Andrew Broad (Mallee, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Australia is an example to the world on water management. Many people from other countries come here and have a look at what we are doing, particularly at how with four different states involved we have been able to find an outcome, the Murray-Darling Basin Plan. I was involved with the Murray-Darling Basin plan as an interested farmer, also as a representative of farmer groups, long before I came into this parliament. What I saw was clear minded people who were not necessarily articulate in their words presenting great ideas that were sometimes ignored because they were not well articulated. I talked about this in my maiden speech. I think there are lessons we can learn on water management.

The retrospective decision makers came up with a decision to find 2,750 gigalitres of water to be returned to the Murray-Darling system. That worked very well, except, sadly, Minister Burke, who was the federal environment minister at the time for the Gillard government, stitched up at the last minute a deal to deliver an extra 450 gigalitres of water to South Australia, although it was only delivered on the condition that it could be done without detrimental impact to the economy of the Murray-Darling and without social detriment. It is very clear that when you take one megalitre of water out of production, you lose three jobs, plus the multiplier effect, and so it is pleasing to me that Minister Barnaby Joyce has read the plan very thoroughly and has enacted the part of the plan which says that there is no way we are going to be able to return 450 gigalitres of water to South Australia.

This does not mean we are walking away from the health of the river. If you look at what is being done in my patch with environmental watering such as in Hattah Lakes, it is quite extraordinary what can be done by putting infrastructure around the delivery of environmental works. It is something I hope to look at as chair of the House environment committee later next year.

I just want to commend the minister for opening up the discussion. The way we achieve good water management is having confidence in the community so that people can invest, so that the farmer can put tap-and-drip irrigation in, so that the community knows that there is a long-term future to invest. Investment ultimately delivers better water savings.

Barnaby Joyce is on the right track. We look forward to a mature and cooperative approach from those four states as we deliver a Murray-Darling Basin Plan that restores good health, good economic activity and good social outcomes for the people who live and breathe and enjoy the Murray-Darling.