MURRAY DARLING AGREEMENT A WIN FOR VICTORIAN FARMERS AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Wednesday, 26 March 2008
Premier John Brumby today announced a historic agreement had been reached on the Murray Darling Basin that delivers new protections and improved water security for Victorian farmers and the environment.

Under the agreement, the Commonwealth will invest up to $1 billion in Stage 2 of the Food Bowl Modernisation Project that will help deliver approximately 200 billion litres of additional water to Victorian irrigators and the Murray River.

"The Rudd Government will invest up to $1 billion in Stage 2 of the Food Bowl Modernisation Project making this the most significant investment of water infrastructure upgrades in Victoria's history and comes on top of the $1 billion already committed as part of the Victorian Government’s Water Plan," Mr Brumby said.

"This will deliver massive water savings to irrigators, communities and the environment and guarantee water security for the region."

The Victorian Government is already implementing Stage 1 of the Project to capture approximately 225 billion litres of water to be shared equally by local irrigators, rivers and Melbourne.

As part of the funding arrangement with the Commonwealth, the water savings gained from Stage 2 will be shared equally by irrigators and the Murray River.

This brings the total water savings from Stage 1 and Stage 2 to approximately 425 billion litres each year.

Mr Brumby said Victoria had won important concessions from the Commonwealth including a provision that gives all State Water Ministers the right to disagree with the Murray Darling Basin Plan and send it back to the Murray Darling Basin Authority for further work.

"Under the original Howard Government plan Victoria did not even have a seat at the table to help develop the Murray Darling Basin Plan,” he said.

"Today's agreement not only gives us a say in future planning for the Murray Darling Basin but also allows Victoria and other States an opportunity to work through any disagreements we may have with the Commonwealth’s Plan.”

Mr Brumby said the agreement also locked in Victoria's current State Water Shares under the Murray Darling Basin Agreement, which had been under threat in the original water plan released by the previous Howard Government.

"Victoria's current water plans for the Murray Darling Basin, which have been formulated with stakeholders in the region, will remain in place until 2019, with the Commonwealth agreeing to honour the existing plans,” Mr Brumby said.

"This means Victorian farmers and communities have ongoing security and can plan for the future.”

Water Minister Tim Holding said the agreement was a great outcome for Victorian irrigators and our stressed river systems.

“This agreement highlights why the Victorian Government didn’t sign up to the former Howard Government’s plan, which would have disadvantaged Victorian irrigators. That is the plan the Victorian Liberal and National parties had urged us to sign up to,” Mr Holding said.

“The Rudd Government has adopted a more constructive approach to negotiations with Victoria. This has ensured a better outcome for our farmers.”

Mr Holding said the funding from the Commonwealth was an endorsement of the Victorian Government’s Water Plan. 

“This $2 billion investment to upgrade ageing and inefficient irrigation infrastructure in northern Victoria will capture approximately 425 billion litres of water and provide a world class irrigation system,” he said.

“The modernisation works will now be jointly funded with up to $1 billion from the Commonwealth, $600 million from the Victorian Government, $300 million from Melbourne Water and $100 million from Goulburn-Murray Water.

“Victoria has continued to show leadership in water management which has ensured a reliable and secure water supply for regional centres, irrigators, business and the environment, and allowed for investment in high value agricultural enterprises.”

Mr Holding said the Mildura community would also benefit from the agreement reached today with more water through environmental flows going into the Murray River.

"This will not only improve the health of the River but will also be of great benefit to tourism operators and the local community who use the river,” he said.

Mr Holding said these environmental flows will be one of the most significant boosts to the Living Murray initiative in recent years.

The Victorian Government will now consult with stakeholders on the implementation of the plan.