❓ A parliamentary question regarding potential water restrictions and their impact on the nursery, turf, and related industries, along with criticism of past water management decisions. The Minister's response defends the government's actions in light of drought conditions and future climate predictions.
AnsweredQoN 577Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
water restrictions — sprinkler rosters
I note the government announcement today to introduce the one day a week sprinkler rosters during spring and two day a week rosters during summer. (1) Will the minister for water give a commitment to this house that the government will not introduce a one day a week sprinkler roster this summer? (2) If the minister will not give this commitment, will he inform the house about the full impact that a one day a week sprinkler ban will have on the nursery, turf and related industries? (3) Will the minister tell the house how many jobs will be lost from the nursery, turf and related industries should the government introduce a one day a week sprinkler roster? (4) Will the minister now accept, in light of possible extreme sprinkler rosters as proposed, that the Logue Brook trade deal and the axing of the Waterwise rebate program were irresponsible and short-sighted? Dr G.G. JACOBS
I note the government announcement today to introduce the one day a week sprinkler rosters during spring and two day a week rosters during summer. (1) Will the minister for water give a commitment to this house that the government will not introduce a one day a week sprinkler roster this summer? (2) If the minister will not give this commitment, will he inform the house about the full impact that a one day a week sprinkler ban will have on the nursery, turf and related industries? (3) Will the minister tell the house how many jobs will be lost from the nursery, turf and related industries should the government introduce a one day a week sprinkler roster? (4) Will the minister now accept, in light of possible extreme sprinkler rosters as proposed, that the Logue Brook trade deal and the axing of the Waterwise rebate program were irresponsible and short-sighted? Dr G.G. JACOBS
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for Cockburn for the question. (1)–(4) I think that most people in Western Australia, including members in this house, recognise that we are faced with some of the driest conditions in 100 years—in fact, it is the second driest period in 100 years. Since 1913 we have had the lowest runoff into our dams and surface water component. Putting that in context, this year so far the runoff into our dams has been 10 gigalitres. Members should keep that in mind when I go on to talk about Logue Brook. The run-off in an average winter is about 100 gigalitres. That puts in perspective where we are at with the surface water component. Everyone knows about the winter sprinkler bans that were in place for three months during winter from 1 June to 31 August. That had fantastic support from the people of Western Australia. We saved around five gigalitres of water. Amendments and changes to regulations have been made to allow the minister to make a discretionary ruling on schedules into the future. The winter ban was lifted. The advice I had from the experts, including climatologists, was that there was the potential for some rainfall during spring. The advice I have received in the past couple of days is that no significant rainfall is predicted for this spring. In light of that, I believe it was responsible and appropriate, as the Minister for Water, with responsibility for managing that resource, to introduce a one-day-a-week sprinkler schedule during spring. A decision about the schedule during summer—it is not a ban—will be made appropriately in mid-November. As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
(1) Will the minister for water give a commitment to this house that the government will not introduce a one day a week sprinkler roster this summer? (2) If the minister will not give this commitment, will he inform the house about the full impact that a one day a week sprinkler ban will have on the nursery, turf and related industries? (3) Will the minister tell the house how many jobs will be lost from the nursery, turf and related industries should the government introduce a one day a week sprinkler roster? (4) Will the minister now accept, in light of possible extreme sprinkler rosters as proposed, that the Logue Brook trade deal and the axing of the Waterwise rebate program were irresponsible and short-sighted? Dr G.G. JACOBS replied: I thank the member for Cockburn for the question. (1)–(4) I think that most people in Western Australia, including members in this house, recognise that we are faced with some of the driest conditions in 100 years—in fact, it is the second driest period in 100 years. Since 1913 we have had the lowest runoff into our dams and surface water component. Putting that in context, this year so far the runoff into our dams has been 10 gigalitres. Members should keep that in mind when I go on to talk about Logue Brook. The run-off in an average winter is about 100 gigalitres. That puts in perspective where we are at with the surface water component. Everyone knows about the winter sprinkler bans that were in place for three months during winter from 1 June to 31 August. That had fantastic support from the people of Western