Postal: PO Box 236, Victor Harbor SA 5211 Mob: Email: Website: www.mmlga.sa.gov.au ABN: 78 714 181 490 MURRAY AND MALLEE LGA SUBMISSION SENATE SELECT COMMITTEE INQUIRY INTO THE SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF THE MURRAY- DARLING BASIN PLAN ON REGIONAL COMMUNITIES 25 September 2015 Achieving Improvements for the benefit of the Murray Mallee Community Berri Barmera Council, Coorong District Council, District Council of Karoonda East Murray, District Council of Loxton Walkerie, Mid Murray Council, Renmark Paringa Council, Rural City of Murray Bridge, Southern Mallee District Council INTRODUCTION The Murray and Mallee Local Government Association (MMLGA) Region is located in the Murraylands Statistical Region in eastern South Australia and is dissected by the River Murray. It covers a large area in excess of 50,000 km2 taking in the areas from the Riverland in the north, agriculture areas in the central, west, south and east along the Victorian border, and south westerly to the coast and lakes. Rural based communities throughout the area share a common interest in agriculture/horticulture, with towns primarily servicing the farming and horticultural communities and supporting a growing tourism sector. The Region has a population base of approximately 68,000 (approx. 4.6% of the State population). The Murray River, and its associated wetlands and wildlife, Lake Bonney and a number of National/Conservation Parks, support a range of rare and endangered plant and animal species, and are major tourist attractions throughout parts of the Riverland and Mallee. Towards the coast, the Coorong National Park, Lake Alexandrina and the shores of Lake Albert are all well known tourist attractions, particularly for recreational boating and fishing. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PLAN The adoption of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan in 2012 was a historic achievement, not only for our nation, but also for the future of the Murray River, its environment and our regional communities and economy. For too long, the health of the River Murray has steadily declined through unsustainable and inequitable use of this important water resource. The effects this unregulated use were never as pronounced as during the devastating Millennium drought of 2006-2010 where South Australia suffered through the effects of acid sulphate soils, extreme salinity levels, river bank collapse and sustained pressure on native species and habitats. Achieving Improvements for the benefit of the Murray Mallee Community Berri Barmera Council, Coorong District Council, District Council of Karoonda East Murray, District Council of Loxton Walkerie, Mid Murray Council, Renmark Paringa Council, Rural City of Murray Bridge, Southern Mallee District Council The MMMLGA understands that the Basin Plan was put in place to ensure that all basin States, including South Australia, receive a fair share of water for all water users, securing the health and sustainability of the river system well into the future. Since the adoption of the Basin Plan, South Australia, strongly supported by the South Australian Murray-Darling Basin Natural Resource Management Board has been working hard to secure reliable and good quality water supplies that support healthy and productive industries, build community resilience and support our diverse ecosystems. This is being achieved through major restoration projects, supporting the delivery of critical human water needs, keeping the Murray Mouth open, flushing salt from the system, providing environmental flows to precious River Murray wetlands and floodplains, strengthening of community partnerships, revegetation of key areas and strong community consultation. Wetlands are already returning to more natural states and the return of native species has already been seen. One of the restoration projects includes the Riverine Recovery Project. This Project is looking at using adaptive management and engineering solutions to bring back flow variations that existed before locks, weirs and causeways were built. The flows will benefit ecosystems along the River Murray between Wellington and the border of South Australia and Victoria. It will also deliver up to 15 gigalitres of environmental water savings to the Australian Government, to be used for environmental purposes in the southern- connected basin. Other restoration projects include the following:- • Wetland management • Pike Floodplain • Katfish Reach Floodplain • Yatco Lagoon Achieving Improvements for the benefit of the Murray Mallee Community Berri Barmera Council, Coorong District Council, District Council of Karoonda East Murray, District Council of Loxton Walkerie, Mid Murray Council, Renmark Paringa Council, Rural City of Murray Bridge, Southern Mallee