Ken O'Dowd (Flynn, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today I wish to speak about water for the regions. It's already there, but we just need to capture a bit of it before it goes rushing out to the reef and killing the seagrass, which then of course affects the marine animals. Water is good for the regions and it's good for jobs. It's as simple as that. Water is essential for human life, for farming and for agricultural business.

The National Party is the party that represents rural and regional Australia. It is part of our policy that we capture this water and give it to our farmers, who will then represent the agricultural industry in any way, shape or form. They have good soil types; all they need is water. The Rookwood Weir is a part of that plan. But it doesn't stop at the Rookwood Weir. There are many parts along the Fitzroy catchment area and the Burnett River area that could do with water infrastructure. We want security of water for our farmers. The Dawson and Boyne rivers in Flynn are now in flood, and at least some of this water should be captured for onshore farming.