ABARES has issued 'The economic and social effects of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan: recent research and steps'.

 

The paper is based on analyses undertaken by ABARES for the Murray-Darling Basin Authority and the Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities examining the effect of the new sustainable diversion limits on irrigated agriculture and economic activity in the Basin, and the extent to which these effects may be offset by other government policies, such as the Water for the Future program.

 

The paper concludes by looking at some options for reducing the cost of achieving environmental objectives.

 

The paper is available here.