Suzanna Sheed
  • Home
  • About
    • About Suzanna
    • Shepparton District
    • How Suzanna can help
  • Priorities
    • Agriculture
    • Education
    • Health
    • Infrastructure
    • Our Achievements
  • News
    • Media Releases
    • Blog
    • Parliament
    • Photos
  • Resources
    • Newsletters
    • Out & About with Suzanna
    • COVID-19
  • Contact
    • Request a
      Congratulatory
      Message
    • Subscribe to our
      newsletter
  • Menu Menu

Sheed criticises the Basin Community Committee over Communiqué

July 22, 2019/in Media Releases

Independent Member for Shepparton District Suzanna Sheed has criticised the recent communiqué released by the Basin Community Committee. The Communique released in June failed to identify the massive issues in our basin communities, according to Ms Sheed.

“The relevance and independence of the BCC must be questioned. Do they really represent their communities or are they simply a mouthpiece for the MDBA and DAWR? This last communique contains statements that simply do not resonate at all with Northern Victorian and NSW Murray and Lower Darling communities”, Ms Sheed said.

In its communiqué the BCC said there is a need for all Basin governments to work together to restore trust in the Basin Plan.

“It is hard to see how this could possibly happen. Trust in the plan cannot be restored without transparently addressing wide spread community perceptions of fundamental flaws in the propositions and assumptions that underpinned the development of the reform,” Ms Sheed said.

Ms Sheed referred to the renewed debate about South Australia’s Lower Lakes originally being estuarine.

“It seems inconceivable to many that the Federal Water Minister would not be calling for an independent review of the matters raised on the front page of the Weekly Times recently in respect to the saline history of the Lower Lakes in SA. This is a question of scientific fact and must be investigated. The Minister should be brave enough to commission an independent review on this issue,” Ms Sheed said.

“It now appears that the Plan has and continues to pour huge Murray River flows into the Lower Lakes despite long known but recently confirmed evidence that they were not always fresh water lakes but were indeed estuarine lakes fed from the ocean and fresh water flushes from time to time,” Ms Sheed said.

“The Murray Goulburn Irrigation District and other Murray River communities are suffering under the burden of supplying fresh water to the Lower Lakes, doubly so for having to do the heavy lifting for the Northern Basin which is not delivering due to years of drought and floodplain harvesting.

“We now know the Murray Darling Basin Plan to have been rorted and seriously mismanaged. It is a plan that has had devastating socio-economic impacts on our regional communities and has sent many farmers to the wall.

In criticising the BCCs communiqué, Ms Sheed said that for the committee to suggest that further engagement and consultation within basin communities is needed shows a very significant disconnect with those communities.

“Asking this of communities, when they have such a long history of not having their feedback and concerns acted on will be a dishearteningly empty exercise and will not build trust. Communities understood the futility of trying to engage meaningfully with the MDBA and DAWR long ago and most have little or nothing new to say to government on these matters. If we have not been heard by now, promising to listen again seems to be simply more shallow words,” Ms Sheed said.

“For the BCC to now urge ministers across the Murray Darling to urgently get on with the implementation of the plan is extraordinary and flies in the face of recommendations of the Productivity Commission which called for more flexibility in relation to timelines and delivery of the plan. Communities feel it is urgent for the MDBA and DAWR to not cause any more environmental, economic or social damage in the pursuit of this reform.”

Until deliverability, constraints and the implementation of proper regulation and monitoring in the Northern Basin are worked through, there is almost no point recovering any more water at all.  

“I am concerned by the Basin Community Committee’s communique as it fails to address some very challenging issues being felt across the Murray Darling Basin,” Ms Sheed said.

ENDS

Media contact

Myles Peterson 0467 035 840│myles.peterson@parliament.vic.gov.au

Click here for PDF version

Share this entry
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on WhatsApp
  • Share on LinkedIn
  • Share by Mail
https://suzannasheed.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/default-post-image.jpg 240 330 Suzanna Sheed https://suzannasheed.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Sheed-Logo-V2.png Suzanna Sheed2019-07-22 00:11:472020-02-07 02:46:01Sheed criticises the Basin Community Committee over Communiqué
0 replies

Leave a Reply

Want to join the discussion?
Feel free to contribute!

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Pages

  • About Suzanna
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • COVID-19
  • Get Involved
  • Home
  • How Suzanna can help
  • Media Releases
  • News
  • Newsletters
  • Our Achievements
  • Our Vision
  • Out & About with Suzanna
  • Parliament
  • Photos
  • Request A Congratulatory Message
  • Shepparton District
  • Subscribe to our newsletter

Categories

  • Blog
  • Latest News
  • Media Releases
  • Newsletters
  • Parliament
  • Uncategorized

Archive

  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • February 2019
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • June 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015

Get in touch with Suzanna

Share this page and show your support.

Subscribe

5 Vaughan Street, Shepparton
T 03 5831 6944
E suzanna.sheed@parliament.vic.gov.au

Keep up-to-date.
Follow us on social media.

Get in touch with Suzanna

Share this page and show your support.

5 Vaughan Street, Shepparton
T 03 5831 6944   F 03 5831 6836
E suzanna.sheed@parliament.vic.gov.au

Keep up-to-date.
Follow us on social media.

Sheed calls on Planning Minister to decide fate of solar farmsSheed welcomes release of Solar Guidelines
Scroll to top
Subscribe to our newsletter