Parliament can save the basin: Burke

10 Oct 2010, 9:56 am   -   Source: AAP
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Federal Water Minister Tony Burke says he believes in the consultation process on Murray-Darling Basin water use limits.

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Water Minister Tony Burke says he believes in the consultation process on Murray-Darling Basin water use limits, and that parliament can deal with the challenge of saving the system.

A guide to a plan that will lay out how to restore the basin's environmental health by re-claiming water allocated to farmers was released on Friday.

It provoked anger from producers in the food bowl, who predict a widescale exodus from agriculture, lost production and rising food prices.

Parliament will have the final say on the plan, so it will need the backing of key rural independents.

Mr Burke on Sunday told Sky News he had "faith" in the process.

"If the consultation's done right, if the different issues are taken into account properly, if we find every possible way of being able to drive efficiencies across the basin, then I do believe the parliament will have the maturity to deal with this," he said.

Mr Burke said saving the basin had always been a "divisive issue within the community" but one that enjoyed bipartisan support.

"Let's not forget the Water Act itself has been there as Howard government legislation that remained there during the last term," he said.

"There actually has been, once you get to the parliamentary process, a much higher level of bipartisanship in this than you might think over the last 48 hours."

Opposition Murray-Darling spokesman Simon Birmingham said the coalition would examine the data underpinning the plan before issuing its response, which would have infrastructure efficiency "front and centre".

"That's where we need to get the government policy response back to," he told Sky News.

"How we make all of these communities put every drop to good use."

The modelling is expected to be released by the month's end.

Senator Birmingham said the process was "killing" communities with uncertainty.

"There should have been a government response to this report and it should have outlined just how much water can be saved through efficiencies, what the government's plan actually is, and how they will minimise the (water) buybacks that will take the productive capacity out of regional Australia," he said.

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Your Comments

Link Basin to sustainable national plan

Paul Taylor - from Woombye,QLD, 2 years ago

The agriculture community should accept…unless proven otherwise…Tony Burke’s overtures in setting a base for discussion on the future of the Murray-Darling basin—particularly in his statements on sustainability(economic, social, environmental) and no forced selling of water rights. Experience dictates the existence of a real problem… we need efficient, national, integrated water management in Tasmania and northern Australia along with the ‘Basin’ combined with rail, energy supply, new industry.

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