OPINION: Southern Forests Irrigation Scheme’s demise is good news for the region’s farmers, says John Kilrain

The Manjimup Water Security Group welcomes the announcement by Alannah MacTiernan and Jane Kelsbie that the Southern Forest Irrigation Scheme, as initially conceived, will not go ahead. We also welcome the decision to form a community reference group to ensure broad consultation about any future plans to ensure water security. We look forward to some creative proposals which work for all food producers in the region, not just a privileged few. We are committed to opposing commercial water trading and as such are hopeful that not only the Record Brook Dam is off the table, but also the initially proposed, taxpayer funded 283km distribution pipeline which would have underpinned water trading. We also hope that the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation is called to account for providing such flawed information to the public, to SFIC, to ministers and to a parliamentary inquiry. It was evident at the meeting, between key stakeholders including Southern Forest Irrigation Scheme, Western Australian Water Users Coalition, Manjimup Shire, Manjimup Water Security Group and Agriculture Minister Alannah MacTiernan held last Friday, that both supporters and opponents of the scheme had been badly misled by DWER. The consequence of their poor information has been damaging and divisive in the community over the last four years. We are convinced that particular staff of DWER should be excluded from participation in the work of the reference group, and that a number of recent DWER policy changes with respect to dam licences and water allocations need to be revisited before the reference group can usefully begin its work. John Kilrain is the Manjimup Water Security Group Chair