Page 4662 - Week 13 - Wednesday, 27 November 2019
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While he is at it, he might like to ask Icon Water about selling 10 gigalitres of New South Wales water entitlements and terminating the Snowy Hydro agreement—that is, the Tantangara transfer option—with agreement by the ACT government, which has brought forward temporary water restrictions. Wasn’t the Tantangara option the insurance policy for our water security? It has now gone, probably for a very long time. Has Mr Gupta seen the business case for that? I would certainly like to see it and understand why the ACT government agreed to sell 10 gigalitres of water entitlements.
Mr Gupta might also like to ask, given hindsight, which is a wonderful thing, whether the ACT government would still have supported Icon Water selling their New South Wales water entitlements and terminating the Tantangara transfer agreement with Snowy Hydro. Mr Gupta, is the ACT government requiring Icon Water to resurrect the Tantangara option? If so, how much will that cost?
There are many questions in relation to the management of water in the ACT which illustrate their poor management of water. Perhaps Mr Gupta would like to ask the water minister how much water was supplied to irrigators from the inner north reticulation network for the past three years. What is the government doing about increasing the supply from this system and creating other systems around Canberra? It could be that the water supply dropped off significantly in the inner north reticulation network due to operational issues and lack of resourcing. I am told it could readily be increased. The government just needs to provide a dedicated resource, which would be easily self-funding from increased water sales.
While Mr Gupta is rightly interested in water security for the ACT, it would have been helpful if he had made himself more familiar with the legacy that the Canberra Liberals have left in building new water storage, and the real problems that this government has brought on itself in being very poor in its water policy and in managing Icon Water, and in failing to provide an effective and efficient stormwater management system.
We can only hope that our water assets and water storage will soon be properly managed by the Canberra Liberals, before Canberrans face their next water crisis. I thank Mr Gupta for bringing this motion before the Assembly and urge him to continue to ask questions and better understand the history and the legacy of the water supply, water security and water management here in the ACT.
Amendment agreed to.
Original question, as amended, resolved in the affirmative.
(Quorum formed.)
Transport Canberra—network 19
MISS C BURCH (Kurrajong) (4.19): I move:
That this Assembly:
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