MURRAY-DARLING BASIN PLAN

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (15:01): My question is to the Minister for Water and the River Murray. Will the minister inform the house of the importance of today? As noted on the front page of today's Advertiser, it is the implementation of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation, Minister for Water and the River Murray, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation) (15:02): I thank the honourable member for his most important question, although I do counsel him not to get ahead of himself because the federal parliament has not got up yet.

Today is a very significant day—a significant milestone in the implementation of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan. At the end of the sitting of the federal parliament today, the plan will no longer be subject to disallowance motions. While the basin plan was adopted on 22 November 2012, the expiry of the disallowance period will lock in this basin-wide approach to reform and to provide certainty about the future management of the Murray-Darling Basin.

During the disallowance period, three motions to disallow the basin plan (two in the house and one in the Senate) were resoundingly defeated. This demonstrates the broad support the basin plan now enjoys. We now have a plan in place which will restore the rivers of the Murray-Darling Basin to health. This is essential to ensure the continued strength of affected regional communities and our sustainable food production.

The final basin plan reflects the strong and united approach taken by the South Australian community. The campaign, led by Premier Jay Weatherill and the former minister for water and the River Murray, the Hon. Paul Caica from the other place, saw the South Australian government join industry and the community to ensure that many important changes to the basin plan were made. Initially, they made these important changes with the opposition of those opposite us today. Not one voice rose in support of Jay Weatherill and Paul Caica as they went out and about across the state to unite our community to fight for the health of our river, and that is exactly what they did.

As a result, we have a basin plan based on best available science. We have a basin plan that will return more water to the River Murray so that environmental outcomes, consistent with recovering 3,200 gigalitres of water, can be achieved. The plan also includes improved salinity targets and minimum water level objectives to protect the river below Lock 1 in South Australia.

The final plan also requires the Murray-Darling Basin Authority to develop a constraints management strategy for removing low-lying bridges, undersized dam outlets and river operating rules that would otherwise frustrate increased flows. These constraints currently limit both the volume of water which can flow through the system and the environmental uses to which it can be put.

South Australian efforts resulted in an additional $1.77 billion in commonwealth funding to recover the additional 450 gigalitres to achieve 3,200 gigalitres of water recovery and to address constraints in the system. Approximately $200 million of the funding will be spent on addressing those constraints, I am advised. The additional 450 gigalitres will be recovered in ways that are socio and economically neutral or beneficial including on-farm water efficiency measures or alternative arrangements proposed by the states.

The plan also requires the risks from climate change to be assessed and considered in future reviews of the basin plan, along with better information on groundwater and surface water connectivity. The final basin plan also reflects a more precautionary approach to groundwater management, with the level of allowable groundwater extraction reduced from that proposed in earlier versions of the plan. Importantly, the Weatherill government has secured $420 million in funding commitments from the commonwealth government for water recovery, industry regeneration, regional development and environmental works and measures in South Australia. The challenge now lies in the implementation of a plan. This government remains vigilant and is committed to maintaining its strong and united approach with industry and with the community.

Significant effort will be required to work with the Murray-Darling Basin Authority and other basin states to develop new working arrangements for implementation of the basin plan that ensure all basin governments meet their obligations. We will also need to review and adapt our existing South Australian Murray-Darling Basin water management arrangements, including water resource planning and allocation, water quality and salinity management, environmental water management and water trading.

Today marks the next step in the implementation of the basin plan which will transform the way water is managed and will lead to better outcomes for industries, communities, the environment and for the whole river.