❓ Mr. Kelly questions the Minister for Water regarding the state's water security in light of projected demand increases and budget decisions. The Minister defends the government's planning efforts and investments in water resources.
AnsweredQoN 383Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
''WATER FOR GROWTH:
URBAN'' WATER OUTLOOK 2050 — DROUGHTPROOFING
383. Mr D.J. KELLY to the Minister for
Water:
I refer to the report the minister released
yesterday on WA's urban water needs out to 2050 and specifically that
WA's urban water demand will grow by up to 80 per cent, or 450 gigalitres,
by 2050 despite improvements in water efficiency.
(1) Does the
minister now admit that she and the Treasurer were wrong to claim that they had
droughtproofed Perth?
(2) Given the
serious water supply challenges that face WA, how does the minister justify
taking over $1 billion from the Water Corporation's capital budget?
(3) Is the
minister not jeopardising WA's future water supplies by taking record
net payments from the Water Corporation to bolster the state's worst
budget?
URBAN'' WATER OUTLOOK 2050 — DROUGHTPROOFING
383. Mr D.J. KELLY to the Minister for
Water:
I refer to the report the minister released
yesterday on WA's urban water needs out to 2050 and specifically that
WA's urban water demand will grow by up to 80 per cent, or 450 gigalitres,
by 2050 despite improvements in water efficiency.
(1) Does the
minister now admit that she and the Treasurer were wrong to claim that they had
droughtproofed Perth?
(2) Given the
serious water supply challenges that face WA, how does the minister justify
taking over $1 billion from the Water Corporation's capital budget?
(3) Is the
minister not jeopardising WA's future water supplies by taking record
net payments from the Water Corporation to bolster the state's worst
budget?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(3)
It perplexes me a little bit that the member, who is the shadow Minister for
Water, thinks that we are not going to continue to plan for the growth of this
state and the metropolitan area. That is exactly what the document was about.
The document is about exactly what the Department of Water and good government
are supposed to do, which is to continue to make assumptions about growth in
this state and plan for the future. That is exactly right.
Mr D.J. Kelly interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Bassendean, I call you to order for the second time.
Ms M.J. DAVIES :
For members who are not familiar with the report, it projects future water
demand and supply by combining data related to current water use, water
resources, economic growth and population forecasts. That is exactly what the
people of Western Australia expect government to be doing. It lays out exactly
where we think we need to be in making sure that we have appropriate water
resources that are safe and secure for the future growth of this state. I absolutely
think that is what the Department of Water is supposed to do. I do not
understand why the member is concerned about us doing that kind of work. It
does not make any sense to me. It is responsible planning to ensure that we
make the appropriate investments as this state continues to grow to ensure that
we can cater for economic and population growth, as well as managing the very
challenging climate that we have here in this state.
It perplexes me a little bit that the member, who is the shadow Minister for
Water, thinks that we are not going to continue to plan for the growth of this
state and the metropolitan area. That is exactly what the document was about.
The document is about exactly what the Department of Water and good government
are supposed to do, which is to continue to make assumptions about growth in
this state and plan for the future. That is exactly right.
Mr D.J. Kelly interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Bassendean, I call you to order for the second time.
Ms M.J. DAVIES :
For members who are not familiar with the report, it projects future water
demand and supply by combining data related to current water use, water
resources, economic growth and population forecasts. That is exactly what the
people of Western Australia expect government to be doing. It lays out exactly
where we think we need to be in making sure that we have appropriate water
resources that are safe and secure for the future growth of this state. I absolutely
think that is what the Department of Water is supposed to do. I do not
understand why the member is concerned about us doing that kind of work. It
does not make any sense to me. It is responsible planning to ensure that we
make the appropriate investments as this state continues to grow to ensure that
we can cater for economic and population growth, as well as managing the very
challenging climate that we have here in this state.
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