Section 100 of The Constitution states: “The Commonwealth shall not, by any law or regulation of trade or commerce, abridge the right of a state or of the residents therein to the reasonable use of the waters of rivers for conservation or irrigation”.
Water is life.
Obviously, control of water is control of life and society. Therefore, water should be managed by the people for the people.We believe water is so important to the future and security of our country that it should have its own Federal Government portfolio to coordinate water management policies. Australia must use its water resources wisely.
There is no water shortage in Australia. There is a water management shortage. Water is just not getting to where it can be used most effectively.
We need to consider the bigger picture: We do not believe in privatizing water. Regions will have their own water management board, and coordinate their water management with the Federal Water Minister’s department to ensure fair water management for all.
Environmental arguments have their place. But too often they are used to push control agendas, riding rough-shod over individual and property rights. The result is productive citizens have their hands tied, subject to the whims of vast, impersonal departments with personnel who no longer appear to see themselves as public servants. They are not accountable to the people they are meant to serve. This must change so that public servants are directly accountable to the people. We can achieve this through Citizens Initiated Referendums (CIR).
If we are to rescue and continue with a viable system of family farming, we must re-establish a number of principles. These are:
- Farmers are the custodians of the land and they are best able to assess what needs to be done to maintain their farms in a productive manner.
- Farmers must have the right to build dams and catch water without licence or excessive regulation on family properties, as long as these structures do not deprive the free flow of water to other areas. Structures on public creeks and rivers will be subject to approval of the Regional Water Management Board, in consultation with the community.
- The right of ownership to everything that is produced on a farm without government interference, including captured water.
- The right to make any and all decisions on the use of private (residential and farm) property that does not harm others, including the right to determine when and where to plant and harvest trees and other vegetation on a property without any government interference. Proper tree planting policies encourage water generation, soil conservation, and increase the breathable oxygen available.
We propose water management practices to provide adequate storage, combat salination, and to eliminate discharge of sewerage to river, bay or ocean outlets. We must institute policies after consultation with all citizens involved to re-use suitably treated recycled water, including piping it inland for use by farmers for irrigation.
We have seen that huge dams are not the answer.
Instead, we believe small dams and better water management will provide sufficient water for communities.
We will seek to eliminate drought by proposing water management policies in carefully considered referendums to allow government and private citizens to manage water efficiently, including channeling it through a canal system covering the continent to deliver water where it is needed and where it can be stored ready for use. Citizens opting for Civilian Service to the Nation may be employed to build dams, locks, pipelines, and canals.
This will provide work for thousands of citizens and solve our water shortage problem at the same time. A feasibility group should be set up to assess how these projects can be carried out and then make recommendations. For example, most of the water that falls in the north during the monsoon season runs off into the ocean or evaporates before it can reach communities down south. By channeling this runoff into canals and pipes we can direct this vast supply of water to where it is needed.
Water Storage Tanks
We will initiate a referendum to propose building a series of water storage tanks within each region that will be fed by runoff rain water from town drainage systems. The storage tanks could be buried under local park land, so that there is no disruption to the community. These tanks will have a water purification plant connected to it, large enough to provide clean drinking water to the local community. Untreated water will be available in times of drought for industrial and home purposes such as watering lawns and filling toilet cisterns, etc.
Houses must be allowed to install water tanks as needed without paying a government fee.