[Greens-Media] Costa hides Tillegra advice

[John Kaye]

Costa hides Tillegra advice

Media release: 26 May 2010

The Greens have accused NSW Water Minister Phil Costa of misleading parliament when he denied the existence of a departmental memo recommending that Tillegra Dam be put on hold. ('Dam lies and statistics: Costa stands accused', SMH and Newcastle Herald, http://bit.ly/smh100526)

Greens NSW MP John Kaye said: "The Keneally government is trying to cover up the expert advice from its own Office of Water warning that planning for the $477 million project is badly flawed.

"In a written answer to my question, Water Minister Phil Costa flatly denied that the Management Division of his department recommended in a September 2008 briefing that he should consider deferring the construction of the Tillegra Dam.

"Documents tabled in the NSW Parliament contained a September 2008 memo stating that  'the Minister consider deferring the $450m construction of Tillegra dam'.

"Phil Costa has been caught misleading parliament.

"This was no quick off-the-cuff response but a written answer considered over 35 days.

"The briefing had been emailed to the Minister's office and it was on file in the Office of Water, from where we obtained it. There can be no excuse for the Minister not finding it. The memo was clearly too damaging to the case for Tillegra for the Minister to admit it existed.

"The Minister should resign and the government should scrap the dam. 

"This is yet another chapter in the three-year-long effort by the NSW Labor government and Hunter Water to hide the awful truth that Tillegra is unnecessary, expensive and an environmental disaster.

"If the government were honest about the lack of need for Tillegra, the other cheaper options and its impacts on the environment, they would have no choice but to dump it. Instead, they resort to denying the advice they have been given by their own water experts. 

"Premier Keneally should step in, relieve Phil Costa of his ministerial duties and act on the advice of his department by putting the dam on hold," Dr Kaye said.

For more information:	John Kaye 0407 195 455