Barnaby Joyce and the National Party have unleashed an assault on the Murray River, the environment and South Australia, the Greens say.

Senator for SA and Greens Spokesperson for Water Sarah Hanson-Young said it would be a terrible step to tear up the Murray-Darling Basin Plan and cut water to the environment throughout the Basin.

Greens Senator for South Australia and Spokesperson for Water and the Environment Senator Sarah Hanson-Young responded to Minister Littleproud’s announcement today relating to the Murray-Darling Basin:

“Any review of the Murray-Darling Basin must be based on science, not politics.

“The review into the management of the Murray-Darling Basin must investigate the corporate greed and corruption that has eroded the effectiveness and delivery of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.

The Morrison Government is making things up as they go along, while the Murray-Darling is in deeper and deeper crisis and communities and the environment are suffering, the Greens say.

Greens Senator for South Australia and Spokesperson for the Environment and Water Sarah Hanson-Young said the Murray-Darling Basin Plan debate is not about farmers versus the environment, it’s big corporates versus everyone else.

The Greens have backed the call by civil society organisations today for the Morrison Government to drop their plans to outlaw environmental and consumer boycotts.

Their call follows the PM’s announcement to the coal lobby last month that he would introduce new laws crack down on environmental boycott campaigns.

Greens Spokesperson for the Environment Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said the PM’s plan was an attack on basic democratic rights.

Greens Senator for South Australia and Spokesperson for the Environment Sarah Hanson-Young has welcomed the news Karoon Gas is relinquishing its exploration permit in the Great Australian Bight and called on Norwegian oil giant Equinor to do the same.

“Karoon pulling out of the Bight is a welcome and important move,” Senator Hanson-Young said.

“Turning the Bight into an oilfield will never get the green light from the community.

Big oil copped another blow to their plans to drill in the Great Australian Bight today, with the government agency NOPSEMA, rejecting Norwegian company Equinor’s application requiring them to modify and resubmit their environment plan.

Greens Senator for South Australia and Spokesperson for the Environment and Water, Senator Sarah Hanson-Young responded to the announcement SA is giving 100GL of Murray River water to NSW and Victoria and increasing use of the state’s desalination plant:

“South Australians are being taken for mugs, as the Federal and SA Governments cut a deal to reduce water flowing into the Lower Murray.

Greens Senator for South Australia and Spokesperson for the Environment and Water, Senator Sarah Hanson-Young responded to the announcement SA is giving 100GL of Murray River water to NSW and Victoria and increasing use of the state’s desalination plant:

“South Australians are being taken for mugs, as the Federal and SA Governments cut a deal to reduce water flowing into the Lower Murray.

The Environment Minister is in denial about the extinction crisis and plans to use the review of Australia’s environment laws to water them down in favour of big miners and developers, the Greens say.

“The current laws are not working to protect our animals or the environment. This Review should be a once-in-a-generation opportunity to fix them,” Greens Spokesperson for the Environment Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said.

The Greens have backed today’s call by more than 240 conservation scientists for stronger environment laws and for the broken system which is failing to prevent the extinction crisis to be fixed.

“The Greens will fight for stronger laws to protect the environment and save our endangered animals,” Greens Spokesperson for the Environment Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said.