Dr. Matthew Crowe:

I thank the Chair and the members of the committee for taking the time to consider the draft river basin management plan and to consider making a submission about it. An interesting aspect of the forum is that it has 25 members representing 13 different sectors. The forum has had six months of work, discussions, debates and presentations from a range of different organisations. These 25 individuals, representing 13 different sectors, came to an agreement about recommendations regarding water quality for the next six years. That is no mean feat. Each of those groups and individuals have their own individual views. They have managed to bring it together to present this submission, which is the common ground that has been described. That is the strength of the forum. When there is common ground, there is a greater chance of implementation. I urge the committee to think about the forum's submission in that way. It would, of course, be complemented by sector-specific submissions from individuals. While both Dr. McGoff and Ms O'Brien are on the forum, they will also make their own submissions, as I am sure other organisations represented on the forum will. I am sure they would love to have an opportunity to speak about their specific issues.

I cannot overemphasise the importance of the common ground being identified here or of the collaboration that went into developing that common ground. People had to put their collaborative hat on to give and take in order to arrive at these agreed positions that everybody can sign up to. That augurs well for the future. Water and catchment management is such a complicated area and is even more complicated when connected to climate, nature and air. Much collaboration will be needed, with people working together, trade-offs and so on to make this really work. I thank the committee.