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NIC Media
Auditor General report of buybacks shows a well-paved road, but to where?
19 February 2025, Canberra, ACT – The release of the Auditor General’s report[1] of
the Federal Government’s water buybacks finds the Government implemented a well-paved road of effective process but struggled to find the
link between the buyback program and the intended policy objectives for the Murray Darling Basin Plan.
“Many will glance at the key findings of effective process and give the Government a pat on the back, but the devil is in the detail when
the report goes on to question the link between the buyback program and the intended policy objectives for the environment” said National
Irrigators’ Council CEO, Ms Lowien.
“It found that the buyback program, designed to bridge the gap between current diversions and the Basin Plan’s Sustainable Diversion Limits
(SDLs), was a well-paved road but questions, to where?”, said Ms Lowien.
“Achieving Sustainable Diversion Limits in the Basin was the centrepiece of the Basin Plan, but achieving the broader environmental
objectives requires going beyond just adding water,”
“Government reporting indicates that SDLs are enforced[2] and
being achieved[3]–
so it’s fair to ask the question, as the Auditor General infers, why is the Government buying more water and not investing in other
solutions?” said Ms Lowien.
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