The VFF warns it will put jobs on the line and the National Irrigators Council says the policy will have adverse effects on food and fibre producers, the environment, local communities and water regulation.
The announcement has even drawn criticism from Victorian Water Minister Lisa Neville, a state Labor MP, who is against buybacks from irrigators.
VFF president Emma Germano said the policy showed a total misunderstanding of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan and a total disregard for jobs in regional communities.
She said Federal Labor leader Anthony Albanese’s “plan for pushing on with the 450 Gl ‘up-water’ target will result in buybacks and will suck more water out of irrigated agriculture”.
“We know what this does because we’ve seen it before — it kills jobs and kills regional communities.”
VFF Water Council chair Andrew Leahy said Mr Albanese and his team had shown they did not understand the basin plan and had failed to consult basin communities.
“The recovery of the 450 Gl up-water target was never guaranteed in legislation and was always subject to socio-economic neutrality,” Mr Leahy said.
The announcement by Federal Labor was delivered in South Australia on April 8, where there is expected to be intense political competition over seats in the upcoming federal election.
The ALP has announced a five-point plan including increasing compliance through an additional $35 million of funding to improve metering and monitoring of water take across the basin.
There was also a promise to update the scientific knowledge of the basin through $8.5 million funding for a review of the CSIRO Sustainable Yield Study, and a $3.5 million study of how climate change was impacting wetlands in the basin.
Ms Germano said Mr Albanese needed to get real with regional communities.
“He says he wants secure jobs for all Australians and wants to make more things in Australia,” she said.
“But if he takes more water from irrigated agriculture, we won’t be able to do that for much longer in northern Victoria.
“He’ll then have to start telling us which irrigation districts and food processing plants he wants to shut down.”
National Irrigators Council chief executive officer Isaac Jeffrey urged Mr Albanese to be cautious and not rush to make commitments without genuine consultation.
“The basin community is focused on delivering the plan as a collective team through partnerships, negotiation and consultation,” Mr Jeffrey said.
“The 450 Gl efficiency measures program was designed to deliver positive or neutral socio-economic benefits to the system through increasing local efficiencies.
“The 450 Gl is not an entitlement for South Australia — it is for the whole system to be used as required in local areas.”
Speak Up campaign chair Shelley Scoullar said this was a backward step that would affect confidence in the basin plan and rural communities, with the potential for further social and economic damage to these communities.
“The data is there for everyone to see,” Mrs Scoullar said.
“The first round of buybacks decimated some smaller communities and had a severe adverse impact on larger communities.”