WATER MORE PRECIOUS THAN GOLD

7 November 2013

PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Di Clark for Blicks River Guardians 
WATER MORE PRECIOUS THAN GOLD

Blicks River Guardians have launched their new website www.blicksriverguardians.org to tell of their love for the Dorrigo Plateau and their pledge to protect it from inappropriate land use. At stake is a clean water supply for communities from Sawtell to Yamba, a clean environment for the flora and fauna of this area and a place for our children and grandchildren to use in a sustainable way. We thank Alan Morden, art director and consultant from Byron Bay, for the donation of his time and expertise in website design.  We also thank local photographers for allowing us to use their beautiful photographs and videos (see Acknowledgements on the website).

The major potential threats to the Blicks River at present are active mineral exploration leases near Tyringham and Dundurrabin operated by Scorpio Resources Pty Ltd, a full subsidiary company of Anchor Resources.  Diamond drilling has recommenced in the area and will consist of up to 8 holes for approximately 2,000m.  Anchor is currently exploring in this area for large intrusion-related gold systems.

In last week’s Don Dorrigo Gazette there was an article on the history of antimony mining at Wild Cattle Creek. This area too is being explored by Anchor Resources. The movement of surface water dropping from the Plateau to lower river systems may contribute to cumulative impacts downstream. Historically the processing of antimony and other minerals has had a negative impact on areas such as Urunga.

Blicks River Guardians are a sub-group of Dorrigo Environment Watch www.dorrigoenvironmentwatch.org.au; together we hope to enable a well-informed public to express the beauty and timelessness of this area and protect it for future generations. We invite visitors to our website to make comments, download petition pages for signatures, suggest ways they can help and to advise us if they want to be added to our mailing list.

Dorrigo Environment Watch recently held an information session on the NSW Government Strategic Regional Land Use Policy to advise landholders of recent developments. “Prime Agricultural Land” on the Dorrigo plateau was vastly underestimated due to restrictive criteria such as the slope of the land. One look at those rolling hills, lush from high summer rainfall grown on the famous Dorrigo soil, would tell anyone that their zoning criteria are inadequate.  If these maps are used for mining exclusion areas then they are not good enough.

Visit our websites and join in celebrating this beautiful area – water is more precious than gold (or antimony!).

The Clarence Valley does its bit to protect the Northern Rivers region from coal seam gas mining

Lock The Gate Rally at Lismore on 12 May 2012

Farmers, fishermen and conservation groups agree to fight mining in the Dorrigo Plateau and Clarence River catchments

The Daily Examiner 16 February 2012:

AN UNLIKELY coalition has formed to fight proposals to mine areas on the Dorrigo plateau.

At a meeting in Dundurrabin at the weekend, farmers, fishermen and conservation groups agreed to fight attempts to mine in the high-rainfall Dorrigo catchment.

Coffs Harbour councillor Mark Graham said there was a concerted push for the Dorrigo plateau to be declared off limits to mining.

He said there was a series of proposals for open-cut mining in the Orara, Little Nymboida, Wild Cattle Creek and Bobo areas, which was the most advanced.

"That all feeds into the Clarence, which is the regional water supply, and is the lifeblood of the Clarence Valley," he said.

"The reasons for campaigning for the Dorrigo plateau to be off-limits is for the health of the whole river and all the communities below it.

"The mining industry has said nowhere in the state is off-limits, but if anywhere should be it is the Dorrigo plateau because of its incredibly high rainfall."

Clarence Valley councillor Karen Toms said there should be no-go areas for mining and the Dorrigo plateau was one of those.

"We need to protect our water," she said.

Lock the Gate Alliance to conduct a mining forum, North Coast Regional Botanic Garden, Coffs Harbour at 2pm 31 July 2011

The Coffs Coast Advocate,  Forum to explain mining plan, 27 July 2011:

The Lock the Gate Alliance has convened a Mining the Coffs Coast forum at the North Coast Regional Botanic Garden in Coffs Harbour at 2pm.
Alliance spokesman Michael McNamara said the session was the result of “unprecedented pressure to mine sensitive parts” of our region.
“With proposals to mine coal seam gas throughout the Clarence Valley, antimony in the headwaters of Coffs Harbour's drinking water supply, and gold throughout the forested hinterland, there has never been as much pressure on the mineral resources of the region,” Mr McNamara said.
“There are serious conflicts between mining and the internationally-significant biodiversity of the region and even more serious conflicts between toxic mining practices and the protection of clean water supplies.”
Mr McNamara said he and his wife, Julie, were so passionate about the issue they were undertaking a promotional speaking tour of NSW during August and September to promote National Day of Action on October 16, also the start of National Water Week.....

