NSW Farmers is calling on NSW Water Minister Rose Jackson to firmly rule out water buybacks and detail alternatives, following the passage of a controversial federal water bill.
The removal of socioeconomic protections for farmers and regional communities by the Albanese Government - a previous condition of water buybacks - was a dramatic leap backwards, NSW Farmers Water Taskforce chair Richard Bootle said, but there were still ways the state government could still defend its citizens.
"The NSW Government has stood up against the buying back of productive water, but we need a firm commitment they will stand up for the people of our state," Mr Bootle said.
"Since the Federal Government is insistent on taking water out of production without any protections to prevent social or economic harm, it is up to the NSW Government to step into the gap.
"The Premier is on record that his government opposes buybacks, but we want to see the Minister go a step further and outline exactly how that will be achieved."
The latest amendments to water legislation effectively eroded the contracts all states signed in the original Murray Darling Basin Plan negotiations, which Mr Bootle said were vital to protect communities and farming businesses while achieving river system recovery.
"Minister Jackson and the NSW Government must stand up for and stand by these original standards and maintain the sovereignty of decisions that guide the future planning of river recovery and regional food security," Mr Bootle said.
"This blind haste from the Federal Government to agree to illogical Greens claims of environmental gains - which actually increase damage to riverbanks and river ecosystems, flood farms and decimate some regional communities - is just madness.
"We need strong leadership in NSW to stand up for communities and insist on environmental gains for the river system and increases in water flows through methods other than just buybacks."
