THE GOVERNMENT has announced a Productivity Commission study into alternative market mechanisms that the Government could use to diversify its purchase of water entitlements in the Murray-Darling Basin.
The announcement comes from Minister for Climate Change and Water, Senator Penny Wong, and the Assistant Treasurer, Senator Nick Sherry.
As part of the Government’s $12.9 billion Water for the Future plan, $3.1 billion over 10 years has been committed to buying back water entitlement so the Basin’s rivers and wetlands get a greater share of water when it is available.
The Productivity Commission has been asked to examine how the Government could use alternative market-based mechanisms to diversify its water purchase program in the Murray-Darling Basin.
The program, titled Restoring the Balance in the Murray-Darling Basin, currently uses an open tender process as the principal way of purchasing water entitlements.
The study was part of an agreement in February with South Australian Senator Nick Xenophon relating to the Government’s $42 billion Nation Building Package.
The Productivity Commission is required to provide the final report within six months.
* To register an interest in the study or for further information please visit www.pc.gov.au or phone 02 6240 3239.
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