What the Clarence Valley is telling the new House Regional Australia Committee inquiry

Reported in The Daily Examiner on 14 December 2010:

With less than a week to go before submissions close for the inquiry into the impact of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan on Regional Australia, Clarence Valley environment groups are ensuring their voices are heard.

Clarence Environment Centre and Valley Watch Inc have both made submissions to the inquiry, which was set up to examine the human impact of the proposed Murray Darling Basin plan.

Of concern to both groups – as well as many others in the Clarence Valley – is the on-going call from some outside of the Valley to divert water from the Clarence River.

One Clarence Valley submission to the Australian Parliament House of Representatives Regional Australia Committee Inquiry into impacts of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan on Regional Australia talking about some of the unrealistic expectations which have been expressed this century:

When Malcolm Turnbull announced a feasibility study for the transfer of water from the Clarence to South East Queensland in early 2007, the Bourke Cobar, and South Australian Alexandrina Councils immediately launched their individual bids for a million megalitres per year, and 1.3 million megalitres respectively, to be diverted from the Clarence River.

So called facts and figures, and various methods to achieve the desired ends, were bandied about by everyone who had an opinion, regardless of their qualifications. Sydney Shock Jock, Alan Jones, led the charge for three days (that's as long as any one issue catches his attention), using the usual scientific measure of water in terms of 'Sydney Harbours' , “going to waste” out through the heads each day. One engineering firm claimed the entire transfer could be achieved by damming the river, and simply running the water downhill through a 20km tunnel with no pumping required.

What is evident in submissions received by the Committee from the Clarence Valley to date is the remarkable level of patience displayed in the face of yet another round of emotive calls by individuals and organisations in the Murray-Darling Basin to let them raid Clarence catchment fresh water and blithely ruin that coastal river system.

Bravo, Clarence Environment Centre and Valley Watch!

To date there have been only eighty-seven submissions to the Australian Parliament House of Representatives Inquiry into the impact of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan in Regional Australia.

Ever mindful of the reported remarks of various vested interests and those of the Inquiry's Chair, the Clarence Valley community responded.

Clarence Environment Centre (CEC) made one of the earliest submissions pointing out valid reasons why the Clarence River catchment was not for the raiding.
The complete CEC 33 page submission in PDF file can be viewed and downloaded here.

Valley Watch also made a succinct formal submission which is found here.

I have to say that these submissions were part of only a handful which attempted reasoned argument supported by data. Most submissions simply registered opposition to the Murray Darling Basin Plan on the basis of emotion and supposition.

Unfortunately it would appear that at least twenty-seven of the eighty-seven submissions supported the idea of investigating interbasin water transfers and/or new dams, although only four of these made specific mention of possible water diversion from the Clarence River and/or NSW coastal rivers generally.

What was evident in the bulk of these submissions is that many of those individuals who live in the Murray-Darling Basin would apparently rather kill off that river system entirely before they will concede one litre of the water entitlements they currently possess.

Clarence Valley shows its resolve to fight water raiders

Mayoral Minute included in the Clarence Valley Council ordinary monthly meeting business paper for 16 November 2010:

Committee:		MAYORAL MINUTE
Section:
Date:		16 November 2010
Item:	10.017/10	DIVERSION OF THE CLARENCE RIVER

ATTACHMENT

REPORT SUMMARY

Clarence Valley Council has always opposed any plans to divert water out of the Clarence catchment (Reports are attached).

It is now timely that Council again register its strong opposition to any plans to do so.

RECOMMENDATION

1. That the Council again register it strong opposition to any plans to divert waters out of the Clarence catchment.

2. That Council makes a submission to the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Regional Australia inquiry into the proposed Murray-Darling Basin Plan (MDBP), noting Council’s opposition to any plans to divert waters out of the Clarence catchment.

BACKGROUND

The Federal Government has begun an inquiry into the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.

For the information of the Council the terms of reference are:

The Standing Committee on Regional Australia will inquire into and report on the socio-economic impact of the proposed Murray-Darling Basin Authority's 'Guide to the Proposed Basin Plan' (the Proposed Basin Plan) on regional communities, with particular reference to:

• The direct and indirect impact of the Proposed Basin Plan on regional communities, including agricultural industries, local business activity and community wellbeing;

• Options for water-saving measures or water return on a region-by-region basis with consideration given to an analysis of actual usage versus licence entitlement over the preceding fifteen years

• The role of governments, the agricultural industry and the research sector in developing and delivering infrastructure and technologies aimed at supporting water efficiency within the Murray-Darling Basin.

