The Federal Government is delivering over 100 times more additional environmental water in one term, marking a massive win for South Australia and the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.
New figures show that water recovery in progress on the Murray-Darling Basin Plan’s 450GL water target, which is absolutely critical for South Australia, has surged to 286GL.
“We know this water is vital to Basin communities and is something that matters deeply to all South Australians,” Minister for the Environment and Water Tanya Plibersek said. “A healthy Murray-Darling Basin is vital to the communities, industry and environment that rely on it. That’s why we’ve worked together with Basin states and communities to rescue the Plan and deliver much-needed water.”
That’s an extra 114,400 Olympic swimming pools of water every year to secure water supplies for South Australia and to stop the mouth of the River Murray from dying.
“This is tremendous news for South Australia and couldn’t come at a better time with drought starting to bite across the state,” South Australian Deputy Premier Susan Close said. “Without a healthy River Murray, there is no water for farmers, irrigators or the environment, so this is an unbelievable result.”
The Federal Government has progressed almost two-thirds of the water towards the 450GL target and delivered 99.5 per cent of the Bridging the Gap target—two core parts of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.
“I said from day one that I was determined to deliver the Murray-Darling Basin Plan in full, including the 450GL of water for the environment. That’s what we’re doing – and that’s what’s at risk at the next election,” Plibersek said.
The Government has welcomed the strong community interest in voluntary water purchase. The first round of tenders has closed, and contracts are currently being evaluated for up to 70GL of water from parts of the southern connected Basin. Further offers are still being considered. Another tender, for up to 100GL of water from the southern connected Basin, was opened late last month for portfolios greater than 20GL.
Under the Federal Government’s Plan, any water recovered beyond the individual valley amounts now contributes towards the 450GL target. This means 78GL of water will be given the certainty of use to keep rivers and wetlands healthy while reducing the remaining amount of water that needs to be recovered elsewhere.
“It is the result of almost three years of tireless work by Tanya Plibersek to deliver on the Federal Government’s promise to South Australians to deliver the Basin Plan in full,” Close said.
The Federal Government has also announced more than $94 million of funding for South Australian Basin communities to deliver critical infrastructure that can support higher flows in the River Murray and provide assistance that will minimise the social and economic impacts of water recovery.
The Federal Government remains open to all options to deliver the Murray−Darling Basin Plan in a way that balances the needs of communities, industries, and the environment.
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