Urgent calls for more water denied

Federal Member for Farrer David Farley, NSW Member for Murray Helen Dalton and Edward River Council Mayor Ashley Hall all demanded urgent intervention, arguing that unused water held by governments should be made available to support agricultural production this season.

Mr Farley said the region was poised for a rice season but was being held back by what he described as administrative inaction.

“The ground around Deniliquin is locked into the starting gate. The paddocks are worked up, the bays are laid out, and the seed is booked,” he said.

“The entire physical supply chain is primed.

“But one variable is missing: a signature from three specific nodes in the state and federal executive framework.”

Mr Farley said Federal Environment and Water Minister Murray Watt, NSW Environment Minister Penny Sharpe and NSW Water Minister Rose Jackson needed to authorise the release of water before the planting opportunity closed on October 28.

He warned the loss of the season could result in between 80,000 and 110,000 tonnes of rice production being forfeited, potentially rising to 150,000 tonnes under peak conditions, while costing an estimated 230 to 270 jobs across farming, local businesses and rice processing.

Ms Dalton said governments were holding more environmental water than required under the Murray-Darling Basin Plan while farming communities faced reduced production and economic hardship.

“Governments currently control in excess of 4600 gigalitres of water, well above the basin plans water holdings of 3200GL,” she said.

“Meanwhile farming families are underproducing and communities are suffering.”

She said water held in storage should be made available to irrigators to help restore production levels and urged Ministers Watt and Jackson to “act immediately”.

Cr Hall said Deniliquin could not afford another setback after the loss of 68 jobs at the Deniliquin rice mill.

“Our community simply cannot afford further job losses resulting from a failure to provide the water needed for rice production,” he said.

“The time for reviews and discussions has passed. We need action now.”

The Pastoral Times sought comment from each of the relevant ministers.

One NSW Government spokesperson responded and said environmental water was not a reserve that could simply be redirected to agriculture.

“We understand the concerns of Riverina workers, growers and businesses facing the impacts of drought and reduced rice production, but environmental water is not a spare reserve that governments can simply switch to another use.

"Environmental water is held under the same legal framework as other water entitlements and must be used for its legislated purpose of keeping our rivers, wetlands and floodplains healthy, particularly during dry periods when those systems are under the greatest pressure.”

The spokesperson said healthy rivers were critical to regional economies and noted the government had already acted to assist farmers this year by providing an additional 20 per cent allocation to supplementary licence holders.

When announcing that decision last month, Ms Jackson said the measure was designed to provide temporary access to water that could not be captured and stored.

“We know farmers in the Murray are doing it tough and when there is water available in the system that cannot be captured and stored for future use, we should look at how we can make the best use of it,” she said.

“This is water that is available in the river now and can be accessed without compromising important environmental requirements.”

Ms Jackson said she had also requested a review on longer-term supplementary water access settings to ensure an appropriate balance between communities, industry and the environment.