“The Australian” editorial of 26/12/06 said many things about our current “Water scandal” that many, if not all, of us would agree with.

The editorial writer wrote that: “….state governments have spent decades avoiding their responsibility to invest in water security. Instead of proper planning, water authorities have squeezed the supply of water to consumers through restrictions to allow state governments to pocket hundreds of millions of dollars a year in dividends. The monopoly position enjoyed by water utilities has allowed state governments to get away with it.”

Who could argue with that? It appears that state governments - perhaps with the exception of NSW which recently announced that they would impose no further restrictions, but would take measures to introduce desalination and other measures – have absolutely no intention of spending money they have pillaged from water authorities to ensure a stable supply of water for the future. They are more concerned with the “credit ratings” of their states with foreign economists than they are in spending the money rightly belonging to taxpayers for the benefit of taxpayers.

Irrespective of the confused and confusing daily and weekly reports about water consumption, the editorialist claims that water consuption has now been “squeezed (by cop-out restrictions) to the same level as fived decades ago.”

Five decades ago! And how much has our population increased in 50 years!

Australia has always been the driest continent on Earth. Drought is nothing new. But, Australian politicians have done nothing, despite the available technology and techniques for water saving and conservation.

“Scandal” is the right word to describe the political incompetence that has landed us with our water problem. According to some commentators, the drought will break around March this year, saving the backsides of the politicians once more. They will get away with it again.

But what about next time, and the time after that…?

Speaking of water....recycle it.

'Eeeeeewwwwwww' is Australia's reaction, because apparently we're all 2 year olds who think our water will be yellow, despite the fact its a perfectly safe, and very practical way to save water.

London water is recycled, they surviving. I've drunk worse tasting water here.

The driest continent, right? Apparently one of the stupidest too, because despite constant water shortages, we wont recycle because we don't like the 'idea' of it. Madness.

4 brain cells shared amongst 20 million people.

Some drink recycled water, spendocrat. Anyone downstream of the upper Murrimbidgee drinks those upper towns/cities recycled effluent. So that includes the small regional towns like Hay, but also includes all of South Australia that sources water from the Murray. They are drinking it and just dont know it/think about it.

Yep. Recycling is an obvious one, but will they do it? Time is running out. We still have to force the buggers to spend the money on ANYTHING which could solve the problem.

We do have treatment plants in SA, CG! We don't just go to the river with bucket. We are quiet civilised in some ways. I'm not sure that you can compare what we drink with recycled sewage.

"The Australian" also suggested that governments should go ahead and recyle treated waste water without reference to the people as happened in Toowoomba.

I wonder if that would be acceptable? Democratic? Have we reached the stage (thanks to the lawmakers in the first place) where we are prepared to forgo the right (?) to say what they put in our reservoirs? I'm not sure that we had any say on chlorination.

In the meantime, their is a lot of useable water going to waste while the politicians rely on draconian restrictions, only, to avoid their obvious responsibilities.

The water we all drink is already recycled anyway. Sewerage discharged into the sea ends up as water vapour, then clouds and rain. Which gives the cleaner end result: the natural process or a synthetic one?

Leigh, what say did you want in regards to chlorination. Would you prefer to have health problems. Do you really think it goes in for no reason?