Irrigators Peter and Jane Harris have lost their appeal in the Supreme Court after being found to have illegally taken water from the Darling River at their farm near Brewarrina in 2016.
The husband and wife, whose cotton operations near Brewarrina featured in ABC's 2017 Four Corners program "Pumped", were accused of taking water when flow conditions did not permit it, and breaching licence and approval conditions.
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The extraction was deemed contrary to a condition of the Harris' joint water use and water supply approvals under section 91(G) of the Water Management Act 2000 (NSW).
The prosecution was brought by WaterNSW following an investigation and the Harris' pleaded not guilty to the charges. However, the NSW Land and Environment Court ruled in favour of the water operator in March 2020 and the Harris' were given 28 days to appeal the decision.
In their appeal the Harris' were represented by prominent barrister Bret Walker, among others, and their legal team argued the trial judge had erred in admitting evidence of measurements of flow rate of the Darling River which had been taken by officers of the respondent.
The appeals against conviction were dismissed.
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