The Murray Darling Daring basin plan, has panned out to be an exact look alike of all other Government meddling.

The Aboriginal industry which collects forty billions pa and still leaves aboriginals living in abject poverty in rural ghettos.
The NBN white elephant fiasco.
The NDS which panders beautifully to the notorious medical industry, leading to wealthy doctors and other service medics, becoming wealthier by the day, as the disabled linger in the background, begging for treatment and services, and generally ignored.

And sadly still, the Govermrnt brand of dogs breakfast for the rich and famous, is usurped only by the private enterprise rip-offs of the insurance industry, where a five hundred dollar bribe is payable towards their bottom line pa, for roadusing suckers to register for the rort of motoring.
Out of that windfall, a merger two percent is outlayed for successful claims. All Government backed.

Meanwhile back at the ranch, thieving politicians the like of Barnaby Joyce, continue to grin for the camera over the crimes his lot were involved in over water buy backs.

I don't see much future for this country under this regime of waste and corruption.

Dan

Max forgot another reason SA doesn't want to stop sucking water out of the northern states for their artificial fresh water lakes.

There is a huge dairy, & farming industry around the lakes, which requires extensive water for irrigation. It is very cheap for South Australia to supply this irrigation water by having these estuaries full of fresh water rather than natural salty water.

Return the lakes to their natural state, & this irrigation water would have to be supplied by a ditch & pipe network, that would cost money to build & maintain. While the northern states are stupid enough to let South Australia rip off their water resources to give them free water distribution, they will continue to do this.

I can't imagine how anyone who claims to be green is not down there protesting about these artificial lakes destroying the estuarine environment.

The only times that SA gets a mention is when the eastern states feel like a whine. Actually, it's not just SA, it's also NT and WA: anywhere west of the Great Divide. The Australian Environment Foundation and Max Rheese and the eastern states can get nicked.

Good article. The whole system below the river should be returned to natural conditions, meaning an open mouth to the sea. If the lake system becomes saline, so be it. Some farmers will need to be compensated but the cost will be minor compared to the overall environmental and economic gains.

People keen on returning the Murray to "natural conditions" clearly don't know that that would mean NO water in the river in SA in dry periods. There are plenty of photographs available showing paddle steamers high and dry when things were 'nice and natural'.

Poor, poor South Australia is owed a living from federal taxpayer money be it in water or subsidised shipyards.

The Federal Government has given Adelaide approximately $80 Billion in naval shipbuilding projects. This buys the Government votes = a few Federal electorates.

This is even though shipbuilding in Adelaide is far less efficient than doing so in Victorian and Western Australian shipyards.

But what's a few odd $10s Billions of taxpayers' money?