Water Amendment (Victorian Environmental Water Holder) Bill
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Second Reading I am pleased to speak on the Water Amendment
(Victorian Environmental Water Holder) Bill 2010. The management of our water,
whether for environmental purposes, irrigation or consumption, is of upmost
importance to the coalition. Sadly, more than a decade of Labor government
mismanagement and neglect, combined with a drier climate, has left Victoria's
rivers and wetlands in a nightmarish state. Once fertile and vibrant, Victoria's
river systems are now described as being on the brink of collapse. Native birds
and fish are disappearing and native fauna are virtually dying of thirst.
The dire state of our rivers is the legacy of this government; 10 years of
Labor's poor planning and negligent policies have resulted in the deterioration
of our riparian habitat and ecology.
The coalition supports this bill because if it works effectively the
environmental water holder will establish accountable management of Victoria's
environmental water entitlement. The main function of the legislation is to
establish the Victorian Environmental Water Holder. The water holder will operate as an independent statutory body and provide a new framework for
managing environmental water in Victoria.
As mentioned by the member for Swan Hill, the new body will hold and manage all
Victorian environmental water entitlements. In doing so it will plan and report
on the application of that water, working with waterway managers to plan for and
deliver environmental water to priority sites. In 2007 the previous federal
coalition government established the Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder to
ensure that national environmental water objectives were being met.
This bill establishes a coordinated decision-making structure in the form of the
Victorian Environmental Water Holder in contrast to our current system, which is
quite confusing, with many bodies involved, such as Melbourne Water and Barwon
Water, the various catchment management authorities and the Minister for Water.
As a single entity, the Victorian Environmental Water Holder will be much better
positioned to work with the commonwealth to ensure the best outcomes for
environmental water use. As a single entity, the office of the water holder will
consist of at least three full-time or part-time commissioners. The appointment
of these commissioners will be at the discretion of the minister, and it is
therefore very important that they are equipped with the expertise and knowledge
needed to make decisions on sustainable water management and ecological
management. All environmental water entitlements that were previously held by
the Minister for Environment and Climate Change will be transferred to the
Victorian Environmental Water Holder, who, as the member for Swan Hill said,
will be able to trade water both in the temporary water market on a seasonal
basis and on the permanent water market to achieve environmental outcomes.
At this stage it is important to look at the state of our rivers in the context
of establishing an overarching body to manage our environmental flows.
Almost 80 per cent of our rivers and tributaries in Victoria are in poor or very
poor condition. In 2006, in the lead-up to the last state election, the
government made a commitment to significantly improve the health of Victoria's
rivers by 2010. Despite this commitment many of our rivers are now drier and les
healthy than when the Labor Party first made that commitment. Environmental
flows that were promised to rivers such as the Moorabool, the Yarra, the Thomson
and the Snowy have not been delivered; instead the government has taken more
water out of these stressed river systems.
The Yarra River provides up to 70 per cent of Melbourne's drinking water. In
October 2006 the government promised to release 17 000 megalitres of water back
into the Yarra. Months later, Labor qualified this commitment, promising that
the water would be allocated after the lifting of level 2 water restrictions.
Not only have these flows not been delivered, but the Brumby government has
since reduced the existing environmental flows in the Yarra to 200 megalitres a
day.
The Thomson River has also endured a similar fate. In 2006 we saw the government
promise to release 8000 megalitres of environmental water into the stressed
Thomson. We are now four years on: the flows have still not been delivered and
the Thomson River continues to struggle. The government's failure to deliver on
these commitments has had a profound impact on the health of the river, on
native habitat and on local communities that are dependent on the river and its
tributaries. Earlier this year the government announced it would deliver 7000
megalitres back into the Yarra and 3000 megalitres back into the Thomson, but
this will not even restore the volume of water that has since been extracted out
of these rivers, let alone meet the government's 2006 commitments.
In northern Victoria the Goulburn River is in the worst condition of all rivers
in the Murray-Darling Basin. The Murray River red gum forests are another area
under threat due to a chronic lack of water. The government has promised to
protect them, but we are still waiting. It is my hope that this legislation will
finally put in place a better framework that will ensure environmental water is
better managed and creates better and more sustainable outcomes for our
environment.
There are a couple of points of contention, and in the consultation we undertook
some issues were raised that I would like to put on the record. In 2005 the
government introduced the environmental water reserve, which provides improved
management of water for environmental purposes. The environmental water reserve
plays an important role in protecting biodiversity, water quality and the health
of our water ecosystems. The vast bulk of water in the reserve -- 94 per cent --
consists of passing flows, above-cap water and reservoir spills.
The remaining 6 per cent consists of actual water entitlements in storage. This
bill transfers that 6 per cent into the control of the environmental water
holder.
The Environment Defenders Office and Environment Victoria have both expressed
concern that the vast majority of the environmental water reserve remains
outside the scope of the Victorian Environmental Water Holder (EWH). Because above-cap water remains outside the control of the water
holder, the Environment Defenders Office maintains that:
- ... the bill will do very little to improve the management or delivery of the
environmental water reserve as the EWH will only be responsible for a very
small portion of it ...
Similarly, Environment Victoria stated that it would:
- ... like to see the EWH at least report on (if not manage) all aspects of the
--
-- environmental water reserve,
- including rules-based water and above-cap water.
The Environment Defenders Office called for:
- ... all water in the environmental water reserve to come under the control or
management of the environmental water holder to the maximum extent possible.
While the government has declared that the environmental water holder will
operate as an independent body, this claim has been disputed by some in the
environment sector. The Environment Defenders Office has labelled the water
holder a 'quasi-independent position'. The fact is that most of the operations
of the environmental water holder will be governed by a set of rules made by the
minister. Many of the decisions made by the environmental water holder will be
based on ministerial direction, and even the development of a corporate plan
will be directed by the minister. The concern is that the active involvement of
the minister in the decisions and operations of the environmental water holder
could significantly constrain its effective operation.
The Liberal-Nationals coalition supports the establishment of the Victorian
Environmental Water Holder position. From an environment perspective, it
establishes the environment as a recognised and important consumer of water.
Over the last few years reduced rainfall has meant that households, farmers and
rivers have all had to reduce their consumption of water. However, a decade of
Labor's poor water management has left the environment feeling the vast brunt of
the impact. Over the years this government has harvested water from our rivers
and aquifers leaving them stressed and unhealthy. The State of the Environment
report 2008 found that this resulted in a loss of habitat connectivity,
increased water pollution such as blue-green algal blooms and increased
salinity.
Overall, I am very pleased the coalition is in a position, as outlined by the
member for Swan Hill, to support the new position of the environmental water
holder, because we believe it will improve the management and the condition of
environmental water. I am pleased to support the bill and recommend its speedy
passage through the house.
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