Responding to the Chair of the Murray Darling Basin Authority's comments at the launch of the Roadmap for the 2026 Basin Plan Review, Senator for South Australia Sarah Hanson-Young said:
"Greed and fossil fuel pollution is killing our Murray River.
"The Chair of the MDBA has warned that climate will have a significant impact on water availability across the Murray-Darling Basin. South Australian communities and ecosystems downstream, as always, will bear the brunt of this.
"This is not news for South Australians, who have long been fighting against upstream greed to ensure our communities and ecosystems receive the water they need to survive.
"The River is suffering now. Unveiling a Roadmap to a 2026 Review is all well and good, but how is the Albanese Government going to deliver on the commitments of the current plan? South Australians are still waiting for the promised 450GL to be delivered on time and in full.
"Issuing a climate warning for the Murray in Narrabri, where the Albanese Government and big polluters are advancing new coal and gas, is baffling. The climate crisis is being made worse every time the fossil fuel industry gets a new mine.
"The warning is simple - if we are to ensure the survival of Australia's most important river system we must stop over-extraction and stop making the climate crisis worse."
