Brumby admits there is too little water for pipeline
“John Brumby’s joint statement on water contingency planning in the Southern Murray-Darling basin admits that there is insufficient water for Labor’s pipeline to Melbourne,” Sophie Mirabella, the Federal Member for Indi, said today.
The joint statement from Premier Brumby, the Premiers of NSW and South Australia and the Prime Minister, says in part:
“Dry conditions continue to prevail in the Murray System. The two year period to the end of November 2007 is the lowest Murray System two year inflow period on record. While critical human needs are being met in 2007-08, the water supply situation in the southern Basin system is extremely difficult and there is a relatively small amount of water available for other uses, impacting on communities, production and the environment. Therefore contingency planning needs to continue.”
“The last two years have seen record low inflows, and merely days ago the Labor Party released a report estimating there would be a further 13 per cent reduction in average end-of-system flows from the Ovens system into the Murray River by 2030.”
“It is plainly silly to respond to record low inflows by trying to increase outflows by flushing water down to Melbourne,” Mrs Mirabella said.
“In a drier future, the correct response is to do what we can to increase the water in our region, not flush it down to Melbourne.”
“The Labor Party says that future inflows to the Murray will fall – but also wants to increase outflows. That simply will not work.”
“This is yet another major Labor Party report that highlights the very low water supplies in our area. The Labor Party must now listen to themselves, and reverse their plot to flush our water down to Melbourne.”
The Bureau of Meteorology recently restated that ‘the deficiencies discussed above have occurred against a backdrop of multi-year rainfall deficits and record high temperatures that have severely stressed water supplies in the east and southwest of the country.’
“These severely stressed water supplies – which Labor’s own report says will be stressed more in the future – cannot sustain piping water to Melbourne. It is not surprising to realise that if inflows drop, outflows must also drop,” Mrs Mirabella said.
A copy of the statement is available at http://www.environment.gov.au/minister/wong/2008/pubs/tr20080205.pdf
The joint statement from Premier Brumby, the Premiers of NSW and South Australia and the Prime Minister, says in part:
“Dry conditions continue to prevail in the Murray System. The two year period to the end of November 2007 is the lowest Murray System two year inflow period on record. While critical human needs are being met in 2007-08, the water supply situation in the southern Basin system is extremely difficult and there is a relatively small amount of water available for other uses, impacting on communities, production and the environment. Therefore contingency planning needs to continue.”
“The last two years have seen record low inflows, and merely days ago the Labor Party released a report estimating there would be a further 13 per cent reduction in average end-of-system flows from the Ovens system into the Murray River by 2030.”
“It is plainly silly to respond to record low inflows by trying to increase outflows by flushing water down to Melbourne,” Mrs Mirabella said.
“In a drier future, the correct response is to do what we can to increase the water in our region, not flush it down to Melbourne.”
“The Labor Party says that future inflows to the Murray will fall – but also wants to increase outflows. That simply will not work.”
“This is yet another major Labor Party report that highlights the very low water supplies in our area. The Labor Party must now listen to themselves, and reverse their plot to flush our water down to Melbourne.”
The Bureau of Meteorology recently restated that ‘the deficiencies discussed above have occurred against a backdrop of multi-year rainfall deficits and record high temperatures that have severely stressed water supplies in the east and southwest of the country.’
“These severely stressed water supplies – which Labor’s own report says will be stressed more in the future – cannot sustain piping water to Melbourne. It is not surprising to realise that if inflows drop, outflows must also drop,” Mrs Mirabella said.
A copy of the statement is available at http://www.environment.gov.au/minister/wong/2008/pubs/tr20080205.pdf
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posted by Greg Naylor at
7:39 PM
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