AN irrigation industry body has called for clarification on Labor's Murray Darling Basin Plan.
South Australian Murray Irrigators committee member and Murray Bridge irrigator Richard Reedy said Labor leader Anthony Albanese's MDBP announcement left SA irrigators with more questions ahead of next month's election.
"We need to have clarified whether they're going to pursue buybacks here because we don't want much more water going out of our communities," he said.
"That does create the moral dilemma as, if we are concerned about impacts of buybacks on our communities, we also have to be sympathetic to our fellow irrigators interstate because you just can't pull the water out willy-nilly anywhere.
"If you do, you end up with a Swiss cheese effect, like we already have here, where a whole lot of properties are no longer functioning.
"That is just a massive issue that I do not think Anthony Albanese understands at all.
"I want to get it across that this is not as easy as just spruiking forward down TV cameras and microphones - it's a really difficult task to undertake and we need someone who really understands this issue to provide clarity."
He said with 450 gigalitres to be recovered and NSW looking to be short 200GL on its contribution to the 605GL Sustainable Diversion Limit target, irrigators could be looking at losing close to 700GL of water.
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"At this stage, most South Australian irrigators just want it clarified where it's all going to come from," Mr Reedy said.
"I know there's already talk of compulsory buybacks.
"There has also been talk in recent years SA would have to put in a minimum of 40GL and I can tell you right now, we haven't got that water to put up without decimating our own communities.
"When Penny Wong was Minister for Water, we had good representation and SA concerns were heard and I am hopeful we can replicate that again with the next government, whoever that may be.
"SA often seems like Cinderella - we have our big sisters over in the eastern states but we just get forgotten about, even with crucial issues like this and I don't want to see that keep happening."
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