The Central Land Council has warned the NT could become a target for water-intensive industries under proposed legislation it says strips away key protections for the Territory's groundwater.
The land council is calling on the Country Liberal Party (CLP) Government to withdraw the Environment and Water Legislation Bill, arguing the changes would weaken community consultation, reduce accountability and give the Minister greater control over water planning decisions.
The proposed legislation would allow water licences to be approved without adequate oversight or "public accountability", CLC chief executive Les Turner said.
The NT Government says the bill proposes "changes to clarify environmental and water regulation, reduce unnecessary administration and improve compliance tools," amending seven different acts covering regulations governing mining, the environment, water, fuel and pollution.
"The Bill would clarify powers to request information and terminate applications on specified grounds," a fact sheet on the bill says. "Transfers of entitlements from Aboriginal water reserves would be temporary and subject to eligibility requirements."
NT Environment Minister Joshua Burgoyne told Guardian Australia this month: "Our government remains focused on facts, not the fearmongering tactics of environmental lobby groups."
"We support responsible development, effective environmental and water regulation, and continuing our work to rebuild the economy and restore our unique Territory lifestyle."
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The CLC argues the proposed legislation would see water advisory committees no longer able to provide a regular avenue for community and stakeholder involvement — with their establishment left to the discretion of the Minister — and would also remove the requirement for water allocation plans to be reviewed at least every 10 years, allowing them to remain in force until revoked by the Minister.
The changes could leave outdated water plans in place indefinitely, without a legally secured requirement to account for changing environmental conditions, scientific evidence or community priorities, the land council added.
"The CLC is deeply concerned that we have lost our last line of defence against high-water-consuming projects that might come our way," Mr Turner said.
"With weakened laws and free water, the NT is a honey pot for industrial-scale use of precious and finite groundwater."
Kathleen Herbert, Policy and Advocacy Officer at the Arid Lands Environment Centre, has labelled the bill an "attack on democracy and nature".
"Only a rogue government which has little regard for nature and communities would introduce such a bill," she said in a statement.
"The Northern Territory's already has the weakest water protections in the country; they will be even weaker under these changes."
Mr Turner said it was "shocking" the bill hadn't been referred to a parliamentary scrutiny committee before it is scheduled to be debated later this month.
"This must be rectified," he said.
The comments in the wake of a High Court decision to overturn the NT Government's approval of a 40-billion-litre water licence after finding it had been unlawfully granted.
In August, the High Court ruled in favour of the Mpwerempwer Aboriginal Corporation (MAC) in its long-running challenge to the groundwater licence granted to a horticulture company seeking to grow fruit and vegetables in the desert south of Tennant Creek on Singleton Station.
Lawyers for MAC argued the Minister at the time erred in granting a 30-year licence, rather than the standard 10-year term, by failing to properly justify the decision.
The CLC says the proposed legislative changes could make it more difficult for native title holders to challenge the merits of similar water licence decisions in the future.
The CLP Government's approach to water management had moved further away from national best practice, Mr Turner said.
"The NT Government was already backsliding against national best practice for water management," he argued. "Now it's over the cliff.
"It's clearer than ever that the Federal Government needs to step in by strengthening the water trigger under federal environment laws."
The land council called on the Federal Government to strengthen the water trigger under Commonwealth law to cover all projects with the potential to significantly affect water resources and dependent ecosystems.
The CLC says this would allow the Federal Government to intervene when Territory Government decisions risk significant impacts on water and the environment.
