Pipeline decision looming

By Melissa Meehan
TENSIONS are rife as farmers await a formal decision on the proposed Sugarloaf Pipeline route.
Federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett is expected to make the decision this week concerning the route, allowing work to begin on the 75-kilometre pipeline which will pump water from country Victoria to Melbourne.
Calls by anti pipeline group Plug the Pipe for Mr Garrett to further research the impact of water taken out of the Murray Darling Basin, has prompted the Department of Environment, Heritage, Water and the Arts to call for comment on whether studies should be widened.
If widened, the State Government may be forced to back up its claims the Melbourne water could be delivered by savings from the $2 billion modernisation of the food bowl and would not impact the environment.
Spokeswoman Jan Beer said any assessment that did not look at the impact on the Goulburn River system would be incomplete.
Ms Beer urged them to adhere to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act by looking at the impact downstream.
“There are a lot of things that they have just not taken into account,” said Ms Beer.
Last week McEwen MP Fran Bailey asked the Senate regional and rural affairs committee to make an urgent inspection of the Goulburn River system before Mr Garrett announced his decision.
“Local landholders and farmers have given Mr Garrett scientific and social information not considered by Premier John Brumby when stampeding around our towns to impose construction of a pipeline to water Melbourne’s lawns and wash cars,” Ms Bailey said.
“I have written to Senator Glenn Sterle, chairman of the Senate committee, requesting an urgent visit to regional Victoria to gain additional information to convince Mr Garrett to reject the Brumby government’s grab on our vital, but limited, water supplies.”
Mr Garrett is expected to announce his decision this week.