Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources) Share this | Hansard source

We can do something else, Senator Farrell: we can blow the plan up.

South Australia, through its actions since this discussion has started has basically put on the table that it would rather blow up the plan for political imperative and political outcome than actually work with us to deliver a plan and all the challenges that go with the situation that occurs when you are trying to achieve environmental outcomes—return of water to the river system to deliver environmental outcomes. At the same time we have to be very mindful of the fact that we have a very strong economy in rural and regional Australia, and much of it exists along the Murray-Darling Basin corridor. We need to make sure that we do not destroy those river communities and also destroy the underpinning component of agriculture in our regional communities at the same time.

We have agreed in this place and we have agreed through the negotiation between the governments that exist within the Murray-Darling Basin that we are going to deliver 2,750 gigalitres of water for environmental use via the plan, and that an additional 450 gigalitres will be delivered through an agreement between the governments in a way that does not have any detrimental impact on the river communities that rely so heavily on this water.

We have the situation where we have identified that we have some challenges. We always knew the delivery of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan was going to be difficult. But with great fanfare we celebrated the passing of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan and everything that went with it. We were all proud. We took a bipartisan approach to the delivery of this plan for the betterment of Australia, its river, its communities and the people who live along the river system. So we were all very pleased about that.

What I am calling on the South Australian government for is—and I did this this morning, when I wrote an opinion piece in the paper—please, do not blow up the plan. Please do not do that, because that is what you will do if you continue to pursue the political outcomes that you are trying to achieve by destroying this plan. This is not going to serve the best interests of the health of the Murray-Darling Basin or of South Australia.

Blowing up the plan is not going to achieve, nine years out of 10, the water flows out of the Murray Mouth. Blowing up the plan is not going to deliver water to the Chowilla wetlands, which are at the back door of the place where I live. They are on the Murray River, a place that I love. There is nobody in this place, Senator Farrell, through you, Madam Deputy President, who is more determined to deliver the Murray-Darling Basin Plan in full for the betterment of the river system, of the river communities that rely on it and for everybody in Australia who benefits from a healthy Murray-Darling Basin than I am.