Will we go hungry?

The Murray-Darling Basin Authority’s Basin Plan is a disaster waiting to be inflicted upon all Australians.

The environmental focus of the proposal is set to crash into the economic realities of Australian families who are already struggling to meet costs.

The Basin Plan being developed by the Murray-Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) seeks to provide water for the environment first and foremost. As a result it ignores the needs of millions of people and many communities across the Basin and beyond.

When Mike Taylor spoke in Griffith, the Chair of the MDBA defended the Authority's focus on the environment by identifying their requirements the Water Act. "The Act mentions the environment 258 times, sustainability 60 times, irrigated agriculture three and agriculture once. I think it's important to understand where the Act is focused."

Less water means less food. Less food means more imports and higher food prices for everyone on supermarket shelves. We need to rewrite the Basin Plan so that there is a balance between the needs of the environment, the economy and communities – only then will we achieve a ‘fair go’ for everyone.

The Basin Plan will force generations of families off their farms and it will mean less water for everyone. This will impact many communities, who will see shops and businesses close down and essential services leave. The Basin Plan will affect everyone from the corner store to the town doctor.

“The MDBA’s first estimate of the community impacts of their proposed cuts across the basin was 800 job losses and $800 million, and then they said it might be as high as 3000 job losses,” said Murrumbidgee Irrigation Chair Gillian Kirkup. “Now they’ve announced further socioeconomic studies because they’re really not sure what damage it will do. It is hard to have confidence in anything the MDBA says.”

Cuts of up to 43% will decimate our communities and lead to significant job losses (up to 7000 in the Murrumbidgee alone based on ABS data) and social upheaval as people leave the area to find work. There are already reports that house prices in some towns are being affected and that investment in the region has effectively stopped.

The release of the guide and the management of the consultation process has been poorly handled. Murray-Darling communities are not afraid of change but we need to see a balanced approach. There is a real future for everyone in these regions if we can achieve a balanced Basin Plan that takes account of the environmental, economic and community issues.