Australia. We saved around five gigalitres of water. Amendments and changes to regulations have been made to allow the minister to make a discretionary ruling on schedules into the future. The winter ban was lifted. The advice I had from the experts, including climatologists, was that there was the potential for some rainfall during spring. The advice I have received in the past couple of days is that no significant rainfall is predicted for this spring. In light of that, I believe it was responsible and appropriate, as the Minister for Water, with responsibility for managing that resource, to introduce a one-day-a-week sprinkler schedule during spring. A decision about the schedule during summer—it is not a ban—will be made appropriately in mid-November. As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
(2) If the minister will not give this commitment, will he inform the house about the full impact that a one day a week sprinkler ban will have on the nursery, turf and related industries? (3) Will the minister tell the house how many jobs will be lost from the nursery, turf and related industries should the government introduce a one day a week sprinkler roster? (4) Will the minister now accept, in light of possible extreme sprinkler rosters as proposed, that the Logue Brook trade deal and the axing of the Waterwise rebate program were irresponsible and short-sighted? Dr G.G. JACOBS replied: I thank the member for Cockburn for the question. (1)–(4) I think that most people in Western Australia, including members in this house, recognise that we are faced with some of the driest conditions in 100 years—in fact, it is the second driest period in 100 years. Since 1913 we have had the lowest runoff into our dams and surface water component. Putting that in context, this year so far the runoff into our dams has been 10 gigalitres. Members should keep that in mind when I go on to talk about Logue Brook. The run-off in an average winter is about 100 gigalitres. That puts in perspective where we are at with the surface water component. Everyone knows about the winter sprinkler bans that were in place for three months during winter from 1 June to 31 August. That had fantastic support from the people of Western Australia. We saved around five gigalitres of water. Amendments and changes to regulations have been made to allow the minister to make a discretionary ruling on schedules into the future. The winter ban was lifted. The advice I had from the experts, including climatologists, was that there was the potential for some rainfall during spring. The advice I have received in the past couple of days is that no significant rainfall is predicted for this spring. In light of that, I believe it was responsible and appropriate, as the Minister for Water, with responsibility for managing that resource, to introduce a one-day-a-week sprinkler schedule during spring. A decision about the schedule during summer—it is not a ban—will be made appropriately in mid-November. As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
(3) Will the minister tell the house how many jobs will be lost from the nursery, turf and related industries should the government introduce a one day a week sprinkler roster? (4) Will the minister now accept, in light of possible extreme sprinkler rosters as proposed, that the Logue Brook trade deal and the axing of the Waterwise rebate program were irresponsible and short-sighted? Dr G.G. JACOBS replied: I thank the member for Cockburn for the question. (1)–(4) I think that most people in Western Australia, including members in this house, recognise that we are faced with some of the driest conditions in 100 years—in fact, it is the second driest period in 100 years. Since 1913 we have had the lowest runoff into our dams and surface water component. Putting that in context, this year so far the runoff into our dams has been 10 gigalitres. Members should keep that in mind when I go on to talk about Logue Brook. The run-off in an average winter is about 100 gigalitres. That puts in perspective where we are at with the surface water component. Everyone knows about the winter sprinkler bans that were in place for three months during winter from 1 June to 31 August. That had fantastic support from the people of Western Australia. We saved around five gigalitres of water. Amendments and changes to regulations have been made to allow the minister to make a discretionary ruling on schedules into the future. The winter ban was lifted. The advice I had from the experts, including climatologists, was that there was the potential for some rainfall during spring. The advice I have received in the past couple of days is that no significant rainfall is predicted for this spring. In light of that, I believe it was responsible and appropriate, as the Minister for Water, with responsibility for managing that resource, to introduce a one-day-a-week sprinkler schedule during spring. A decision about the schedule during summer—it is not a ban—will be made appropriately in mid-November. As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
