About 30 people attended the session, hosted by the MDBA, where they were informed of the proposed changes to the basin plan, the biggest of which is the reduction of the water recovery target from 390 gigalitres to 320GL.

The original plan stipulated that 42GL was required to come from the Gwydir Valley; no additional water is needed to be recovered under the 320GL target.

In fact, 48GL of water has already been recovered from the area to date, so 6GL will need to somehow be returned to the Valley.

The Moree community has already suffered significant losses from water recovery with about 116 full-time equivalent jobs lost to date as a result.

The community heard that if the 390GL plan was to go ahead, it would have resulted in about 152 job losses, while under the proposed target of 320GL that is reduced to 82.

“It’s good news for the Gwydir,” MDBA Northern Basin Taskforce general manager Brent Williams said.  

“For the Northern Basin as a whole it’s good news with a reduction from 390GL to 320GL on the proviso that state and commonwealth governments undertake the recommended toolkit measures.”

Instead of taking the extra 70GL, the MDBA found that they can achieve the same environmental outcomes with less water if they do a range of other things to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of water such as the protection of environmental flows, targeted water recovery, improved management of environmental flows, getting water to the Gwydir wetlands, cold water pollution mitigation and the construction of fishways.

Mayor Mayor Katrina Humphries was part of the Northern Basin advisory council during the past three-year review.

She said the proposed changes “make perfectly good sense”.

“I think they’re fair; we’re not going to please everyone but we have to be fair,” she said.

“The big thing is to make sure small communitities do not get devastated anymore than they have in the past.”

People are encouraged to make submissions by February 10, 2017.