THIS National Water Week (October 20-26) is the ideal time to start a broad discussion on the future water and food security needs of Australia.
To this point, governments do not appear to have grasped the connection between the two, and as a result our future is heading towards an increasing reliance on imported foods, and paying more for food at the supermarket.
This year’s Water Week theme is ‘Bring Water Into Focus’. This focus should be on redefining the appropriate balance to ensure sufficient water is being made available to grow the fresh, clean food that past generations have enjoyed.
At present, food production is threatened by government policies based on poor modelling and prioritising unrealistic end-of-system flow targets.
As a result, our current water management prioritises high levels of water storage, which is exacerbating flood risk, and unnatural flows down iconic rivers like the Murray are damaging riverbanks and, to the increasing concern of scientists, providing ideal breeding conditions for European carp, which, likewise, are damaging rivers and tributaries. In reality, we are hurting the very environment that governments claim they are trying to protect.
As such, we need a national discussion.
Do we need more storage to ensure future food security and environmental needs are met? If so, are governments strong enough to overcome the inevitable opposition from environmental lobby groups who, to this point, have held sway over common-sense water management?
Do we want our farmers to grow clean, green and affordable fresh food, or do we want an increased reliance on inferior imported food?
Are we prepared to continue allowing governments to ignore the flood risk and environmental damage from current policies, or do we want a more sensible balance that is driven by science and the national interest, not politicians whose priority is winning environmental city votes?
National Water Week is the ideal time to start these discussions.
