Answers to Questions

WATER, LAND AND BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION DEPARTMENT

In reply to the Hon. DAVID WINDERLICH (30 April 2009).

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for State/Local Government Relations, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Consumer Affairs, Minister for Government Enterprises, Minister Assisting the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Energy): The Minister for Environment and Conservation has provided the following information:

Due to the drought, there has been a general decline in groundwater levels in the South-East.

Data taken from groundwater monitoring wells across the Bald Hill Flat indicates that water tables on the agricultural section of the flat remained close to the surface during three of the driest years (2006-08) on record and are very slowly trending up, while bore levels on the western extremity were found to be stable or in decline.

Data also reveals that the level of the water table in any particular location is quite variable and dependent on rainfall events and features of the landscape. This means that even in those areas where the water tables are generally declining, the salinity in the ground can be brought to the surface and degrade the land.

The Upper South East (USE) Program Board commissioned an independent review to report on the risks and benefits to environmental values of the West Avenue watercourse and Bald Hill flat associated with hydrological manipulation and drainage.

To complement the scientific assessment, an independent review of community perspectives of the Bald Hill Drain and REFLOWS project was also undertaken by the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute (EBI) of Marketing Research, affiliated with the University of South Australia.