The NSW Government plans to push through dam projects worth more than $1 billion without ever publicly releasing the full cost-benefit analysis.
“The government in its response to the NSW Upper House dams inquiry says it will not release the Final Business Cases for the controversial Dungowan dam or the Mole River dam proposals,” Nature Conservation Council Acting Chief Executive Jacqui Mumford said.
“Instead, the public will have to make do with any excerpts from the business cases that end up in the Environmental Impact Assessments for these projects. [1]
“The government is treating the public like mushrooms — keeping them in the dark and feeding them the bare minimum. It’s an appalling process and a breach of public trust.
“If these projects go ahead, they will cost taxpayers billions. There must be complete transparency about the costs and benefits that they will provide.
“We call on the Perrottet government to be up front and open with the people of NSW by committing to release the full business case for all major water projects in the planning pipeline before a final decision is made.”
REFERENCES
[1] NSW Government Response: Inquiry into the rationale for, and impacts of, new dams and other water infrastructure in NSW, January 2022. Re Dungown dam see page 3: “While the Final Business Case will not be made publicly available, the EIS (which contains elements of the Final Business Case) will be publicly exhibited in 2022, and the community will have the chance to make submissions on the project and the proposed strategies to avoid, minimise and mitigate the impacts.” Re Mole River dam see p8: “While the Final Business will not be made public, the EIS (which contains elements of the Final Business Case) will be publicly exhibited and available for comment.”