Southern Riverina Irrigators declared the ruling by the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal a win for common sense.
SRI chief executive officer Sophie Baldwin said SRI had attended countless meetings and written submissions opposing the proposed increase which, if implemented, would have meant irrigators would be paying more than $40 in government charges for every megalitre used on-farm.
Currently that figure is around $15.
“Farming and irrigators groups right across NSW came together and vehemently opposed the increase, along with Independent Member for Murray Helen Dalton who took the issue up with Premier Chris Minns,” Ms Baldwin.
“It’s a short-term win and shows if we come together and keep fighting we can restore some balance.”
The announcement comes with a caveat, with IPART saying the shorter-term draft prices may be replaced if ongoing work by WaterNSW and IPART enables new price determinations.
Any new determinations would be made only after IPART issues a draft report, seeks and considers submissions and holds a public hearing.
NSW Irrigators’ Council chief executive officer Claire Miller also welcomed the “massive discount” on WaterNSW’s proposed increases, calling it a “substantial win”.
“NSWIC and its members told IPART loud and clear the current water pricing model is broken and must be fixed if our farmers are not to be priced out of business and local NSW produce priced off supermarket shelves,” she said.
Ms Miller urged all rural water customers to make submissions to IPART about the pricing arrangements by June 3.
Ms Baldwin said Mr Minns had stated he wants to grow NSW agriculture to $30 billion.
“That will never happen if food producers can’t access affordable irrigation water — and delivery charges have a huge role to play in that affordability,” she said.
“There is so much going on in the world of water and to have this announcement come through should give irrigators a reprieve from some of the negativity.
“Next on the agenda is to get newly elected Federal Water Minister Murray Watt to visit the region and show him how important we are in terms of staple food production and economic generation for the nation.”