(4) Will the minister now accept, in light of possible extreme sprinkler rosters as proposed, that the Logue Brook trade deal and the axing of the Waterwise rebate program were irresponsible and short-sighted? Dr G.G. JACOBS replied: I thank the member for Cockburn for the question. (1)–(4) I think that most people in Western Australia, including members in this house, recognise that we are faced with some of the driest conditions in 100 years—in fact, it is the second driest period in 100 years. Since 1913 we have had the lowest runoff into our dams and surface water component. Putting that in context, this year so far the runoff into our dams has been 10 gigalitres. Members should keep that in mind when I go on to talk about Logue Brook. The run-off in an average winter is about 100 gigalitres. That puts in perspective where we are at with the surface water component. Everyone knows about the winter sprinkler bans that were in place for three months during winter from 1 June to 31 August. That had fantastic support from the people of Western Australia. We saved around five gigalitres of water. Amendments and changes to regulations have been made to allow the minister to make a discretionary ruling on schedules into the future. The winter ban was lifted. The advice I had from the experts, including climatologists, was that there was the potential for some rainfall during spring. The advice I have received in the past couple of days is that no significant rainfall is predicted for this spring. In light of that, I believe it was responsible and appropriate, as the Minister for Water, with responsibility for managing that resource, to introduce a one-day-a-week sprinkler schedule during spring. A decision about the schedule during summer—it is not a ban—will be made appropriately in mid-November. As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
Dr G.G. JACOBS replied: I thank the member for Cockburn for the question. (1)–(4) I think that most people in Western Australia, including members in this house, recognise that we are faced with some of the driest conditions in 100 years—in fact, it is the second driest period in 100 years. Since 1913 we have had the lowest runoff into our dams and surface water component. Putting that in context, this year so far the runoff into our dams has been 10 gigalitres. Members should keep that in mind when I go on to talk about Logue Brook. The run-off in an average winter is about 100 gigalitres. That puts in perspective where we are at with the surface water component. Everyone knows about the winter sprinkler bans that were in place for three months during winter from 1 June to 31 August. That had fantastic support from the people of Western Australia. We saved around five gigalitres of water. Amendments and changes to regulations have been made to allow the minister to make a discretionary ruling on schedules into the future. The winter ban was lifted. The advice I had from the experts, including climatologists, was that there was the potential for some rainfall during spring. The advice I have received in the past couple of days is that no significant rainfall is predicted for this spring. In light of that, I believe it was responsible and appropriate, as the Minister for Water, with responsibility for managing that resource, to introduce a one-day-a-week sprinkler schedule during spring. A decision about the schedule during summer—it is not a ban—will be made appropriately in mid-November. As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
I thank the member for Cockburn for the question. (1)–(4) I think that most people in Western Australia, including members in this house, recognise that we are faced with some of the driest conditions in 100 years—in fact, it is the second driest period in 100 years. Since 1913 we have had the lowest runoff into our dams and surface water component. Putting that in context, this year so far the runoff into our dams has been 10 gigalitres. Members should keep that in mind when I go on to talk about Logue Brook. The run-off in an average winter is about 100 gigalitres. That puts in perspective where we are at with the surface water component. Everyone knows about the winter sprinkler bans that were in place for three months during winter from 1 June to 31 August. That had fantastic support from the people of Western Australia. We saved around five gigalitres of water. Amendments and changes to regulations have been made to allow the minister to make a discretionary ruling on schedules into the future. The winter ban was lifted. The advice I had from the experts, including climatologists, was that there was the potential for some rainfall during spring. The advice I have received in the past couple of days is that no significant rainfall is predicted for this spring. In light of that, I believe it was responsible and appropriate, as the Minister for Water, with responsibility for managing that resource, to introduce a one-day-a-week sprinkler schedule during spring. A decision about the schedule during summer—it is not a ban—will be made appropriately in mid-November. As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
