Public input vital to new Water and Rivers Commission

January 30, 1996

The public of Western Australia will always have a voice in water protection and planning in this State, Environment Minister Peter Foss said today.

Officially launching the new Water and Rivers Commission today, Mr Foss said community participation had never been in doubt.

The Minister said the commission would promote community involvement programs wherever and whenever appropriate and it would always encourage the public to comment.

The commission was one of three new organisations formed on January 1 following the restructure of the State's water industry.

It was formed by merging the functions of the Water Resources Division of the old Western Australian Water Authority, the Waterways Commission, WA Water Resources Council and the hydrogeology and groundwater resources branch of the Department of Minerals and Energy.

Its role was to manage the State's surface water and groundwater resources, including rivers and estuaries.

It would focus on protecting environmental values and allocating water for a wide range of uses to support State development in a sustainable manner.

Mr Foss said the members of the commission's board, headed by chairman Ian Burston, were people with distinguished careers in business and in public service.

They had the environmental credentials and experience needed to do the job properly.

The Minister said sound water resource management was critical to WA's future and there would be big challenges ahead for all sectors of the water industry and the community.

Key areas which had to be addressed included the economic and environmental costs of obtaining more water and the costs of keeping the resources clean and available for current users and future generations.

"A balance has to be found where assurance of supply and quality equates with the community's ability and willingness to pay," Mr Foss said.

"The Water and Rivers Commission will ensure that environmental, cultural, economic, and social interests are given due weight in resource management decisions."

The Water and Rivers Commission will also ensure that these wide community concerns are not overwhelmed by the water services responsibilities of the new Water Corporation.

Mr Foss said there were still more water reforms planned.

A major area of reform was WA's water law, which was spread among several archaic acts.

Mr Foss said consolidation and change were required to ensure the legislative arrangements as they applied to the restructured water industry were more easily understood and aligned to modern water management needs.

Media contact: Peter Harris 321 2222 / 222 9595