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"Environment Minister advocates for Environment" Apparently a unique thing within the Liberal National Coalition. Let's look at what is really going on here...
@Matt_KeanMP @GladysB @JohnBarilaroMP @melindapaveyMP @nswirrigators
Thread
https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/irrigators-warn-berejiklian-that-kean-picking-environment-over-farmers-20200727-p55fxi.html
@Matt_KeanMP @GladysB @JohnBarilaroMP @melindapaveyMP @nswirrigators
Thread
https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/irrigators-warn-berejiklian-that-kean-picking-environment-over-farmers-20200727-p55fxi.html
Let no one believe @nswirrigators represent all farmers in NSW. They mostly represent the big corporate irrigators in the North West of the State and they benefit from weak environmental laws and poor enforcement - particularly relating to land clearing and water management.
Remember this last year? The NSW Government's own Independent Natural Resources Commission (NRC) suggested big corporate irrigators were prioritised over communities and ecosystems pushing the Darling into early drought and contributing to fish kills. https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6290008/nsw-water-plan-prioritised-irrigators/?cs=14264
Note that @melindapaveyMP chose to attack the NRC's science and scientists to protect irrigators. I later found out that the Minister's office leaked the letter attacking the NRC to this journalist before she sent it to the NRC. Bad faith there! https://www.smh.com.au/politics/nsw/water-fight-minister-attacks-river-scientists-20190825-p52kir.html
How does @Matt_KeanMP fit into all this? Well under different pieces of NSW legislation, the NSW Environment Minister has concurrence powers. On water, land clearing, marine parks etc, the Environment Minister has joint sign-off with the Water and or Primary Industries Ministers.
Last month the @melindapaveyMP submitted redrafted Water Sharing Plans to the Murray Darling Basin Authority to be accredited before they had been signed off by @Matt_KeanMP - these plans have some big issues that benefit irrigators over the environment including:
#1 Failure to adequately consider climate change and increasing drought risks in water planning. https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/latest-drought-data-not-used-in-new-water-plans-20200518-p54ty9.html
#2 Redefining 'Planned Environmental Water' - which is most of the water for the rivers - to make it easier for irrigators to access more water. https://www.smh.com.au/environment/sustainability/water-fight-over-nsw-floodplain-harvesting-moves-one-step-closer-20200630-p557mf.html
#3 Increased access for irrigators in times of low flows (the most important time for rivers) at the discretion of the Water Minisiter. Can't see that being abused when the @NSWNationals have the water portfolio!
#4 Lack of rules to protect the first flush - a critical flow for the environment after long periods of low or no flows - we'll get to that next. But you can see that the @nswirrigators have a big interest in shutting out voices for the environment at the moment.
Back to first flush. In the February flood event in the Northern Basin, an embargo on floodplain harvesting to protect the first flush was temporarily lifted after irrigators complained of 'infrastructure damage'. https://www.smh.com.au/national/water-harvesting-ban-lifted-after-direct-pleas-from-farming-lobby-boss-20200220-p542u2.html
The result of the temporary lifting was at least 30 billion litres of water being harvesting from the floodplain. Much more was held back on massive northern basin irrigation properties behind embankments and other works as part of so called 'passive take' - also exempted.
The NSW Natural Resources Access Regulator flew over the areas to verify claims of irrigators but report that “No significant infrastructure damage was identified.”
Actual take from floodplain harvesting is disputed. An independent assessment of the first flush did not support or refute the Government's 30GL claim but found "there were some significant data gaps" relating to floodplain harvesting. https://www.justinfield.org/report_into_northern_basin_first_flush_event_raises_more_questions_about_floodplain_harvesting
This is important because the measurement and licensing of floodplain harvesting is due to be completed by next year and will have significant implications for water sharing plans which require sign off by the NSW Environment Minister or legislative change.
What floodplain harvesting is excluded and exempted from being required to be licensed will have a significant impact on the future of the Barka Darling, the wetlands of the basin and communities it isn't just about irrigators.
I recently moved to disallow a regulation providing an exemption from floodplain harvesting from required to be licensed. Evidence at a recent inquiry showed that the big corporate irrigators want as much excluded and exempted as possible. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-02/floodplain-harvesting-regulation-examined-by-nsw-parliament/12412192
Irrigators massively benefit from poor land clearing laws in NSW which also give the NSW Environment Minister concurrence powers. Significant historical clearing has opened up large areas of North Western NSW to irrigated cropping (much benefiting from floodplain harvesting).
Land clearing approvals in NSW have exploded by 1300% since 2016 - much of this in the North West of the state where the big corporate irrigator interests are. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/mar/27/nsw-land-clearing-approvals-increased-13-fold-since-laws-relaxed-in-2016
Much of that clearing was labelled as 'unexplained' by both the Natural Resources Commission in their review of the laws before the election and the Environment Department's satellite mapping that was recently released. https://www.smh.com.au/environment/sustainability/nsw-farmers-accelerate-land-clearing-rates-doubling-previous-decade-20200701-p5581j.html
What has the NSW Government done to improve and uphold land clearing laws? Not much - in fact he gave farmers accused of illegal land clearing under the pre 2016 laws an amnesty from prosecution.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/aug/01/nsw-farmers-granted-amnesty-for-illegal-land-clearing#:~:text=New%20South%20Wales%20farmers%20who,breaches%20of%20the%20old%20law.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/aug/01/nsw-farmers-granted-amnesty-for-illegal-land-clearing#:~:text=New%20South%20Wales%20farmers%20who,breaches%20of%20the%20old%20law.
Of course we should recall why this might have happened. The @NSWNationals have been running their own show to undermine already weak environmental protections on land clearing for some time. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/oct/18/farmers-prosecuted-for-land-clearing-alleg-former-nsw-minister-gave-them-green-light
The consequences of this divisive debate and the approach of some in politics should always be kept front of mind: https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/farmer-ian-turnbull-jailed-for-murdering-environment-officer-glen-turner-20160623-gppzki.html
Environmentalists are relieved a Liberal Environment Minister is publicly advocating for the Environment. That it gets you publicly by colleagues and self-interested interest groups politically connected to the Nationals speaks volumes about the Coalition.
The reality is that under the Coalition, including @GladysB, despite the right words and (possibly) good intentions, things are still going backwards at a rate of knots for the Environment. It looks as if this is largely the result of a sense of needing to appease the Nationals.
If the cost of appeasing the Nationals is the destruction of habitat, the extinction of the Koala, and the death of NSW rivers, I content it is too high a price to pay and thank goodness @Matt_KeanMP is standing up against that @GladysB
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