My question without notice is to the Minister for the Environment and Heritage. I visited the Macquarie Marshes yesterday and found that the globally important ecosystem is under extraordinary stress. I ask the minister: is it true that, given the current availability of water, 90 per cent of the Macquarie Marshes faces ultimate death? Is it true that there is widespread death of the river red gums and that the egrets, which nested in thousands, have not now nested or fledged successfully for six to eight years, even though maximum life span is 11 years? What urgent action is the government taking to rescue this Ramsar listed wetland?