FARRER MP Sussan Ley and the farmer lobby group desperate to avoid a third successive year of zero water allocations in southern NSW are cautiously hopeful a solution can be found at a key meeting of Murray-Darling water ministers brought forward from its original mid-year date.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The ministerial council, the Murray-Darling equivalent of the National Cabinet responding to COVID-19, could meet within 30 days and come up with a way to provide Murray River irrigators with guaranteed water for winter crops.
Farmers have had their best autumn break for years, but key storages including Lake Hume and Dartmouth Dam, are still well below capacity.
Ms Ley said there was an acknowledgment by major players including federal water minister Keith Pitt that the southern basin had endured its share of pain.
"The federal government is one sixth of the decision making in the basin and unless everyone agrees we can't really make change," she said.
"It has to be by agreement and even the conversations I've had with the South Australian water minister is they do understand the pain we are in.
"The rain we've had is invaluable."
IN OTHER NEWS
Ms Ley said the NSW Government had the capacity to under-write an initial allocation.
"It is looking better than it did last year," she said.
"But there is no stroke of a pen that can take water from the Environmental Water Holder even if they had it."
Speak Up chairwoman Shelley Scoullar hopes the ministerial council meeting will be approached with the same level of bipartisanship as the National Cabinet.
"There have been over 100 reports and inquiries and they all tell us about flaws in the Murray-Darling Basin Plan, yet nothing has been done to fix it," she said.
"As a consequence we have paddocks which are bare instead of growing crops which could provide jobs and prosperity for regional communities.
"And that is exactly what we need right now.
"No-one is saying we will run out of food."
