Confusing Policy and Catastrophe: Buybacks and Drought in the Murray–Darling Basin

Economic Papers

Volumn 30, Issue 3, 2011, Pages 289-295

  Wittwer, Glyn ^a  

^a MONASH UNIVERSITY   (Australia)

Author keywords

C68; economic modelling; environmental flows; Q25; Q28; regional impacts

Indexed keywords

EID: 84879559910     PISSN: 08120439     EISSN: 17593441     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1111/j.1759-3441.2011.00122.x     Document Type: Article

References (25)

1. Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ABARE) (2009), Australian Commodity Statistics 2009. ABARE, Canberra.
2. Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics – Bureau of Rural Sciences (ABARE–BRS) (2010), Environmentally Sustainable Diversion Limits in the Murray–Darling Basin: Socioeconomic Analysis. ABARE–BRS client report for the Murray–Darling Basin Authority, October. ABARE–BRS, Canberra.
3. Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2008), Water and the Murray Darling Basin: A Statistical Profile, 2000–01 to 2005–06. Catalogue 4610.0.55.007.
4. Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2009a), Experimental Estimates of the Gross Value of Irrigated Agricultural Production, 2000–01 to 2006–07. Catalogue 4610.0.55.008.
5. Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2009b), Water Use on Australian Farms, 2007–08. Catalogue 4618.0.
6. Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2010), Experimental Estimates of the Gross Value of Irrigated Agricultural Production, 2000–01 – 2008–09. Catalogue 4610.0.55.008.
7. Australian Government (2007), A National Plan for Water Security. Available at: http://www.nalwt.gov.au/files/national_plan_for_water_security.pdf.
8. Briscoe, J. (2011), Submission to The Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs of the Senate, 24 February. Available at: http://www.aph.gov.au/Senate/committee/legcon_ctte/provisionswateract2007/submissions.htm.
9. Council of Australian Governments (COAG) (1994), Water Reform Framework. Available at: http://www.environment.gov.au/water/publications/action/pubs/policyframework.pdf.
10. Dixon, P., Rimmer, M. and Wittwer, G. (2011), ‘Saving the Southern Murray-Darling Basin: the Economic Effects of a Buyback of Irrigation Water’, Economic Record, 87 (276), 153–68.
11. Frontier Economics (2009), Volumetric Restrictions on Water Entitlement Trade. A report prepared for the ACCC, August. Frontier Economics, Melbourne. Available at: http://www.accc.gov.au/content/item.phtml?itemId=891946&nodeId=1af536ef67d202bc227c59d94dcf1295&fn=Frontier%20Economics%20-%20Volumetric%20restrictions%20on%20entitlement%20trade.pdf.
12. Griffith, M. (2010), ‘Culling Dairy Cows as a Response to Drought in Northern Victoria’, Centre of Policy Studies/IMPACT Centre Working Papers G-200, Monash University, Melbourne.
13. Kenny, M. (2010), ‘Gillard to Commit to River Murray Water Buy-back’, The Advertiser, 10 August. Available at: http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/gillard-to-commit-to-river-murray-water-buy-back/story-e6frea6u-1225903165042.
14. Ker, P. (2008), ‘Money Needed to Buy Back Allocations, Experts Say’, The Age, 28 March. Available at: http://www.theage.com.au/news/environment/money-needed-to-buy-back-allocations-experts-say/2008/03/27/1206207302403.html.
15. Roocke, N. and Goode, M. (2010), ‘Scientists and Farmers Frustrated about Murray-Darling Plan’, 1 December. Available at: http://www.abc.net.au/rural/news/content/201012/s3081348.htm.
16. Sunrice (2010), ‘SunRice Announces Deniliquin Mill Will Reopen in 2011’, Media Release, 1 November. Available at: http://www.sunrice.com.au/uploads/MR_-_Deniliquin_Mill_to_Re-open.pdf.
17. Victorian Farmers Federation (2008), ‘Victorian Farmers United Against Early Cap Review’, 2 July. Available at: http://www.vff.org.au/media_centre/detail.php?id=570&order=444.
18. Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists (2002), Blueprint for a Living Continent. Available at: http://www.wwf.org.au/publications/blueprint_for_a_living_contintent/.
19. Wittwer, G. (2010), The Regional Economic Impacts of Sustainable Diversion Limits. Report prepared for the Murray-Darling Basin Authority, November.
20. Wittwer, G. (2011), ‘Water Purchases to Save the Murray-Darling Basin’, Paper presented at the 55th Annual Conference Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, 8–11 February, Melbourne.
21. ABARE–BRS(2010) did not include compensation payments. Wittwer(2010) estimated 500 jobs lost with compensation or 800 jobs lost without compensation
22. See http://www.bom.gov.au/jsp/awap/rain/archive.jsp?colour=colour&map=decile&year=2008&month=12&period=36month&area=nat
23. In TERM-H2O, the dynamic CGE model used to estimate drought impacts, irrigated land uses both rainfall and irrigation water. A shortfall in rainfall of 100 mm requires an additional megalitre of water per hectare of irrigation water to compensate
24. Government initiatives that established irrigation schemes did not involve market signals. Other objectives were at play, including soldier settlement schemes after both of the world wars. There is an almost universal tendency among irrigation schemes towards over-allocation in the absence of market signals
25. Updated volumes were downloaded from http://www.environment.gov.au/water/policy-programs/entitlement-purchasing/2008-09.html