The Australian Greens have called on the Prime Minister Scott Morrison to visit the Lower Darling and see the environmental disaster for himself following another mass fish kill in Menindee.
“Where the bloody hell is the Prime Minister? Why hasn’t he or his Water Minister been to the River to see the environmental crisis at all in the last month?,” Greens environment and water spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said.
“Thousands more fish have died and yet not one member of the Prime Minister’s team has bothered to see the ecological disaster unfolding on the River themselves. It’s time Scott Morrison stopped pretending nothing is wrong and get himself to Menindee. He needs to explain how his Government’s mismanagement of the River could let this happen.
“It’s almost a month on since the last mass fish kill in Menindee and the Water Minister David Littleproud has been missing in action. It’s clear he’s not up to the job.
“People are sick of seeing fish die right before their eyes and yet the Government is doing nothing.
“The Morrison Government has done everything to cover-up their mismanagement of the Murray Darling Basin. Last week they tried to bury the damning assessment by the Productivity Commission, which said in no uncertain terms that the environment has been undermined and forgotten under the Murray Darling Basin Plan.
“Hiding reports, covering up mismanagement and turning a blind-eye to corruption is inexcusable. It is clear that the Liberal National Parties are looking after their greedy corporate mates that are taking and harvesting water at the expense of river communities, small farmers and ultimately, the environment.
“We need a Royal Commission into the Murray Darling Basin. We’ve heard of water theft, meter tampering, corruption, fraud and water too toxic to drink or bathe in – and now a third fish kill is unfolding in the Lower Darling.
“It’s time for the Government to take some real action to set this right. We need more environmental flows, an embargo on corporate cotton harvesting all the water it can, and a Royal Commission.
“Our river system is our nation’s food bowl and it is dying. The time to hide behind reports and hope it will all sort itself out is over. This environmental emergency must be remedied.”
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