(1)–(4) I think that most people in Western Australia, including members in this house, recognise that we are faced with some of the driest conditions in 100 years—in fact, it is the second driest period in 100 years. Since 1913 we have had the lowest runoff into our dams and surface water component. Putting that in context, this year so far the runoff into our dams has been 10 gigalitres. Members should keep that in mind when I go on to talk about Logue Brook. The run-off in an average winter is about 100 gigalitres. That puts in perspective where we are at with the surface water component. Everyone knows about the winter sprinkler bans that were in place for three months during winter from 1 June to 31 August. That had fantastic support from the people of Western Australia. We saved around five gigalitres of water. Amendments and changes to regulations have been made to allow the minister to make a discretionary ruling on schedules into the future. The winter ban was lifted. The advice I had from the experts, including climatologists, was that there was the potential for some rainfall during spring. The advice I have received in the past couple of days is that no significant rainfall is predicted for this spring. In light of that, I believe it was responsible and appropriate, as the Minister for Water, with responsibility for managing that resource, to introduce a one-day-a-week sprinkler schedule during spring. A decision about the schedule during summer—it is not a ban—will be made appropriately in mid-November. As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
(1) Will the minister for water give a commitment to this house that the government will not introduce a one day a week sprinkler roster this summer? (2) If the minister will not give this commitment, will he inform the house about the full impact that a one day a week sprinkler ban will have on the nursery, turf and related industries? (3) Will the minister tell the house how many jobs will be lost from the nursery, turf and related industries should the government introduce a one day a week sprinkler roster? (4) Will the minister now accept, in light of possible extreme sprinkler rosters as proposed, that the Logue Brook trade deal and the axing of the Waterwise rebate program were irresponsible and short-sighted? Dr G.G. JACOBS replied: I thank the member for Cockburn for the question. (1)–(4) I think that most people in Western Australia, including members in this house, recognise that we are faced with some of the driest conditions in 100 years—in fact, it is the second driest period in 100 years. Since 1913 we have had the lowest runoff into our dams and surface water component. Putting that in context, this year so far the runoff into our dams has been 10 gigalitres. Members should keep that in mind when I go on to talk about Logue Brook. The run-off in an average winter is about 100 gigalitres. That puts in perspective where we are at with the surface water component. Everyone knows about the winter sprinkler bans that were in place for three months during winter from 1 June to 31 August. That had fantastic support from the people of Western Australia. We saved around five gigalitres of water. Amendments and changes to regulations have been made to allow the minister to make a discretionary ruling on schedules into the future. The winter ban was lifted. The advice I had from the experts, including climatologists, was that there was the potential for some rainfall during spring. The advice I have received in the past couple of days is that no significant rainfall is predicted for this spring. In light of that, I believe it was responsible and appropriate, as the Minister for Water, with responsibility for managing that resource, to introduce a one-day-a-week sprinkler schedule during spring. A decision about the schedule during summer—it is not a ban—will be made appropriately in mid-November. As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
(2) If the minister will not give this commitment, will he inform the house about the full impact that a one day a week sprinkler ban will have on the nursery, turf and related industries? (3) Will the minister tell the house how many jobs will be lost from the nursery, turf and related industries should the government introduce a one day a week sprinkler roster? (4) Will the minister now accept, in light of possible extreme sprinkler rosters as proposed, that the Logue Brook trade deal and the axing of the Waterwise rebate program were irresponsible and short-sighted? Dr G.G. JACOBS replied: I thank the member for Cockburn for the question. (1)–(4) I think that most people in Western Australia, including members in this house, recognise that we are faced with some of the driest conditions in 100 years—in fact, it is the second driest period in 100 years. Since 1913 we have had the lowest runoff into our dams and surface water component. Putting that in context, this year so far the runoff into our dams has been 10 gigalitres. Members should keep that in mind when I go on to talk about Logue Brook. The run-off in an average winter is about 100 gigalitres. That puts in perspective where we are at with the surface water component. Everyone knows about the winter sprinkler bans that were in place for three months during winter from 1 June to 31 August. That had fantastic support from the people of Western Australia. We saved around five gigalitres of water. Amendments and changes to regulations have been made to allow the minister to make a discretionary ruling on schedules into the future. The winter ban was lifted. The advice I had from the experts, including climatologists, was that there was the potential for some rainfall during spring. The advice I have received in the past couple of days is that no significant rainfall is predicted for this spring. In light of that, I believe it was responsible and appropriate, as the Minister for Water, with responsibility for managing that resource, to introduce a one-day-a-week sprinkler schedule during spring. A decision about the schedule during summer—it is not a ban—will be made appropriately in mid-November. As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
