The Andrews Government was elected in November 2014 with a promise to restore Victoria’s status as a leader on environmental issues. Water Minister Lisa Neville told the Parliament in April 2015 that “preserving the future of our water supplies requires a new vision and that calls for a fresh and balanced approach, starting at the top.”
This report examines what that new vision and fresh approach could look like and sets out six ambitious yet achievable steps the Victorian government should take to make it a reality. The report also assesses factors driving the decline of our river systems, and describes case studies from around the world. Read the report below or
Click here to download full report [4MB]
Click here to download the 2 page summary
Rivers connect, support and nurture communities of all kinds – animals, plants and people. They give us water to drink and to grow our crops, clean up pollution and bring fertility to the soil. They are part of our culture, our history and our stories – yet the combined impact of dam construction, increasing water extraction and land clearing for agriculture has devastated our freshwater ecosystems. Currently, just 23 percent of Victoria’s rivers are classified as being in good or excellent condition and three quarters of wetlands on private land have disappeared altogether since European settlement.
The six steps outlined in this report offer a pathway to restoring Victoria’s rivers whilst delivering jobs and economic productivity. This is a critical opportunity. And as the strongest El Nino we have ever seen dries out our rivers and exacerbates to the ongoing impact of global warming there is no time to lose.
Click here to read the media release for the report.
For media enquiries contact Juliet Le Feuvre, Healthy Rivers Campaigner, on 0428 770 019.