NATURAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT (WATER HARVESTING) AMENDMENT BILL

Introduction and First Reading

The Hon. R.L. BROKENSHIRE (17:44): Obtained leave and introduced a bill for an act to amend the Natural Resources Management Act 2004. Read a first time.

Second Reading

The Hon. R.L. BROKENSHIRE (17:44): I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

I will be even briefer with this bill and I thank colleagues for their patience and time. I realise the workload here tonight, but I will be spending a lot of time debating this in future at the appropriate time when the chamber has more time to analyse this prior to vote.

This is the last of the three bills about (1) transparency and (2) getting fair dinkum about stormwater harvesting. This bill simply requires the NRM Council to include a line in its annual report setting out how much the state government, through its various organisations, NRM boards and local government spends on stormwater or other wastewater capture and storage.

We saw in minister Maywald's statement the government's spin that it is interested in stormwater harvesting. The view of Family First is that the NRM Council is best placed to tell the public, first, exactly what projects are underway; secondly, how much money is being spent; and, thirdly, and most importantly, whether they are bona fide stormwater harvesting projects or merely stormwater mitigation projects dressed up to look like stormwater harvesting. I trust that colleagues in this chamber—and eventually and hopefully those members in the other house—will have a good look at this bill and support it. The public's interest in stormwater harvesting is surging. Where ever I have been throughout the state people from the Riverland, down south (where I live) or through the metropolitan area have been saying to me, 'We must get on with stormwater harvesting as an important initiative.'

People pray for rain at the moment, but it does fall on Adelaide's roofs and it flushes out to sea. The public wants something done about that wasted water. This bill is about showing the public that, if the will is there and the legislative framework is put in place, it can be done. That is why I am pleased to introduce this bill today. I commend the bill to members.

Debate adjourned on motion of Hon. I.K. Hunter.