In examining each of these issues, the Committee will also consider community views on:

• Measures to increase water efficiency and reduces consumption and their relative cost effectiveness;

• Opportunities for economic growth and diversification within regional communities; and

• Previous relevant reform and structural adjustment programs and the impact on communities and regions.

This will include consultation with Local Government, Regional Development Australia, community groups and individual stakeholders to better understand the local and community issues raised by the Proposed Basin Plan.

The committee will report back to Parliament by end of May 2011.

While it is noted the diversion of “other” river systems or inter basin transfer is not in the terms of reference, the plan is getting some space in the national media and (if reports are correct) has been raised in community consultation to date on the MDBP.

Our community has long held the view that the idea of diverting the Clarence River is something that we will not accept and as such, Council should make a submission outlining the socio-economic impact, environmental impacts and community views on the issue.

Again the words ring true - “Not a drop”.

The diversion of the Clarence River when assessed against Council’s adopted sustainability framework cannot be justified, as outlined below.

Environmental

The Clarence is one of the nation’s great wild rivers, and one of the few rivers in Australia which has no major dam. The only across-river structure for water diversion is the relatively minor Nymboida Weir. The river is also the only place in the world where the endangered Eastern freshwater cod now exists. Much of the river is also surrounded by national parks and many of the tributaries by World Heritage declared rainforest.

The studies for the off-river storage urban water supply at Shannon Creek proved that any large dam on the Clarence River, if it diverted the highest or the lowest flows, could have dire environmental impacts on aquatic lifecycles. This is why the Shannon Creek dam (30,000 mega litres) was designed to only take a small amount of medium river flows from the Nymboida and was not located on the river. The science is beyond doubt, all those rivers which have large cross-river dams have had major environmental impacts on aquatic eco-systems, wetlands and fish habitats. This is the very reason that the Federal Government has released the Murray Darling Basin plan (on display now) and is trying to stop the river dying from too much regulation by dams and irrigation use.

Note: a relatively small urban water supply across-river dam on the Mary River in Queensland did not go ahead due to the environmental impact the dam would have and it only had a fraction of the environmental values of the Clarence.

Economic

The effects of major dams would inevitably decimate the Clarence River commercial and recreational fishing industries. It is well proven that variable flows and the flood flows are essential for a viable fishing and prawn industry. The commercial fishing industry is worth over $92 million in the Valley and generates over 430 jobs. The recreation fishing industry forms a large part of the $280 million tourism industry in the Valley which generates much of the economic base of Yamba, Iluka and Maclean.

The engineering reports carried out in the 1960’s and 70 have proved even then that any diversion scheme could not possibly be economically justified without a huge Government subsidy. Even then, the cheapest option was going to cost over $500 mega litre, which in today’s terms would be many thousands of dollars per mega litre. Note: irrigators now complain about paying less then $10 mega litre in the Murray Darling Basin for their irrigation water. The reports done did not analyse the economic or environmental costs to the Clarence River and on the community.

Any diversion of water to the West is not going to give any more irrigation water accept for those irrigators in the upper catchments eg Namoi, Gywdir, as system losses mainly by evaporation would not see any Clarence water reaching the Murray system. As well, any new water in the system would further accentuate the already major irrigation salinity problem in the Murrumbidgee and Murray irrigation areas.

Socially

The Healthy River Commission, in its report of the Clarence in early 2000’s, found that the one thing that absolutely unites the whole Valley is its river and everybody agrees that this river has great significance and should not be diverted to the West.

The Aboriginal community has a great mythological link to the river with every nation having a dream time story about the Clarence River’s creation.

Governance

The net result of any crazy scheme to divert the Clarence would be that instead of having one river system which is on its knees environmentally, socially and economically, you would instead have two systems in a similar state.

Financially, without huge Government subsidisation, any diversion scheme is totally uneconomic and cannot be paid for by water users in the west.

Cr Richie Williamson

MAYOR Prepared by:	Mayor Richie Williamson
Section:	Mayoral Minute
Attachment:	1. Report 12.005/06 (18 October 2006) Water Diversion – Clarence River 2. Report 05.006/07 (17 April 2007) Clarence River Diversion

Not A Drop [Second Edition 2010]

The Daily Examiner 25 October 2010

Click on image to enlarge