District Council • Weir pool manipulation - EFFECTIVENESS AND APPROPRIATENESS OF THE PLAN’S CONSTRAINTS MANAGEMENT STRATEGY The water allocated to the environment is crucial towards restoring the rivers long- term health. Higher flows mean that our restoration projects - such as those previously listed will have more positive impacts. The extra water provides many benefits, including keeping the Murray Mouth open, flushing salt from the system and providing more water to precious wetlands and floodplains, which need a varied flow regime to thrive. Environmental water is critical to the delivery of The Living Murray initiative, which is returning water to South Australia’s ‘icon sites’, which are: • Lower Lakes, Coorong and Murray Mouth • Chowilla Floodplain • River Murray channel. The MMLGA strongly advocates for constraints to be addressed (including the inundation of shacks within one of our constituent Councils - the Mid Murray Council area), not only in South Australia but also interstate. MANAGEMENT OF THE COORONG, LOWER LAKES AND MURRAY MOUTH The MMLGA supports the timely and full implementation of the Murray- Darling Basin Plan. South Australia’s location at the end of the River Murray system leaves our State most vulnerable to the effects of an unmanaged system. The Coorong and Lower Lake Recovery project is restoring the ecological and productive value of the Region through these actions: 1. Restoring habitats Achieving Improvements for the benefit of the Murray Mallee Community Berri Barmera Council, Coorong District Council, District Council of Karoonda East Murray, District Council of Loxton Walkerie, Mid Murray Council, Renmark Paringa Council, Rural City of Murray Bridge, Southern Mallee District Council • Rehabilitating Meningie foreshore wetland Lake Albert Scoping Study; looks at options for improving water quality • South East Flows Restoration; helping to reduce salinity in the Coorong South Lagoon Managing fish populations through fishway installations and fish reintroductions 2. Restoring vegetation • The extensive Vegetation Program is restoring up to 130 native species of plant by collecting and propagating seeds, planting seeds and seedlings, putting up fences, protecting Aboriginal heritage, and controlling pest plants and animals • The Ruppia Translocation Program is restoring the aquatic plant by collecting Ruppia seeds at Lake Cantara and planting them in the Coorong South Lagoon 3. Managing acid sulphate soils 4. Identifying research priorities 5. Creating and maintaining partnerships with the Ngarrindjeri 6. Keeping the community involved and informed Activities are continually updated to account for changes in flows, new science from monitoring and research, and other factors. This project is taking place under the strategic direction of the Securing Our Future, a long-term plan for a healthy, sustainable region. The Coorong Lower Lakes and Murray Mouth Recovery Project is funded by the South Australian Government’s Murray Futures program and the Australian Government. In addition, the Living Murray program was created in response to increasing community concerns and evidence of a Achieving Improvements for the benefit of the Murray Mallee Community Berri Barmera Council, Coorong District Council, District Council of Karoonda East Murray, District Council of Loxton Walkerie, Mid Murray Council, Renmark Paringa Council, Rural City of Murray Bridge, Southern Mallee District Council long-term serious decline in the health of the River Murray system. Since the program’s inception in 2002, the focus has been on improving the health of six important ‘icon sites’ along the river by increasing the flow of environmental water to benefit the plants, animals and communities that the river supports. In South Australia the Lower Lakes, Coorong and Murray Mouth (LLCMM) Icon Site is a highly significant conservation area, with Lake Alexandrina, Lake Albert and the Coorong listed as a ‘wetland of international importance’ under the Ramsar Convention held in 1985. The icon site includes a diverse range of ecosystems ranging from freshwater to hypersaline. This unique area, where the River Murray meets the sea, is one of the most important havens for large concentrations of wading birds in Australia, and is recognised internationally as a breeding ground for many species of migratory wading birds and threatened fish species. At the LLCMM Icon Site, three ecological objectives have been set by the Murray- Darling Basin Ministerial Council to achieve a healthier estuarine environment: 1. An open Murray Mouth 2. Enhanced migratory water bird habitat in the Lower Lakes and Coorong 3. More frequent estuarine fish spawning and recruitment. The State Government is securing environmental water from the Murray-Darling Basin Authority and the