Motions

National Water Week

Debate resumed.

Mr HUGHES (Giles) (12:33): I just have a few words to say about National Water Week. It is especially important, I think, for the communities that I represent to acknowledge the importance of the week and to acknowledge that water is, obviously, essential. It is one of those things, along with energy, that underpins much of what we do. In fact, it has a number of similarities when it comes to energy, in terms of the nature of the distribution networks and what have you.

The community of Whyalla is almost entirely dependent upon the flows from the River Murray. Whyalla has benefited from two pipelines: one built many years ago to supply water to the community and to industry, and the more recent pipeline, which goes under the Spencer Gulf, underpins the development of the integrated steel works in Whyalla, which is celebrating its 50^th year. In fact, without the water from the River Murray, the integrated steelworks would not be there.

When you reflect upon the history of Whyalla, and other regional communities, and the development of water infrastructure in this state and see where we have been and where we are likely to go in the future, it brings to the fore that whole importance of innovation. The original water for Whyalla (or Hummock Hill, as it once was) came from Port Pirie. It was barged across Spencer Gulf and landed in Whyalla to support that settlement at that time. In the 1920s, a desalination plant was built at Whyalla by BHP to supply the water needs for the emerging industry there and for the community. It was not until the pipeline from the River Murray was built that the desalination plant was mothballed and eventually removed.

The issue of innovation, new water supply—and I refer especially to the comments made by the member for Flinders, who has some particular challenges down on Eyre Peninsula when it comes to water—is going to be one that is going to be at the forefront of our mind for many years to come when it comes to water supply. Apart from the fact that we are the driest state in the driest inhabited continent, we have the overall long-term trends associated with climate change. Probably the overwhelming odds are that rainfall is going to start to reflect the rainfall patterns that have existed in the south-west of Western Australia over the last couple of decades.

Of course, Western Australia was the first state to put in a desalination plant, at Kwinana. They now need a second plant to be built in order to supply their needs. I obviously was not in the parliament when all the discussion was going on about the investment in the major desalination plant in Whyalla. I think that there is always legitimate debate about scale and timing. That debate is now water under the bridge, no pun intended. The point about the desal plant here in Adelaide is that it is now a major piece of insurance for the future because, if those predictions about climate change are accurate or probable, this state is going to face incredibly difficult challenges.

When the member for Flinders talked about the need for a new supply (I think he also referred to the issue yesterday during a debate on water), he indicated that one of the options is for smaller-scale desalination plants around Eyre Peninsula so that communities such as Ceduna, Streaky Bay, Elliston and Port Lincoln are ultimately served with a secure water supply. The situation they are currently in is arguably not sustainable as time goes on.

Of course, Eyre Peninsula is now linked to the River Murray with the infrastructure that was put in between Iron Knob and Kimba. Some people argue about whether that was a good approach at the time. Certainly, when that announcement was made, it was in the context at the time that a memorandum of understanding had been entered into between BHP Billiton and the state government in relation to a potential large-scale desalination plant at Point Lowly, near Whyalla, to serve the needs of what was the proposed or mooted expansion at Olympic Dam, even though the expansion did not have a green light.

The feeling at the time was that the desalination plant on Point Lowly Peninsula would also be able to feed into the reticulated water supply for Eyre Peninsula and for communities like Whyalla. I would have to point out that the proposal for a desalination plant on Point Lowly Peninsula was a contentious one at the time. Some people were arguing—and I think it was a strong argument—that a major desalination plant would make a lot more sense down on the West Coast of Eyre Peninsula where you had a far more energetic ocean environment to dissipate brine discharge.

The point is that we should be looking at a range of technologies. For areas such as those I come from, in the very dry part of the state, desalination does make sense, but it might well be that we should look at smaller-scale desalination to suit the needs of various communities and tailored to their particular needs.

As I said, the ironworks (which preceded the steelworks) had a desalination plant at one time back in the 1920s and it is interesting to note that, in recent years, OneSteel—or Arrium, as it is now—has also built a new desalination plant at Whyalla as part of Project Magnet and part of a response to not draw additional water from the River Murray in order to assist with the pipeline that brings magnetite in a slurry form from the Middleback Ranges.

Companies like Arrium are investing in desalination to address some of their needs, albeit that they are still a major user of water from the River Murray. It is interesting that, when you look at the sort of practices they are engaging in, there is a lot of focus on efficiency: 'How can we use water far more efficiently than we do?'

Over the years—and this is going back a fair while—as a community representative from Whyalla when on council, I have had my battles with SA Water. People have mentioned, in the discussions here today and previously, the shortsightedness of taking effluent, treating it and then discharging it into the marine environment both in Adelaide—which has had an incredibly detrimental effect on seagrass beds—and also in communities like Whyalla where, for many years, water was transported over 300-odd kilometres, used once, put through an effluent treatment plant and then discharged into the Northern Spencer Gulf to cause damage up there also to seagrass beds.

It was one of those good initiatives of the Labor government to invest in an effluent treatment plant and recycling process in Whyalla. There is minimal water discharged to the marine environment and that water is now being put to good use. That sort of innovation and that sort of willingness to invest in water infrastructure will stand us in good stead for the future.

Time expired.

Mr PENGILLY (Finniss) (12:43): I would like to make a small contribution to this motion by the member for Chaffey. For the life of me, I do not know why the government wants to introduce an amendment to what is already a perfectly good motion. As was said earlier, water is a non-political issue, quite frankly, as far as discussion in parliament is concerned.

If you think back to 2006, when some of us came into this place and we were in the middle of the millennium drought, compared to where we are now, it is rather interesting. I recall at that time Bob Brown said it was not going to rain for yonks and yonks and the River Murray would never run again. When it eventually did rain, the Murray was running full bore within about six months.

