MEMBER for Mildura Ali Cupper has called on the New South Wales Government to do its “fair share” in making sacrifices for the sake of the for the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.
Ms Cupper told State Parliament this week that while floodplain harvesting was not a new issue, it took on renewed significance given the increasing share of water foreign owners were having in areas of the northern basin.
“Victoria has long led the way in terms of sacrifices made for the Murray-Darling Basin Plan and it is about time New South Wales did its fair share,” Ms Cupper said.
“The entire southern basin, including the Mildura electorate, is at the mercy of decisions made further north.
“We pay the consequences for over-extraction upstream and we need to be able to hold floodplain harvesters to account.”
Ms Cupper said it was already bad enough that Australian entities had the ability to harvest water from Queensland and NSW floodplains, but when foreign multinationals have the same opportunity it was worse and even more dangerous.
“What is of concern to my electorate is the fact major foreign players like Canada are being given too much control over the fate of our river system,” she said.
“Close to half of the water Canadian investors own in Australia is in the northern basin on an unregulated river system.
“They hold more than 400 gigalitres of water entitlements in a region where unconscionable water practices run rife.
“They have no vested interest in the health of our river system.”
She said the “gulping up” of water from overseas investment firms was not the problem.
“The problem is what they are allowed to do by virtue of holding significant water licences north of our borders,” she said.
“Floodplain harvesting rigs the system in favour of deep-pocketed farming entities with expensive excavation equipment.
“It is effectively stealing from an otherwise regulated system, reducing what is left for farmers who are doing the right thing.”
She said a repeat of the disastrous fish kills in the lower Darling could not be risked and regulation was desperately needed to prevent “greedy” actions in the northern basin.
Ms Cupper urged the Victorian Government to continue its efforts to fight for better transparency and compliance across the basin by making a submissions to the NSW Legislative Council’s inquiry into floodplain harvesting, which close on August 13.
Acting Water Minister Richard Wynne said he could inform Ms Cupper that the government would make a submission to the inquiry “consistent with our concerns—our long-held concerns”.
