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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2013-02-21 Daily Xml
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FARM WATER STORAGE

The Hon. R.L. BROKENSHIRE (15:17): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Environment and other matters a question regarding dams and the department.

Leave granted.

The Hon. R.L. BROKENSHIRE: To an earlier question, the minister responded by saying that there were far too many dams compared to bores and that was the reason why the department would not go and ask the farmers a simple question: how big are your dams and do you have dams over five megalitres? A simple question.

In the Mount Lofty Ranges, I advise the minister that there are 1,680 dams and 1,700 bores used for irrigation and other commercial purposes. Given, therefore, that the department did spend time and resources to personally visit, as you would expect, the farmers in respect of groundwater irrigation—that is, from bores—for 1,700 of them, can the minister explain to the house why his department now could not go and visit those farmers when, from an irrigation point of view, which is all we are actually talking about here, there are 1,680, which is actually 20 less than the bores?

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation, Minister for Water and the River Murray, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation) (15:18): I should probably take that on notice and come back another day, but let me take the opportunity of enlightening the house.

The Hon. D.W. Ridgway: You could start again; reading a brief.

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER: Indeed. I thank the honourable member for his most important question. The Eastern and Western Mount Lofty Ranges prescribed water resources areas were prescribed in 2005. The region provides an important water supply to nearly two-thirds of the state's population, including primary producers, industry, local communities and metro Adelaide. In addition, there are almost 21,000 hectares of irrigated crops with a total farm gate value of approximately $440 million across the Mount Lofty Ranges region, and a number of irrigated crops are produced almost exclusively in that region.

The region also contains significant swamps, rivers and wetlands of high conservation status, some of which are internationally recognised, including the swamps of the Fleurieu Peninsula. It is little wonder, then, that my department takes its role in the management of water in that area very seriously. It is vitally important for landowners, vitally important for primary producers, that we get it right, and we intend to continue to do so.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: Order!

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