Water policy is costing us all

Deputy chair David Farley said it was time for Australians to accept that flawed water policy is not only coming at a multi-billion dollar direct cost which is increasing the national debt, but is also reducing farm productivity and therefore increasing our reliance on food imports.

“The cost of the current water policy direction needs to be made clear to all Australians,” Mr Farley said.

“By removing water from food production, which is the government’s policy, in the future we will grow less and therefore rely on other countries to fill our supermarket shelves.

“Quite clearly, this is an unstainable and nonsensical situation, but it is unlikely to change unless citizens across the country become better informed and demand a new and realistic approach to domestic food production.”

Mr Farley explained that $13 billion was being spent on the flawed Murray-Darling Basin Plan, with its most recent focus being to purchase water from farmers and store it in dams, supposedly for environmental sustainability.

“In reality, we have already acquired and stored more water than the environment requires. Despite this, the Australian Government continues to pursue water buybacks with debt at a massive cost to taxpayers.

“In essence, the government is purchasing productive assets, being water and water storage space, which were once used to create employment, exports and taxation revenue. So, we’ve turned these assets into a lower economic investment, for which future generations will pay dearly.

“The Basin Plan was a knee-jerk reaction to the Millennium Drought of the early 21st century. Over the last two decades we have seen numerous floods, yet water policy over this period has diminished our ability to mitigate floods or protect ourselves from drought.

“The $13 billion being spent on the Basin Plan is a very poor investment of taxpayers’ money. In two decades, we have had no investment in water storage dams to take the edge off extreme drought and flood; all we have done is exacerbate both these natural disasters under the guise of the Basin Plan, and at the expense of the national balance sheet.”

Mr Farley said the 2026 Basin Plan Review is an ideal opportunity to reassess the plan’s achievements, performance and future direction for both the environment and Australia’s food security and food affordability.

“As Australians, we all want to achieve environmental sustainability. With smarter policy this can be achieved, and we can also improve the use of water as a productive and security asset, thereby having a positive influence on the Australian balance sheet.

“We can build GDP, create employment opportunities, build food security and make food more affordable. But this will not be achieved if we continue the current policy trajectory.

“With no change to water policy there will be less investment, fewer exports, more imports, a compounding Australian debt and a reduction in national food security assets, all at the expense of Australian families and taxpayers.

“The goals of environmental preservation and sustainability can be met while changing the investment thesis from buying back water and collapsing regional commerce to investing in the growth of our water infrastructure, farming and food supply chains.

“With Australia’s population growing at 2.8 per cent per annum and projected to reach 47.5 million in two decades, we cannot afford to continue policy that harms our food chain security and restricts the ability of our farmers to grow food.”