A Riverina water broker and regional farmers are calling for greater transparency around water trading.
Farmers and graziers in the Riverina have raised concerns the price of temporary water had reached $245/ML, due to low inflows and reduced allocations caused by environmental demands.
Deniliquin broker James Sides said there were “grave concerns” about individuals or corporate players manipulating the market. “Effectively you are trading a commodity, it’s a natural resource and it does vary in supply and demand, and that’s what impacts on the price,” Mr Sides said.
“There are individuals and corporates with significantly vast volumes of water and we are seeing trends between the water barons and growers and potentially the big supermarkets dictating terms of trade to producers, telling them what to grow and leasing back a portfolio of water to grow the crop.”
Denliquin cropper Vicky Meyer said there needed to be changes to charges. She said traders did not pay for infrastructure or maintenance, buying and selling only the water entitlement. “We are not water traders, we are flat out being productive farmers, let us be good farmers, with affordable water,” she said.
And consultant Garry Armstrong, Culgrove, Mathoura, said water trades should be restricted to productive use, rather than being treated like a commodity “and traded between corporations that never grow a bean.
“It should only be available for agricultural use, not speculation if you can’t use that water, you shouldn’t have title to that water.”
