Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change and Water) Share this | Hansard source

Senator Xenophon, I am not sure I have all the officers here for the EPBC division, for obvious reasons, but what I can indicate is this: as I understand the advice to me, it is not permitted for there to be an increase in diversions and what is permitted is a diversion from savings, so not a net increase. In relation to conditions, I can read you the whole of what I have. The preamble says that it is to protect EPBC listed species. Then there are five paragraphs that I have here. It states the Melbourne water extracted to the Sugarloaf Pipeline must be:

(a) not more than 75gl in any one year;

(b) not more than 350 megalitres per day—

and there is some discussion about daily pumping rates—

(c) met only through controlled pre-ordered releases from Melbourne’s share of the water savings allocated to it pursuant to any bulk entitlement issued under the Water Act;

(d) sourced from savings not allocated to Living Murray or Water for Rivers; and

(e) zero if the necessary regulated releases are for the maintenance of environmental flows or materially deplete water stored in Eildon Weir that is designated as being an environmental reserve.

Part 3 says that all water savings taken from the Goulburn River must be sourced from projects that comply with the requirements of the EPBC Act 1999. And then part 4 is the words I listed previously:

The provision by the person taking the action—

that is, the proponent—

of an annual report on compliance with these conditions, including the results of surveys, environmental monitoring undertaken, independent audited reports of water savings achieved and the amount of water allocated for extraction—

et cetera.