I would also mention the matter of the desalination plant. There was a case in the opposition's time under Iain Evans, who put up the idea of a desalination plant. Indeed, numbers from this place, on both sides, went over to Perth and looked at the desalination plant. They were frightening times for the government of the day, with former premier Rann and former deputy premier Foley and those ministers. We were very supportive of the desalination plant. The Public Works Committee went down there and visited it and had a good look at it. Ultimately, there were some politics involved, of course, because the federal government at the time decided to put in money and double the size of it; and now it is sitting there, not doing a lot, but it is there.

Let me say this about living in the country, like a lot of us do, on this side particularly. I note what the member for Giles had to say, that he lives in a dry area as well. We look after water like you would not believe. Water is the very foundation for us. If we do not have water, we do not have anything, and very much so in our homes. We supply our own water to our own home. We collect water. We have 120,000 litres of rainwater storage and we run our home on the rainwater. If we are lucky enough to get a wet year, we have a garden. We have an extension on the pipeline which we can use as a backup but it is horrendously expensive. Trying to convince people who live in the country to be careful about water is something that really does not need to happen, because we just have to be.

I might say that, when our children were younger—and, indeed, those who have teenagers now know that it is a bit difficult to get them out of the shower from time to time and they can be in there in 30 minutes—our kids had about three minutes and they were out of the shower whether they liked it or not because, if they were not out, I turned off the pressure pump. That fixed them very smartly.

Let me say that water is a big issue across the electorate of Finniss. I heard what the member for Hammond said earlier. When I came into this place, Goolwa was in my electorate and I happened to lob into that area at about the worst possible time, and Goolwa was struggling. The bottom end of the river was forgotten about and there was a trickle down the middle of the Murray, yet they hung in there. They had their moments.

I think I also need to mention that the water group that was formed and met on Hindmarsh Island under the chairmanship of Dean Brown is still going. Indeed, I was there just recently. They did a phenomenal job working hand in hand with government departments and the federal government at the time and they got through.

Sadly, upstream irrigators and upstream members of parliament in various states do not seem to understand the dynamics of the Lower Lakes, the Lower Murray and the mouth of the Murray, and I hope that those who are in positions of authority to do with the Murray show a lot of common sense to ensure that what happened in 2000 in the millennium drought, despite the fact that it just did not rain, will not happen again, that they will make sure that we never get in that sort of mess again, if possible. There are still ongoing calls to get rid of the barrages. I find it just ridiculous. I am extremely pleased that Senator Ruston is in the position she is in now. She is completely the right person for that job. She is very solid, sensible and has an innate knowledge of the Murray and, as long as she is in that position, she will make sure that nothing untoward happens.

Let me talk briefly about some water issues in my electorate. What happened with the NRM boards and the Eastern Mount Lofty and Western Mount Lofty water allocation plans is still causing huge amounts of angst. It seems to me that the bureaucrats and boards that are commissioned by the government do not have an understanding of how the rural sector works.

Indeed, they have no understanding of the Southern Fleurieu Peninsula where there is little or no underground water, and the issue to do with putting meters on dams and charging people for this, that and everything else still cuts deep. It is still highly unpopular and it is not going to go away in a hurry. Even last week we were getting complaints about people who are being billed large accounts for irrigation when they do not need irrigation whatsoever.

The issue of the Myponga dam is to the fore. Whilst those who seem to think they know and forecast large population increases down on the South Coast, let me say that if we run out of water or something catastrophic happens, I do not know how they are going to supply that. The Myponga dam is a great resource. It is a terrific resource. For those who do not know, it can be sent back to the metropolitan area but it also supplies Yankalilla, Normanville, right through Victor Harbor, Goolwa, Port Elliot, Middleton and that area. It is a major source of water—and good water.

Mount Compass is on its own scheme. I move over to the Kangaroo Island sector of my electorate and the Middle River dam. It is also important to remember that the first desalination plant in the state was put in at Penneshaw on Kangaroo Island by the Brown government. It has had its problems but it is operating properly now. The Middle River dam is a source of concern for me. There seems to be this overwhelming environmental need to restrict people from doing anything.

Earlier this year, I was very worried at the way the season started that we were not going to get water into that dam. I asked what was going to happen in the event that that dam did not fill—I am still waiting for an answer, I might add. However, as luck would have it, we had reasonable rains in July, even into August, and even though they shut down at the end of August and not much in September, the dam is full; it started running over a few weeks ago so that will get us through this year.

I also pick up on what the member for MacKillop said. I find it absolutely blatantly ridiculous that departmental people have stopped children from drinking rainwater in schools. It is just crazy; absolute madness. The amount of roof area in the schools and the amount of catchment they have to supply rainwater tanks so kids can go and get a drink out of these taps is wonderful. It is something we grew up with. We would race over to the tap and have a drink. I cannot see that it hurt too many of us—as I think the member for MacKillop said also.

I find that we do some foolish things in this state. I am not sure who drafted the member for Fisher's contribution, but I wish that members would stand here and talk from the heart rather than read parrot-fashion nonsense from ministerial officers and try to contribute to the debate. You need to know what you are talking about and you need to understand what you are talking about in relation to water. I know that the member for Colton in another life had a good day down on the Southern Fleurieu and the Fleurieu some years ago and I think he got a better understanding of water than he had before he went down there. He got a better understanding—

An honourable member interjecting:

Mr PENGILLY: —you've had your go—of exactly how things fit. With that contribution I will resume my seat.

Debate adjourned on motion of Ms Chapman.