People have been giving a simple message up and down the Roper: no more water out.
But the Lawler government has just announced another shocking plan to allow thirsty industries to take billions of litres of water from the Territory’s rivers – this time from the underground aquifer system that sustains the Roper River and iconic springs of Elsey National Park, Rainbow and Bitter Springs.
In the Mataranka and Larrimah areas, the government are proposing to allocate billions of litres of additional water from an already stressed system.
People are already seeing the effects of water extraction at Mataranka and across the Territory. The substantial increase proposed by the government could impact water supplies to communities including Ngukurr, and our wetlands, billabongs and cultural places. In a worst case scenario, the aquifer could run in the opposite direction, effectively stopping dry season flows to the Roper River.
But there’s still time to avoid the fate of the Murray Darling Basin for our rivers. By listening to water scientists and communities, the government can protect our rivers by stopping any additional water extraction from the Roper River catchment.
Will you email the Water Minister, Kate Worden, and the Water Resources Department to stop these plans being finalised?