(3) Will the minister tell the house how many jobs will be lost from the nursery, turf and related industries should the government introduce a one day a week sprinkler roster? (4) Will the minister now accept, in light of possible extreme sprinkler rosters as proposed, that the Logue Brook trade deal and the axing of the Waterwise rebate program were irresponsible and short-sighted? Dr G.G. JACOBS replied: I thank the member for Cockburn for the question. (1)–(4) I think that most people in Western Australia, including members in this house, recognise that we are faced with some of the driest conditions in 100 years—in fact, it is the second driest period in 100 years. Since 1913 we have had the lowest runoff into our dams and surface water component. Putting that in context, this year so far the runoff into our dams has been 10 gigalitres. Members should keep that in mind when I go on to talk about Logue Brook. The run-off in an average winter is about 100 gigalitres. That puts in perspective where we are at with the surface water component. Everyone knows about the winter sprinkler bans that were in place for three months during winter from 1 June to 31 August. That had fantastic support from the people of Western Australia. We saved around five gigalitres of water. Amendments and changes to regulations have been made to allow the minister to make a discretionary ruling on schedules into the future. The winter ban was lifted. The advice I had from the experts, including climatologists, was that there was the potential for some rainfall during spring. The advice I have received in the past couple of days is that no significant rainfall is predicted for this spring. In light of that, I believe it was responsible and appropriate, as the Minister for Water, with responsibility for managing that resource, to introduce a one-day-a-week sprinkler schedule during spring. A decision about the schedule during summer—it is not a ban—will be made appropriately in mid-November. As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
(4) Will the minister now accept, in light of possible extreme sprinkler rosters as proposed, that the Logue Brook trade deal and the axing of the Waterwise rebate program were irresponsible and short-sighted? Dr G.G. JACOBS replied: I thank the member for Cockburn for the question. (1)–(4) I think that most people in Western Australia, including members in this house, recognise that we are faced with some of the driest conditions in 100 years—in fact, it is the second driest period in 100 years. Since 1913 we have had the lowest runoff into our dams and surface water component. Putting that in context, this year so far the runoff into our dams has been 10 gigalitres. Members should keep that in mind when I go on to talk about Logue Brook. The run-off in an average winter is about 100 gigalitres. That puts in perspective where we are at with the surface water component. Everyone knows about the winter sprinkler bans that were in place for three months during winter from 1 June to 31 August. That had fantastic support from the people of Western Australia. We saved around five gigalitres of water. Amendments and changes to regulations have been made to allow the minister to make a discretionary ruling on schedules into the future. The winter ban was lifted. The advice I had from the experts, including climatologists, was that there was the potential for some rainfall during spring. The advice I have received in the past couple of days is that no significant rainfall is predicted for this spring. In light of that, I believe it was responsible and appropriate, as the Minister for Water, with responsibility for managing that resource, to introduce a one-day-a-week sprinkler schedule during spring. A decision about the schedule during summer—it is not a ban—will be made appropriately in mid-November. As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
Dr G.G. JACOBS replied: I thank the member for Cockburn for the question. (1)–(4) I think that most people in Western Australia, including members in this house, recognise that we are faced with some of the driest conditions in 100 years—in fact, it is the second driest period in 100 years. Since 1913 we have had the lowest runoff into our dams and surface water component. Putting that in context, this year so far the runoff into our dams has been 10 gigalitres. Members should keep that in mind when I go on to talk about Logue Brook. The run-off in an average winter is about 100 gigalitres. That puts in perspective where we are at with the surface water component. Everyone knows about the winter sprinkler bans that were in place for three months during winter from 1 June to 31 August. That had fantastic support from the people of Western Australia. We saved around five gigalitres of water. Amendments and changes to regulations have been made to allow the minister to make a discretionary ruling on schedules into the future. The winter ban was lifted. The advice I had from the experts, including climatologists, was that there was the potential for some rainfall during spring. The advice I have received in the past couple of days is that no significant rainfall is predicted for this spring. In light of that, I believe it was responsible and appropriate, as the Minister for Water, with responsibility for managing that resource, to introduce a one-day-a-week sprinkler schedule during spring. A decision about the schedule during summer—it is not a ban—will be made appropriately in mid-November. As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
