A GROUP of four Federal Coalition MPs have blasted the revised Murray-Darling Basin Plan, saying the government had extraordinarily usurped the decision-making power of its independent water authority.
The extra water would take the total to be returned to the environment under the Murray-Darling Basin Plan to 3200GL.Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced plans on Friday to put an extra 450 billion litres of water back to the river from 2019 at a cost of $1.7 billion.
Ms Gillard’s announcement was immediately welcomed by South Australia, but condemned by governments and farmers’ groups in Victoria and New South Wales.
Member for Mallee John Forrest, Member for Farrer Sussan Ley, Member for Murray Sharman Stone and Member for Riverina Michael McCormack yesterday issued a joint statement condemning the Prime Minister’s decision.
“As local federal members representing water users in the NSW and Victorian Murray, Murrumbidgee and Goulburn river systems, we strongly reject the Prime Minister’s plan to return a further 450 billion litres of water to the basin, additional to the 2750 billion litres already proposed in the Murray-Darling Basin Authority’s proposed basin plan,” the statement said.
See more of this article and others inside today's Sunraysia Daily 29/10/12
No comments:
Post a Comment