The NSW water department is disputing claims that it intends to compulsorily acquire land to enable flood level flows in the Murray and Murrumbidgee rivers.
The Murray Regional Strategy Group is claiming the NSW Government wants to acquire thousands of flow easements along the rivers as part of the NSW Reconnecting River Country Program.
But the NSW Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (NSW DCCEEW) says it is proposing three modest environmental flow options between 32,000 and 40,000 Ml/day at Wagga Wagga, which would be below the flood flows of 2010 and 2022. These flows would occur about three to five times per decade
The department said no decisions had been made.
Murray Regional Strategy Group chair Geoff Moar said farmers on the NSW side of the river could face compulsory acquisition of their land to create easements that will accommodate increased flows, which as a consequence will exacerbate the flood risk.
Mr Moar said it was an issue that should be of extreme concern to all river communities, as elevated flooding risk will impact private property, tourism, towns roads and infrastructure.
“Our communities have documented warnings for 15 years to the Federal and NSW governments that their flow targets under the Murray-Darling Basin Plan will elevate regional flooding risks,” he said.
“Unfortunately, these real and serious risks are being covered up and ignored.”
NSW DCCEEW executive director of infrastructure development Lisa Hingerty accused the group of creating misconceptions about the program.
“The program is about improving the health and connectivity of the Murray and Murrumbidgee rivers to protect environmentally important rivers, floodplains and wetlands that are a risk of destruction due to a changing climate, river regulation and extraction,” Ms Hingerty said.
She said most flow releases would typically occur from August to October, with increases in river flows occurring slightly later in downstream areas as water moves through the system.
“Outside these limited number of environmental flows, it’s business as usual for farmers.
“I also need to be clear that a flood easement simply gives the NSW Government the right to enable environmental flows to move across private land.
“We are not seeking to buy or own private land through the Reconnecting River Country Program.”
“The easements would not give anyone the right to access this land.
“It just enables flows to travel along the river for a few days between three to five times across a decade to connect with wetlands and floodplains to ensure they continue to exist and thrive, and to support our native vegetation and fish communities.”