Malcolm Roberts (Queensland, Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party) Share this | Hansard source

[by video link] As a servant of the people of Queensland and Australia, I will be opposing this motion. The first 40 gigalitres of the Water for Fodder program has already been distributed. Farmers have used that water to grow fodder for their cattle to keep our struggling dairy sector in business. If this disallowance is successful, it may well have the effect of preventing the second 60 gigalitres of water. It will, however, cast into doubt the legality of the first 40 gigalitres. That's not something that One Nation can support.

This scheme fired up the desalination plant in Adelaide to produce water that was exchanged for irrigation water in the northern Murray. The Adelaide desalination plant has been a disaster. It was built in 2007 at a cost of $1.83 billion. In the 13 years since, the plant has produced just 148 gigalitres of water, about 10 per cent of its capacity. Even worse for a state that is power poor, the plant takes $13 million a year in electricity just to keep it maintained. This is yet another example of an economy killer from climate alarmism.

Getting back to the water issue, I can understand that the government was looking for an excuse—any excuse—to send some love down to that money pit in South Australia. So when One Nation demanded time and time again that farmers get their allocations, the government cooked up this scheme. It would have been simpler to just give farmers another 10 per cent of their water allocation, but no: why do things the easy way, when you had a white elephant sitting down there needing a cash injection? So here we are with another 60 gigalitres due under the Water for Fodder program.

What to do? What to do, I ask the people of Australia. The government has produced a report into the first release. I thank the minister for providing a copy of this report in response to my motion for the production of documents. That report clearly recommends that the second 60 gigalitres of the Water for Fodder program not proceed. This is based on predictions for water inflows into the Adelaide catchment provided by the Bureau of Meteorology. Not surprisingly, these predictions were wrong. Adelaide has way more water in storage now than the report produced in July anticipated—way more. After a year of rain, there are currently 5,200 gigalitres of water in storage in the upper Murray, and that is expected to continue to increase. I believe the projection is around 6,500 gigalitres. Lake Victoria, which holds SA's water supply, is full. The Lower Lakes are full. The water in the Menindee Lakes is still there from the recent flood in southern Queensland, and that is a pleasant change, because it means no government fish kills this year. South Australian farmers have the water for 100 per cent allocations this year. Conveyance water for South Australia is 1,400 gigalitres. This is held in Dartmouth Dam, which currently holds 2,123 gigalitres. Senator Hanson-Young should be pleased to know that South Australia is taken care of—well taken care of.

Let us look at the irrigation areas that would have received the second 60 gigalitres under the Water for Fodder program. The Murray is banking along its entire length, the Mulwala and national channels have been pressed into service, but not to take this water to irrigators to run it around the Barmah Choke and take the pressure off the water. Most of this flow will simply go to the south Indian Ocean and go out to sea. There is nowhere left to store it; it'll just be going to the ocean. However, irrigators in the upper Murray in New South Wales and Victoria have not had their water allocations—yet again, another year when they have not had their allocations. Allocations are mostly eight per cent, with some areas moving up to 40 per cent. That's it. Yet Australia is still importing wheat and rice because farmers are not getting their water allocations. How much more water do we need to have in the dams before we let farmers have some? Inflows into the Murray-Darling Basin this year are right on long-term average. There is no reason for farmers to not get their full allocations.

We have an economy that has been devastated by COVID restrictions. Our GDP is going to be down billions. Jobs are being lost. Farmers could help save the economy, if they get their water—their water. The difference between starving farmers for water and giving them their legal water allocation is more than $10 billion in agricultural output—$10 billion. One thousand gigalitres of the 5,200 gigalitres in storage would have a dramatic effect on our economy. It would save jobs and save massive social security payments, while bringing in foreign export earnings. It would save communities. What a bargain. Give our families their water.