Southern Riverina Irrigators - representing 2200 landholdings across five landholding associations within the Southern Riverina - said in doing so the party has “turned a blind eye to irrigators in the southern basin”.
SRI chair Chris Brooks said due to the NSW state election, the regulation can’t be debated until after parliament returns later in the year.
“This is typical National Party form.
“They put the regulation up at a time it can’t be debated, which gives their mates in the north a free shot.
“For a ‘country party’, the Nationals have certainly got their priorities skewed.”
The FPH regulation would allow irrigators in the north a licensed volume of water well above the legislated legal cap level of 46 gigalitres.
Every other licensed and metered irrigator in the southern basin has operated under the cap for several decades.
“We are talking about 350GL of licenses that can be expanded by a multiple of five times - which is more than the entire Murray and Murrumbidgee Valley have licensed for their general security entitlement holders.
“This volume is so far above the legislated legal level. It’s laughable and means the Murray and Murrumbidgee Valleys are forced to pick up the slack when water isn’t flowing into South Australia.
“Mum and dad farmers in the southern basin are the food bowl of Australia producing 40 per cent of Australia’s domestic consumption and up to 100 per cent of dairy, rice, fruit and vegetables verses about 200 cotton producers in the north, whom export the entire crop to be value added offshore.”
Mr Brooks suggests is also puts at risk the health of the Darling River and contradicts one of the key principles of the basin plan - a connected river system.
In 2021 the Upper House held an inquiry into FPH which ultimately found through its 14 findings there were too many inadequacies and uncertainties, including impacts on downstream flows, river health and severe economic, social, cultural and environmental consequences.
Amongst the 25 recommendations the inquiry found FPH licenses must only be issued once the recommendations of the report are fully met.
The National Party has tried to get the regulation up twice since this inquiry.
“Once again the National Party have ignored the southern basin putting at risk $24 billion in agricultural production along with the communities and businesses that depend upon it for survival,” Mr Brooks said.
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