Australian Government Response to the Environment
and Communications Legislation Committee inquiry into:
Water Amendment (Long-term Average Sustainable
Diversion Limit Adjustment) Bill 2012 [Provisions]
Water Amendment (Water for the Environment Special
Account) Bill 2012 [Provisions]
MARCH 2013
The Australian Government welcomes the Senate Environmental and Communications
Legislation Committee’s report for the inquiry, Water Amendment (Long-term Average
Sustainable Diversion Limit Adjustment) Bill 2012 [Provisions] and the Water Amendment
(Water for the Environment Special Account) Bill 2012 [Provisions] which was presented on
28 November 2012.
The report made four recommendations, with a further five by Senator Nick Xenophon. The
Government’s response to each of these recommendations is set out below.
The final Basin Plan was signed into law by the Minister on 22 November 2012 and tabled in
the Parliament on 26 November 2012.
Recommendation 1
The committee recommends that the Adjustment Mechanism bill as amended in the
House of Representatives on 30 October 2012 be passed.
Agreed.
This Bill was passed by the Parliament on 21 November 2012.
Recommendation 2
The committee recommends that the words 'up to' are removed from paragraph
86AA(3)(b) of the Special Account bill.
Agreed.
The Government introduced amendments to this Bill to clarify the outcomes to be achieved by
funds in the Special Account. These amendments removed the words ‘up to’. The House of
Representatives agreed to these amendments on 28 November 2012.
Recommendation 3
The committee recommends that the Special Account bill is amended to include the
intended outcomes listed by the minister in his second reading speech.
Agreed.
The Government introduced amendments to this Bill to include the Minister’s intended
outcomes
Recommendation 4
Subject to the preceding recommendations, the committee recommends that the
Special Account bill be passed.
Agreed.
The Government welcomes the support of the Committee.
Senator Xenophon
Recommendation
Clause 86AA(3)(b) of the Water Amendment (Water for the Environment Special
Account) Bill 2012 be amended so as to ensure 450 gigalitres is a minimum amount
rather than a maximum amount to be returned to the environment.
Disagreed.
The Government is committed to acquiring 450GL of additional water for the environment. The
Government has amended this Bill to reflect that commitment by removing the words ‘up to’.
Recommendation
Clause 88AD of the Water Amendment (Water for the Environment Special Account) Bill
2012 be amended to ensure that funding priority is given to projects with maximum
guaranteed water returns to the system within the shortest timeframe, taking into
account social and economic factors, as well as early adopters of water efficiency
measures.
Disagreed.
In relation to the use of funds from the Special Account, the Government is committed to
acquiring additional water for the environment in a way that maintains or improves social and
economic outcomes for Basin communities. It is the Government’s intention that these funds
will be targeted primarily at on-farm irrigation efficiency projects which return greater volumes
of water per dollar than off-farm efficiency projects while maintaining productive capacity at the
farm gate scale.
Recommendation
Urgent modelling is undertaken to establish the comparative efficiencies of irrigation
communities in the Murray-Darling Basin to ensure fair treatment of irrigators.
Disagreed.
Funds will be allocated on a competitive basis to those projects that deliver the greatest
volume of socio-economically neutral water at least cost.
Recommendation
Clause 86AD(2)(a) of the Water Amendment (Water for the Environment Special
Account) Bill 2012 be amended to include projects in Research and Development or
projects using emerging technologies and to acknowledge and reward early adopters of
water efficiency measures.
Disagreed.
Funds will be allocated on a competitive basis to those projects that deliver the greatest
volume of socio-economically neutral water at least cost.
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Recommendation
The Water Amendment (Water for the Environment Special Account) Bill 2012 be
amended to require the ANAO conduct an audit of the Special Account after the first
year of operation, the third year of operation, and every three years after that, with
specific attention to:
 The financial performance of the account;
 The projects funded under the account, and the robustness of the funding process;
 The performance of these projects in relation to the outcomes under 86AA;
 Any related matters.
Agreed in principle.
The Special Account is subject to public annual performance based reporting. The
Government has also amended the Bill to include a requirement for two reviews to be
conducted by an independent panel into the adequacy of program design and sufficiency of
funds in the Special Account to acquire 450GL and remove key constraints. These reviews
will occur by 30 September in 2019 and 2021. As with all Government programs, the Special
Account is subject to financial reporting and ANAO audit.
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