Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources) Share this | Hansard source

I am answering the question. The decision was taken in 1989 to not build the Wolffdene dam, notwithstanding that it was obvious that the growth in south-east Queensland was ramping up. South-east Queensland is short of water because there has not been effective long-term planning. When you look at planning for water, you have to have every option on the table. One of the questions that has been talked about for many decades is: can water be brought from the Northern Rivers of New South Wales, in particular the Tweed and the Clarence? So we decided to ask SMEC, the Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation, to do a brief desktop study—it was never intended to be anything more than that—to just look at current costings, based on the hydrological data that was available, and examine whether there was anything even in the ballpark, whether there was anything that warranted further investigation, because many people contended that there were no available options there. It is plain that there are a couple of feasible options on a desktop basis and, as the report indicated, further investigation needs to be done and there needs to be further discussion between New South Wales and Queensland. There is the potential for an integrated water scheme between northern New South Wales and south-east Queensland. Both northern New South Wales and south-east Queensland are going to need more water as they grow. So that report is literally no more than a first step, just to have a brief desktop analysis of some of the possibilities. It has been a very useful exercise from that regard, and clearly, as the report indicates and as I have always indicated, further work would need to be done. The reality is that we are committed to supporting—

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