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On 5 March the Snowy Hydro Corporatisation Amendment (Snowy Advisory Committee) Bill 2013 passed the NSW Legislative Assembly. It establishes a new Snowy Advisory Committee but dissolves the previous Snowy Scientific Committee which was first established by the previous Labor government in 2008.

The committee advises on the timing and patterns of the annual release of environmental water recovered under the Snowy water licence.

Minister for Primary Industries, Katrina Hodgkinson said members of the new committee will include NSW and Victorian Government specialists, four local community representatives, one representative from an environmental organisation, two Aboriginal representatives and a representative from Snowy Hydro Limited.

It seems the new committee will be comprised of non-scientists. The Bill for the new committee specifies that there will be representatives of Aboriginal groups, environmental and community interest groups, etc., but does not require anyone with expertise in hydrology, water resource management, aquatic science or fisheries management. Local groups who have lobbied for the restoration of the Snowy River for many years have apparently not been approached about representation on the committee.

Both Labor and the current Coalition government effectively abandoned the original Scientific Committee by not reappointing new members, which rendered it unable to supply its annual State of the Catchment Reports as required by the legislation. That committee was comprised of scientific specialists who were empowered to consult, network and seek further independent advise as they felt necessary.

There may well be room for an additional Advisory Committee but there is also a place for a properly appointed and properly funded Scientific Committee. The cost of running that small committee could easily be afforded by the three governments that share in the profits from Snowy Hydro, and the benefits of even partly restoring that once magnificent river would be priceless.

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