Public meetings held to debate the state government’s revised Gulf Water Resource Plan and upcoming Flinders River catchment water tenders have called for a two-tier allocation system to be implemented to ensure small and large users are both catered for.
Around 30 people attended meetings in Julia Creek and Hughenden at the end of September.
McKinlay mayor Belinda Murphy said from her council’s perspective, it wanted to see development greatly encouraged by the water release.
“There were large and small players in the room, and all are worried about one big person coming in and taking the whole allocation,” she said. “We don’t think that should be allowed.”
To combat these fears the meetings recommended a two-tiered system of allocating the water.
Of the 240,000 megalitres of general unallocated water reserves up for grabs in the Flinders catchment, it suggested that 80,000ML be kept for applications of less than 10,000ML, and the balance be made available to groups putting in applications that are larger than 10,000ML.
“The big players agree that 60,000ML is sustainable,” Cr Murphy said.
“Corbett Tritton at Richmond has shown what can be done with just a small allocation. Imagine what could be done if a whole industry shot up round that.
“This is the sort of stuff that will help long-term recovery here in the north. It’s the first step for our area for the Northern Australia plan.
“Ideas for an abattoir could become a reality with irrigated agriculture giving people the ability to feed and fatten cattle.”
Flinders River Agricultural Precinct chairman Brendan McNamara agreed with the two-tier proposal, saying that when the previous allocations were made, they went to three operators, none of them small.
“This gives more people a chance,” he said.
Cr Murphy said a two-tier system should also have an interchangeability clause, so that water could be shifted between tiers.
