Mayors unite in disagreement over Murray-Darling buybacks

Gunnedah Shire mayor Jamie Chaffey, Narrabri Shire mayor Darrell Tiemens and Moree Plains Shire mayor Mark Johnson gathered outside Wee Waa Hospital on Friday, November 3, to make the announcement.

It comes shortly after the Water Amendment [Restoring our Rivers] Bill 2023 passed the lower house before being referred to a senate committee for an inquiry on September 7.

The inquiry received about 125 public submissions to October 11, with the committee expected to hand down a report on November 8.

If the legislative changes pass the Senate, it would give the Commonwealth authority to buy back irrigation licences to top up the Murray-Darling Basin by an additional 450 gigalitres, equivalent to 180,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools, and extend the deadline to 2027.

However, Cr Chaffey said though he would support all other measures to restore water levels in the river, such as infrastructure investment, the current changes would be "catastrophic for our communities".

"It would give the federal water minister [Tanya Plibersek] the ability to enact buybacks at her discretion when and where she's decided she'd like to [take them]," Cr Chaffey said.

"It is extremely dangerous and it makes people very nervous because of the uncertainty."

Narrabri Shire mayor Darrell Tiemens said buybacks impact more than cotton production, "it affects the agronomists, agricultural suppliers, supply stores, farm workers, their husbands, wives and children".

Cr Tiemens said their local pharmacist lost two employees during the previous round of buy backs because their husbands had been working for one of the big properties that had to forgo their water licenses.

"It has a ratcheting effect," he said.

Cr Chaffey attended a senate hearing into the water amendment bill on October 31, in his role as chair of Country Mayors' Association, saying there should have been public forums held in communities.

"More time should be taken rather than being in such a rush to deal with it," Cr Chaffey said.

Chair of the five-person committee, Senator Slade Brockman, said they had considered the move but that it would take a "significant number of months" due to the length of the river.

"We did want to do it, but we would need to go across the entire basin," Mr Brockman said during the hearing.

Cr Chaffey expressed his disappointment that there were only two senators, Nationals MP Perin Davey and Mr Brockman, to listen to him and two other mayors - one from Qld and the other from Vic - at the hearing.

"It showed very high levels of disrespect for us in local government," Cr Chaffey said.

Earlier this year, the federal government introduced voluntary buy backs to obtain the 49.2gl needed to reach the 2,075gl under the Bridging the Gap Murray-Darling Basin Plan water targets.

The open tender received 250 tender responses, with offers being accepted in six catchment areas, including Namoi, Lachlan and NSW Border Rivers.

Federal Minister for Water Tanya Plibersek said it shows there are willing sellers to work with the government to ensure there's water to deliver a "healthy and sustainable river system".

"As we look to how we make sure we deliver the 450GL of water for the environment, which we know will have to include some voluntary purchases, this is an encouraging sign," Ms Plibersek said.

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