A Government report has acknowledged transferring water from northern storages to rescue the Lower Lakes and Coorong is easier said than done, and that it would come at the cost of $1 billion worth of agricultural production.
The report to the Senate was released by Minister for Water, Penny Wong, after mounting pressure from the Opposition this week.
It details various options for saving the Lakes including releasing water from Menindee Lakes in far western NSW and transferring water from storages along the Darling River.
However, there is no clear or preferred option in the paper.
The Government report does not list any plans or options to improve or build infrastructure to alleviate the problem either locally or further upstream.
Purchasing temporary and permanent water from private storages in the Darling system was one of eight options put forward by the Government, but it points out moving water from dams and turkeys nests, or ring tanks, would be a "large logistical challenge".
The paper also acknowledges that the cost of water had skyrocketed because it was very scarce, making options like buying carryover entitlements particularly prohibitive.
The Government also acknowledges the cost to horticulture and other permanent plantings in the southern basin if water was diverted, with the impact high.
"It is likely that the impacts on the irrigation sector would be high," the report says.
"Preliminary calculations using data from the recent release by the ABS on water use in the Murray Darling Basin in 2005-06 indicate that diverting water to the Lower Lakes would reduce production of horticulture products in the southern basin by $775m-$1b," it says.
"This does not include the potential for tree and vice death, which could also be substantial.
"Previous estimates by ABARE indicate that the capital value of permanent plantings at risk in the Southern Murray Darling Basin is around $5 billion."
The report says the northern basin will be the focus in the next phase of the Government's buyback scheme, while purchasing water from Snowy Hydro would also be a consideration to address the drying Lakes situation.
Continued pumping from Lake Alexandrina to Lake Albert would be a viable immediate option, and recent rain in the region means this can be continued for longer than originally intended, the paper says.
While farmers have been calling for clarity on the government's position on investing in irrigation improvements and efficiency upgrades under its Water for the Future program, there is no mention in the options paper of infrastructure upgrades being considered to help alleviate the problem in the Lower Lakes.
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