REGION - Minister for Water Security and the River Murray, Karlene Maywald, has been accused of deceit and arrogance, following her decision not to tell a public meeting held in Goolwa on Monday night that preparatory work on a weir at Wellington had already begun.
Minister Maywald told the meeting that a decision on the weir would be made in late September and that it would be "considered only as a last option".
"If you allow the seawater to come in you will irreversibly change the lakes for ever," she told the 300-strong crowd.
"We, like you, want a freshwater solution".
However on Tuesday morning, the Minister revealed on ABC radio that the government is already making preparations for the weir and will be spending $30 million over the next six weeks on roads, fencing, and stockpiling of rocks.
Her decision to make that announcement on Tuesday, instead of to the people of Goolwa and the lower lakes the night before, shows absolute contempt for the community, according to the Member for Finniss, Michael Pengilly.
"It's gutless," he said.
"She wasn't game to tell people and she failed to be accountable".
However a spokesperson for Ms Maywald said the preparations were unable to be announced because the minister had promised to inform all directly affected landholders prior to making a public announcement.
"One landholder was on holiday and the minister was only able to get hold of him after the meeting, late on Monday night," the spokesperson said.
When the weir was first proposed, it was calculated to cost $30 million in total.
The government is now committed to spending $30 million immediately on the preparations, with total construction costs of at least $120 million if the decision is made to go ahead.
Ms Maywald has said the weir will take nine months to build once the decision is made. She also said that if there is adequate rainfall next winter then the building of their weir could be abandoned before completion.
Family First MLC, Robert Brokenshire also questioned why the government hadn't "come clean" about the plans.
"This meeting was about people fighting for an environmental flow for the Lower Lakes and Coorong - and the minister failed to tell the meeting that cabinet has, in effect, signed off on a $30million program to stop any flow to the Lower Lakes and Coorong".
Speaking at the meeting on Monday he asked why the government wasn't using water from the Christies Beach wastewater treatment plant to secure an alternate source of water for irrigators in the area.
Much of this water from the plant is used to irrigate the McLaren Vale vineyards but almost half is currently returned to the sea.
Ms Maywald responded by saying this had been considered but the infrastructure could not be put in place soon enough to save the irrigators at Currency Creek and Langhorne Creek but that it was a "long term option".
During the meeting the minister told one questioner, "the SA Government can not get you more water for Goolwa".
Those at the meeting where told that the government had three options to deal with acid-sulphate soils in the lower lakes.
Firstly to continue pumping water from Lake Alexandrina to Lake Albert, something that is not viable long term and is only "buying time".
The other options are to introduce Coorong saltwater to Lake Albert by pumping through a channel and thirdly, to build the weir at Wellington and introduce seawater through the Goolwa barrage.
Minister Maywald confirmed on Tuesday morning that the final decision on the Wellington weir will not be made until the end of September.
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