I thank the member for Cockburn for the question. (1)–(4) I think that most people in Western Australia, including members in this house, recognise that we are faced with some of the driest conditions in 100 years—in fact, it is the second driest period in 100 years. Since 1913 we have had the lowest runoff into our dams and surface water component. Putting that in context, this year so far the runoff into our dams has been 10 gigalitres. Members should keep that in mind when I go on to talk about Logue Brook. The run-off in an average winter is about 100 gigalitres. That puts in perspective where we are at with the surface water component. Everyone knows about the winter sprinkler bans that were in place for three months during winter from 1 June to 31 August. That had fantastic support from the people of Western Australia. We saved around five gigalitres of water. Amendments and changes to regulations have been made to allow the minister to make a discretionary ruling on schedules into the future. The winter ban was lifted. The advice I had from the experts, including climatologists, was that there was the potential for some rainfall during spring. The advice I have received in the past couple of days is that no significant rainfall is predicted for this spring. In light of that, I believe it was responsible and appropriate, as the Minister for Water, with responsibility for managing that resource, to introduce a one-day-a-week sprinkler schedule during spring. A decision about the schedule during summer—it is not a ban—will be made appropriately in mid-November. As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
(1)–(4) I think that most people in Western Australia, including members in this house, recognise that we are faced with some of the driest conditions in 100 years—in fact, it is the second driest period in 100 years. Since 1913 we have had the lowest runoff into our dams and surface water component. Putting that in context, this year so far the runoff into our dams has been 10 gigalitres. Members should keep that in mind when I go on to talk about Logue Brook. The run-off in an average winter is about 100 gigalitres. That puts in perspective where we are at with the surface water component. Everyone knows about the winter sprinkler bans that were in place for three months during winter from 1 June to 31 August. That had fantastic support from the people of Western Australia. We saved around five gigalitres of water. Amendments and changes to regulations have been made to allow the minister to make a discretionary ruling on schedules into the future. The winter ban was lifted. The advice I had from the experts, including climatologists, was that there was the potential for some rainfall during spring. The advice I have received in the past couple of days is that no significant rainfall is predicted for this spring. In light of that, I believe it was responsible and appropriate, as the Minister for Water, with responsibility for managing that resource, to introduce a one-day-a-week sprinkler schedule during spring. A decision about the schedule during summer—it is not a ban—will be made appropriately in mid-November. As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
As to the issue of Logue Brook Dam, we made an election commitment to open Logue Brook Dam. The shadow Minister for Water alleged that we gave up five gigalitres of water. I suggest that the member should go and look at the water level in Logue Brook Dam. As the member for Cockburn’s esteemed leader said when the Labor Party was in government, there was a significant question about rainfall. The member has criticised me over the issue of climate change. As Minister for Water, I recognise that the climate is changing. It is predicted that by 2030 there will be significant reductions in the amount of surface water, which we get when it rains and the water runs along the ground into our dams. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation sustainability yield prediction is that by 2030 there will be a 25 per cent reduction in stream flows. The opposition’s dependence on Logue Brook Dam is ill-founded. On top of that, there has been a $60 million asset investment to bring the water from Logue Brook Dam into the integrated water scheme. Logue Brook Dam is less than 40 per cent full. We are faced with a drying scenario of the type that the member for Cockburn often criticised me for because I did not believe in climate change. The government has a responsibility, and as Minister for Water Resources I have a responsibility, to manage this resource. I believe that the people of Western Australia understand the message and that this is not the only thing we have done to conserve water. There are many things we can do. I commend the member for Balcatta, who is not here today. The second desalination plan was part of the plan to mitigate the impact of the predicted decrease in the amount of rainfall we will receive.
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