Zoe Kenny
The Snowy River Hydroelectric Scheme (SRHS) is once again in the spotlight following Victorian Premier Steve Bracks' announcement that his government will follow the example of the NSW and federal governments in selling off its share of the scheme.
The SRHS has long been touted as an Australian icon for its engineering achievements and "nation-building" role. More than 100,000 European migrants were employed to build the project, which began in 1949 and was completed 25 years later.
The scheme diverted the Snowy River from its origins in the Snowy Mountains through 225 kilometres of underground pipes, tunnels and aqueducts into 16 artificial dams. It provided water for inland farming in the Murray-Darling River Basin and generated electricity, providing an estimated 5-10% of the national supply.
River disaster
However, the scheme has had a disastrous impact on the Snowy River. It provides for maintaining just 1% of the original water flow in the Snowy River, a reduction that has virtually destroyed one of Australia's greatest rivers.
The Snowy River Alliance (SRA), formed in the early 1990s to campaign for the regeneration of the river, says the SRHS "turned the Snowy River, a beautiful mountain river, into a series of stagnating pools and sent the river's ecology into a state of collapse".
Many of the river's environmental, social, cultural and economic values have been lost, and the mostly empty river bed is now filled with silt, willows and blackberries that choke the native trees. Fish stocks have been depleted, which has affected other native animals, such as platypi.
The two towns along the river, Dalgety and Orbost, have suffered economically. Dalgety used to attract people from around Australia to fish, but no longer. Orbost farming communities have been badly affected by a lack of irrigation water and saltwater leeching into the land. A potential tourist haven for water activities was ruined with the river's demise.
The people of the Snowy River are deeply resentful about the theft of their river. In October 2004, the SRA published a report titled The Snowy River Alliance Story, which includes interviews with people who have lived on the Snowy their whole lives.
Sheila Roberson, who was born in 1927 and lived in Dalgety most of her life, said: "The Snowy River was so deep. In the big pools you couldn't see the bottom ... Fishermen used to come from all over the country and a lot of them. It was not choked like it is now ... It was absolutely picturesque. It's criminal to see it in the state it is today."
In 1995, the SRA commissioned a group of scientists to assess the health of the river and make recommendations to restore it. The scientists concluded that the minimum requirement would be to restore 28% of the river's previous flow. However, the cost of modifying the Jindabyne dam wall to increase the water flow and the prospect of losing some electricity revenue caused the governments to drag their feet.
Privatisation
The SRA seemed to make a breakthrough in 1999 when a committed campaigner for the Snowy River, independent Craig Ingram, won the seat of East Gippsland in the Victorian state election. Ingram and two other independents held the balance of power in the state parliament, and Ingram chose to support the ALP over the Liberals on the basis of the former's stated commitment to the Snowy River.
The Bracks Labor government soon announced a 10-year, $300 million plan to restore 21% of the flow of the Snowy River, with a view to achieving 28% flow in the longer term. In late 2002, a public ceremony celebrated the first results when a small amount of water was allowed to flow back down the Snowy.
Four years later, the people's high hopes look likely to be dashed by a NSW Labor government push for the full privatisation of the SRHS.
NSW would be the biggest benefactor of the sale, with a 58% share that would raise an estimated $1.74 billion. Victoria, with a 29% share, would gain about $870 million and the federal government, with a 13% share, would raise $390 million. The governments hope to finalise the sale by the end of June.
A privatised SRHS could generate huge profits for its owners. Further, the February 18 Australian reported that the NSW government would be required to pay "hundreds of millions of dollars" in compensation to the SRHS owners for any water released beyond 21%. This is because the SRHS is the electricity generator best able to respond to peak demand by releasing more water through the dam turbines.
The proposed sell-off has raised fears that the community will lose any influence over the operation of the scheme; however, the SRA says it will continue to campaign to save the river.
From Green Left Weekly, March 29, 2006.
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