River Protection

Over 100 concerned locals turned up on two chilly Brisbane evenings last week to hear what the Queensland Government has planned for the unique rivers of Western Queensland’s Channel Country and why the people who live and work out there are so concerned.

The Queensland Government is planning to overturn current Wild River protections in the Channel Country and let mining, coal seam gas and irrigation destroy these important Western Queensland Rivers.

Just over a decade ago, clearing of native bushland in Queensland was taking place at a truly disturbing rate but we helped put an end to it – now, thanks to the Newman State Government, we're facing a return to the days of indiscriminate clearing.

Diane Bell is a renowned academic and a member of the Wilderness Society's South Australian Committee of Management. Here, she offers her analysis of the Murray Darling Basin Plan to date.