NATIONAL WATER INITIATIVE

摘要

This is the text of a communique issued on 29 August this year, by the Council of Australian Governments: The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) agreed that there is a pressing need to refresh its 1994 water reform agenda to increase the productivity and efficiency of water use, sustain rural and urban communities, and to ensure the health of river and groundwater systems. Investment in new, more efficient, production systems is being hampered by uncertainty over the long-term access to water in some areas. Fully functioning water markets can help to ensure that investment is properly targeted and water is put to higher value and more efficient uses. However, current arrangements are preventing those markets from delivering their full potential. Furthermore, there are significant concerns over the pace of securing adequate environmental flows and adaptive management arrangements to ensure ecosystem health in our river systems.