The government has set the target of 450 Gl to be achieved through infrastructure works and buying water from irrigators.
Federal Water Minister Murray Watt said nearly 85 per cent of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan’s environmental water target has now been achieved, as the plan continues to deliver a healthier, more sustainable river system for the environment, agriculture and local communities into the future.
The target is intended to deliver water for environmental purposes, to improve the health of rivers, wetlands, and ecosystems across the basin.
Senator Watt said water had been progressively purchased from willing sellers, including owners of large water portfolios in the southern Murray-Darling Basin through Expression of Interest processes that ran in late 2024.
The Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water assessed offers to sell from water entitlement owners, considering value for money as well as the environmental utility of that water across multiple catchments when making purchase decisions.
“We remain on track to reach 400 Gl by December, and it’s good to see this process nearing the finish line, delivering a healthier basin for the future,” Minister Watt said.
“We understand water purchasing can impact some communities, which is why we established the $300 million Sustainable Communities Program.
The NFF has reiterated its strong opposition to further water buybacks under the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.
NFF Water Committee chair Malcolm Holm said recovering the additional 450 Gl had always been a choice, not an environmental necessity.
“Let’s be clear: recovering the 450 Gl was a choice. It was a choice the NFF did not support then, and does not support now,” Mr Holm said.
“While this announcement refers to 85 per cent of the target, the reality is much more significant. With 2750 Gl already recovered, this takes total recovery to around 98 per cent of the basin plan target.
“It is more than enough, more than can be usefully used, more than was necessary, and more than basin communities should have had to bear.”
Mr Holm said the latest update confirmed the government had doubled down on a policy approach that is failing both farming communities and the environment.
“Farmers understand the importance of a healthy river system, as we depend on it to grow food. But more buybacks and water acquisition in any form are not the answer,” Mr Holm said.
“This has already cost taxpayers billions, yet there are serious questions about whether the water being purchased can even be delivered to achieve the intended environmental outcomes.”
Mr Holm said evidence continued to mount that additional water recovery was delivering diminishing returns, with major delivery constraints limiting how much water could be used effectively across the system.
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