Murray Darling left out to dry: Greens

The passage of the Water Amendment Bill through the Senate will not deliver the best outcomes for the future of the Murray Darling Basin, say the Australian Greens.

"The future health of the Murray Darling system is at stake here, and yet we are still seeing short-term parochial politics ruling in the face of dire circumstances," said Senator Rachel Siewert.

"Make no mistake - the Greens support basin reform - and we have fought all along to make it better and to make it happen sooner," she said.

"The States, and particularly Victoria, have used the threat of pulling out of the deal to water it down and force more concessions out of the Rudd Government. Now we will have to wait until 2019 to reduce water use
to sustainable levels ... and the North-South pipeline will still go ahead."

"It is extremely concerning that changes put through the Senate last night result in the Commonwealth lacking the power to stop this pipeline. The Coalition has blinked, and the result is not going to benefit the Basin."

South Australian Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said the only way that South Australia would benefit from this Bill would be if all Basin states play fairly.

"South Australians have every right to feel let down by the way this Bill now stands," she said.

"The Federal Government has allowed their Victorian counterparts to hold its plans to ransom, meaning South Australia will suffer because, rather than the water staying in the river for vital environmental flows, 75 gigalitres per year will be siphoned off to Melbourne.

"The lack of timely action under this Bill means no real change for the lower reaches of the Murray any time soon. This will be a hard fact for the Lower Lakes and Coorong communities to accept," she concluded.

A transcript of the Senators' press conference will be available shortly.

For more information or media enquiries please call;
Senator Siewert: Tim Norton on 0418 401 180
Senator Hanson-Young: Gemma Clark on 0427 604 760