Helen Dalton Moves To Protect Southern Basin Communities And Taxpayers

NSW Independent MP for Murray Helen Dalton introduced a bill to prevent Northern Basin floodplain harvesting licence holders from seeking financial compensation from taxpayers for their licences on Tuesday, April 5.

“For many years, big corporate Northern Basin irrigators have been siphoning water into their private dams before it reaches the river,” Mrs Dalton said.

“This unregulated practice, known as floodplain harvesting, devastates Lower Darling communities and reduces water allocations for Southern Basin irrigators.”

The government granted 132 floodplain harvesting licenses for a number of Northern Basin irrigators in February, which Mrs Dalton said allowed for floodplain harvesting well in excess of legal limits.

Mrs Dalton said that the granting of those licenses did not take into account the needs of Southern Basin irrigators or Indigenous communities and that the law change in 2014 allowing irrigators to sell floodplain harvesting licenses to the government for financial compensation was unfair to Southern farmers who had already given up a lot of water for the greater good of the Basin.

She further said that her proposed new law was identical to a bill introduced by Independent MP Justin Field in the Upper House last week.

“My bill ensures irrigators won’t be able to profit off floodplain harvesting licences,” she said.

“The NSW Government is now in minority. “Introducing the bill in both houses of parliament maximises the chances of it becoming law.

“Farmers should have the right to collect some of the water that flows across their property, but the NSW Government regards this as ‘bonus’ water.

“It should not be used to make a profit.”

• Topics:

• Agriculture & Farming
• Rural Roundup
• Water