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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2013-03-06 Daily Xml
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RIVER MURRAY ECO ACTION

The Hon. T.J. STEPHENS (14:29): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Water and the River Murray a question relating to the River Murray ECO Action group's campaign to implement 28 no-wash zones along the Murray.

Leave granted.

The Hon. T.J. STEPHENS: On 7 February 2013, in this house the minister was asked a number of questions regarding the River Murray ECO Action group's campaign to which he responded with advice on the Riverbank Collapse Hazard Program, showing a clear misunderstanding of the issue. The River Murray ECO Action group campaign is to implement no-wash zones which would restrict boat use at 28 sites along the River Murray under a government-backed plan to reduce riverbank erosion.

Since this issue was first reported on 9 January 2013, the River Murray ECO Action group's proposals have received considerable public backlash. Considering the minister's response in this house earlier this year, the government has done little to allay the fears of the public on this matter. My questions are:

1. Will the minister explain how the 28 sites were chosen?

2. Will the minister explain what funding assistance the government has provided the River Murray ECO Action group or associated groups, such as BIASA or KESAB, for the campaign's River Murray no-wash zones program?

3. Will the minister indicate what role the government plays in the River Murray ECO Action group and its campaign?

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation, Minister for Water and the River Murray, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation) (14:31): I thank the honourable member for his most important question, although I don't understand why he did not understand my explanation at an earlier stage, so let me go to it again.

Riverbank collapse was declared a state hazard under the State Emergency Management Plan in September 2009, following a series of significant and hazardous landslides along the banks of the River Murray downstream of Lock 1. The Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources is the riverbank erosion and collapse hazard leader under the South Australian Emergency Management Plan.

I am advised that the River Murray ECO Action campaign was created in response to community concerns regarding riverbank erosion and the loss of amenity. I am advised that the River Murray ECO Action campaign is the name of a joint initiative of the Boating Industry of South Australia and KESAB. As far as I am aware, there is no group called the River Murray ECO Action group; rather, this is a community campaign led by the boating industry and KESAB. The River Murray ECO Action campaign aims to:

develop actions to better manage the impact of wash from vessels on banks, shorelines, users and the surrounding environment;

apply a consistent approach to minimising the impacts of wash, whilst recognising local circumstances, and ensure that any strategy effectively addresses the needs of stakeholders;

minimise environmental harm and improve the sustainability of riverbanks, through the reduction of bank erosion and the prevention of collapses;

reduce the disturbance caused by high-energy activities to other users of the River Murray; and

reduce pollution by promoting simple behaviour changes to the wider community.

I would have thought those aims would be welcomed by everybody in this place. The initiative is still, as I understand it, in its infancy, but it has so far highlighted the risk that vessel wash has on the riverbank environment and identified a number of priority areas ahead of a community consultation campaign.

The consultation process was short-circuited by a social media campaign against the program, I understand. There is no intention, on my part at least, to enforce or regulate no-wash zones; rather, the focus is on education and motivation for all users to care for and share the river—to share their river—in a sensible and sustainable manner.

The no-wash zone program currently includes, as I understand it, three trial sites at Griffen's Marina near Blanchetown, Greenings Landing near Mannum, and Riverglen Marina, close to Murray Bridge. At these sites, signage has been erected to highlight the no-wash zones and to encourage boating and skiing enthusiasts to be acutely mindful of the impact of wash on the riverbank and other users.

My department, and specifically the Environment Protection Authority, welcomes any program that provides environmental benefits to help minimise structural damage to the riverbanks and helps protect the sensitive and fragile areas of the River Murray. The EPA has long held environment protection concerns with the increasing number of vessel users, owners of shacks, boat ramps, marinas and other permanent residents seeking approval to dump sand into the River Murray in a bid to re-establish the riverbank in front of their property, which they claim has eroded over time, caused, in large part, by vessel wake wash.

The EPA advises that some sections of the riverbank may not have shown evidence of erosion in the past but, due to the recent drought conditions, are at increased risk of destabilisation.

The government understands that managing vessel wash requires consideration of social, operational, safety and environmental factors, including the conflicting views and priorities of diverse stakeholders, and is satisfied that the Eco Action no-wash zone project reflects these diverse views. This project is all about raising public awareness, I am told, of the environmental damage that can be caused through recreational activities and provides some guidance on the role we can all play in avoiding that damage.

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