[Greens-Media] Govt inaction on Coorong bodes poorly for lower Murray survival

Clark, Gemma (Sen S. Hanson-Young) Gemma.Clark at aph.gov.au
Mon Dec 22 13:02:58 EST 2008


Monday 22 December 2008

Govt inaction on Coorong bodes poorly for lower Murray survival

Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young says warnings that birds native to the Coorong are in danger of extinction point to an alarming lack of action on the lower Murray.

South Australian ecologist Professor David Paton has warned the fairy tern is in real danger of extinction unless hypersaline water is pumped out of the southern lagoon of the Coorong immediately. There are currently only 300 of the birds left in the area.

“Pumping of hypersaline water from the Coorong’s southern lagoon is something that the Federal Government agreed months ago to ensure it happened, yet nothing has,” said Senator Hanson-Young.

“The evidence presented to this year’s Senate Inquiry into water management in the Lower Lakes and Coorong showed that this pumping was urgently needed to start rebalancing and recovering the salinity levels there.

“Professor Paton is not alone in his frustration at the inaction by state and federal governments as the health of the Coorong and Lower Lakes continue to rapidly deteriorate.

“Action is needed now if the Coorong and its ecology – and therefore its communities – have any hope of starting to recover from this dire situation.”

Senator Hanson-Young said the inaction on the Coorong did not bode well for the rest of the lower Murray.

“The Greens are committed to fighting for freshwater environmental flows for the lower Murray.

“We await Environment Minister Peter Garrett’s decision before the end of the year on whether a risk assessment will be carried out on saltwater flooding of the Lower Lakes.”

Media contact: Gemma Clark on 0427 604 760



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