said.
Mr Turnbull says another $500 million will be pledged to cut evaporation and seepage in water storages.
"There is a crying need to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of river operations," he said.
Mr Howard will also pledge $480 million to expand the Bureau of Meteorology to collect national water data.
"With comprehensive water resource assessments and projections of future water availability," Mr Turnbull said.
A task force will also be set up to look at the potential for development in northern Australia.
"It's vital that we get a better understanding of northern Australia, that's where most of our water is," Mr Turnbull said.
"We don't really understand the river or groundwater systems there.
11:44 AM, January 25, 2007
This is going to get interesting. A real stoush over States' rights.
From SMH:
PM's $10b water plan
25 January 2007
Prime Minister John Howard has announced a $10 billion national water management plan that includes a commonwealth takeover of Australia's biggest river system.
The 10-point plan includes the biggest modernisation of irrigation infrastructure in Australia's history, pumping almost $6 billion into improving structures like pipes and channels in a project aimed at saving 3,000 gigalitres of water a year.
Other investments include $1.5 billion to boost water efficiency on farms, and $3 billion to address over-allocation of water in the drought-ravaged Murray-Darling Basin.
The government also plans to take control of the ailing river system, which is currently jointly managed by NSW, Victoria, South Australia and Queensland.
Mr Howard said state governments had to recognise that the "old way" of managing the basin had "reached its use-by date".
"The tyranny of incrementalism and the lowest common denominator must end," Mr Howard told the National Press Club in Canberra.
"I will therefore be writing to all relevant state and territory leaders requesting that they refer to the Commonwealth their powers of water management within the Murray-Darling Basin.
"The $10 billion plan I have just outlined will only work if the governance arrangements for the basin are put on a proper national footing. The proposal is conditional on this occurring."
Mr Howard flagged a government buyout of water entitlements in the Murray-Darling basin, saying the over-allocation of water in the parched river system had to be confronted.
"Enhancing the overall viability of irrigation districts will require structural adjustment," he said.
"The government stands ready to provide structural assistance and, if necessary, to purchase water allocations in the market.
"We could muddle through as the states have been doing but, frankly, that gets us nowhere.
"Without decisive action we face the worst of both worlds - the irrigation sector goes into steady but inevitable decline while water quality and environmental problems continue to worsen."
But Mr Howard rejected suggestions that irrigated agriculture in the basin should be abandoned, branding the idea "wrong and defeatist".
"Anyone can come up with a plan to withdraw and do less. Our goal is to do more with less - to increase agricultural production with less water use," he said.
12:04 PM, January 25, 2007
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