Murray Darling Basin Plan

Key Knowledge and Skills Current management policies and strategies to implement these policies The effectiveness of water management policies and strategies in terms of current use and future sustainability

The Plan - origins The water act 2007 established the MDBA as the body responsible for developing and overseeing the future management of the basins water resources The largest scale change to water management since the Snowy Mountains Hydro-electric scheme. October 2010 the MDBA released its Guide to the Proposed Basin Plan. Concerns of the rivers health underpin the Basin Plan An audit of the state of the rivers showed many were in poor state

Sustainable Rivers Audit Source: Page 78 text

Sustainable diversion limits (SDLs) Central point of the plan is to set environmentally sustainable limits on the amount of water extracted. SDLs = the amount of water that can be used for consumption after the environmental requirements. All forms of consumption, river diversions, floodplain harvesting, interception by farm dams and forestry What was the river like in October 2010?

Key points of the guide Overall water allocations reduced between 27% and 37%, some as high as 45% Reductions will come from buy backs and more efficient water delivery Buy-backs would return an extra 3000 – 4000 GL to the environment = help keep the mouth of the Murray open 90% of the time Loss of $800 million – $1.2 billion a year in agricultural production (dairy, cotton, rice)

Short term impacts on some rural communities could be severe with a possible loss from 800 – 1200 jobs Water regained would cost the Federal Government $2.3 million per GL Total cost of the plan $6.9 - $9.2 billion The guide allowed for a 10% reduction of water inflows over the next 20 years as a result of climate change

Proposed cuts to water allocations Source page 78

Reactions Public outcry from many Basin communities Many farmers felt they had not been consulted Loss of jobs and incomes Populations would decline as would the value of farms, houses and businesses “this isn't a simple case of food verses the environment. This will create Centerlink towns throughout the basin” Some environmental groups thought the guide was a positive move but it did not go far enough

Looking ahead The Basin plan was released at the end of

The Future Population Climate Change Challenges

Murray-system annual inflows for 117 years Source: page 91