Farmer’s Water Allocations

All licenses/entitlements in the Murray Darling Basin are subject to seasonal allocations, or on the "unregulated" rivers, the attainment of minimal river heights. I believe it was the late Professor Peter Cullen who made the statement that "in a dry country like Australia we shouldn't be growing thirsty crops like rice and cotton". Both Australian … Continue reading Farmer’s Water Allocations →

Climate Change and Water Conservation From Clive James

For someone who for decades has been 'dining out' on "Droughts and flooding rains", (and not much in the middle) in trying to explain the massive variability of Australia's climate and inland water flows and the need for conservation, it is deeply satisfying to read Clive James' wonderful article. I commend it to all.

MD Basin Plan

Spot-on!Axe Murray-Darling plan and start again: US expertPeter KerMarch 5, 2011AUSTRALIA'S performance on reforming the Murray-Darling Basin has been savaged by one of the world's top water experts, who says the process is flawed by political deception and opportunism.Harvard University professor John Briscoe - a former senior water adviser for the World Bank - has … Continue reading MD Basin Plan →

Climate Change (Note not "Global Warming" as its effectively non-existent)

I can't vouch for the precise accuracy of the following, but the general perspective would be correct.ETS tax for dummiesLet's put this into a bit of perspective for laymen! ETS is another tax. It is equal to putting up the GST to 12.5% which would be unacceptable and produce an outcry.Read the following analogy and … Continue reading Climate Change (Note not "Global Warming" as its effectively non-existent) →

MD Basin-Eucumbene

Letter published in The Land on 24th February-"Max Talbot, Cooma makes an excellent point in his letter (Look outside basin-The Land, February,10). At 4,800 gigalitres, Eucumbene Dam is the largest single dam feeding the Murray Darling Basin (MDB). It is essential that its operation, and the operation of the other Snowy storages, be fully integrated … Continue reading MD Basin-Eucumbene →

Murray Darling Basin Plan-New Broom

I sent the attached letter (so far unpublished) to The Australian on Saturday:-Would someone please explain to Minister Burke and new MDBA Chairman Craig Knowles that:1)the Murray Darling Basin was not suffering from "ill-health", but the natural results of extreme dryness,2)these dry symptoms have, in recent months, been dramatically cured by Mother Nature,3)the extreme variability … Continue reading Murray Darling Basin Plan-New Broom →

Global Warming-Motives of Alarmists

The following is a quote from James Delingpole's blog. It struck me as a good summary.He is describing ideological differences with a "friend"."The biggest of those ideological differences has to do with Anthropogenic Global Warming.In a nutshell, I think it has been greatly exaggerated by a number of special interest groups with an axe to … Continue reading Global Warming-Motives of Alarmists →

Conservatism and Inland Water Management

I think it was John Howard who once described a conservative as someone who did not believe that everything his grandfather said was necessarily wrong! Nobody could accuse present day water managers (bureaucrats and attention seeking scientific advocates)of being conservative. They appear to approach current issues from the clear position that their forebears didn't really … Continue reading Conservatism and Inland Water Management →

Dams

Letter published in today's Weekend Australian:"At last a senior politician has had the political courage to tell it like it is.("Dam them -- Abbott's solution to harness flooded rivers", 7/1). The last seven to 10 years of drought and the recent "big wet" is a classic example of Australia's natural variability.We need to conserve water … Continue reading Dams →

Conventional Wisdom

The front page of today's Australian has no less than three clangers, all in passing.1) Reference to "carbon pollution"!! Carbon pollution? What the hell is that? I thought carbon was an essential part of life?2) Reference to the "ailing Murray Darling Basin". Perhaps they mean "ailing" from excessive water flows! 3) "Ailing" from "excessive farmer … Continue reading Conventional Wisdom →