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Dead in the Water
'I LOVE IT.' Peter FitzSimons
'With a deft mixture of outrage, humour and in-depth knowledge, only Beasley could make water policy a page turner.' Craig Reucassel
'It's great to shed some more light on the policy creep and mismanagement that is driving environmental degradation of many of the Murray-Darling Basin rivers.' Professor Richard Kingsford, Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists
'We want to reset these bio-diversities and the ecologies in our country. We want to see our fish spawning as they once were, our animals coming back down to drink. Fresh quality water out of the Coorong, not this super saline stuff that we're living in today's environment. It's slowly dying. You can smell the impact of what's happening . . .' Grant Rigney, Ngarrindjeri Nation, from his sworn evidence at the Royal Commission into the Murray-Darling Basin.
Richard Beasley is fed up. He's fed up with vested interests killing off Australia's most precious water resource. He's fed up with the cowardice and negligence that have allowed Big Agriculture and irrigators to destroy a river system that can sustain both the environment and the communities that depend on it. He's fed up that a noble plan to save Murray-Darling Basin based on the 'best scientific knowledge' has instead been corroded by lies, the denial of climate change, pseudoscience and political expediency.
He pulls no punches. He's provocative, he's outrageous, he points the finger without shame. And he will leave you very, very angry. Dead in the Water would be political satire of the highest order . . . if it weren't so tragically true.
'With a deft mixture of outrage, humour and in-depth knowledge, only Beasley could make water policy a page turner.' Craig Reucassel
'It's great to shed some more light on the policy creep and mismanagement that is driving environmental degradation of many of the Murray-Darling Basin rivers.' Professor Richard Kingsford, Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists
'We want to reset these bio-diversities and the ecologies in our country. We want to see our fish spawning as they once were, our animals coming back down to drink. Fresh quality water out of the Coorong, not this super saline stuff that we're living in today's environment. It's slowly dying. You can smell the impact of what's happening . . .' Grant Rigney, Ngarrindjeri Nation, from his sworn evidence at the Royal Commission into the Murray-Darling Basin.
Richard Beasley is fed up. He's fed up with vested interests killing off Australia's most precious water resource. He's fed up with the cowardice and negligence that have allowed Big Agriculture and irrigators to destroy a river system that can sustain both the environment and the communities that depend on it. He's fed up that a noble plan to save Murray-Darling Basin based on the 'best scientific knowledge' has instead been corroded by lies, the denial of climate change, pseudoscience and political expediency.
He pulls no punches. He's provocative, he's outrageous, he points the finger without shame. And he will leave you very, very angry. Dead in the Water would be political satire of the highest order . . . if it weren't so tragically true.
- GenresNonfiction
275 pages, Paperback
First published February 2, 2021
4 people are currently reading
90 people want to read
About the author
Richard Beasley
6 books27 followersRichard Beasley's first work of non-fiction, Dead in the Water, was published by Allen & Unwin in February 2021. He is the author of five novels: 'The Burden of Lies' (book 2 in the Peter Tanner series) published by Simon & Schuster in December 2017, and 'Cyanide Games' (book 1 in the series, 2016). His previous novels are 'Me and Rory Macbeath', 'The Ambulance Chaser', and 'Hell Has Harbour Views', which was adapted into a telemovie by the ABC and Hilton Cordell productions.
He is a Senior Counsel at the NSW Bar, and was Senior Counsel Assisting the Murray Darling Basin Royal Commission in 2018-19, and Senior Counsel Assisting the Special Commission of Inquiry into the Ruby Princess in 2020.
He is a Senior Counsel at the NSW Bar, and was Senior Counsel Assisting the Murray Darling Basin Royal Commission in 2018-19, and Senior Counsel Assisting the Special Commission of Inquiry into the Ruby Princess in 2020.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
June 26, 2021
The cover of the book says "A Very Angry Book" and it sure is.
Richard Beasley is a Senior Counsel at the NSW Bar and he assisted at the Murray-Darling Royal Commission. The Commissioner was Brett Walker who must be one of best, if not the actual best legal mind in Australia.
Beasley lays out some very clear facts:
Fact 1: The Water Act of 2007 stipulates that we must allow additional environment flow in the Murray-Darling Basin to stop the degradation of the environment and to try and restore. This must be based on "the best available scientific knowledge".
To attain this scientific knowledge, the CSIRO was commissioned to write a report. The MDBA decided they did not like the draft and leaned on the CSIRO to water it down (excuse the pun). Which they did after being threatened that they would not be paid. They were told to take out the table that was traffic light coded for an easy accessible understanding of how successful the additional flow would be. Too easy to spot the mistake so it had to be taken out. It worked for Bridget McKenzie sports rort but not here. Then they changed final figure to 2800 GL (from around 4000) which gave them a 39% chance of meeting 15 out 38 flow requirements for red gums.
As Richard Beasley says
Fact 2: The amount that is needed to achieve this is between 3900 GL to 7600GL. At 3900 there is a very small chance that your will achieve your targets. This is according to The Guide to the Proposed Basin Plan.
The Guide was unceremonially burnt by "farmers" in Griffith in October 2010.
There are other facts as well like that since the Water Act of 2007 and The Guide to the Proposed Basin Plan there has been obfuscation, alteration, evasion, spin and downright criminal activity which successive state and federal governments have turned a blind eye to or actually fostered and supported.
Is there any wonder that the Nats are losing ground and even the National Farmers Federation have been very wary of Barnaby Joyce being elected as head of the Nats again. He was Water Minister and will be again, probably. The Nats first action after Barnaby got elected was to try and stop water buy backs. Luckily it did not go through.
That brings us to obfuscation, alteration etc of the original plan. The amount of water that will be returned to the environment has been reduced to a number that starts with a "2". Probably less than 2700
More obfuscation and spin comes with "Efficiency Measures" which are not "Efficiency", because they actually result in less water coming back to the river system and costing the tax payer money in that we pay overseas agri companies to take our money and invest it in more trees that need more water or take the money overseas to the Cayman Islands.
Richard Beasley is very frustrated at this. He is frustrated because he had to deal with it and because when the Royal Commission asked for documents from the Federal Government they ended up trying to sue. The Feds actually took it to the High Court. He shows his frustration with words that are direct and irreverent and brought a smile to my face even thought we are dealing with "maladministration","gross negligence" , and probable end of our world heritage wetlands. These wetlands are where many of our birds come to nest and reproduce. It's very sad.
Ricard Beasley has, by this book, clarified and made accessible what the fuss about the Murray Darling is all about and why we should be very worried and engaged. It is $13,000,000,000 of tax payer money that is being used for this obfuscation, spin and maladministration. Every Australian from NSW, QLD and South Australia should read this book. There is so much more than this review can cover. Issues like Climate Change (it was ignored) and what Beasley calls The Fish Genocide project where there would be a loss of 23,000 (yes that's right) hectares of breeding habitat for native fish.
Thank you Quentin Dempster for the suggestion to write the book.
Richard Beasley is a Senior Counsel at the NSW Bar and he assisted at the Murray-Darling Royal Commission. The Commissioner was Brett Walker who must be one of best, if not the actual best legal mind in Australia.
Beasley lays out some very clear facts:
Fact 1: The Water Act of 2007 stipulates that we must allow additional environment flow in the Murray-Darling Basin to stop the degradation of the environment and to try and restore. This must be based on "the best available scientific knowledge".
To attain this scientific knowledge, the CSIRO was commissioned to write a report. The MDBA decided they did not like the draft and leaned on the CSIRO to water it down (excuse the pun). Which they did after being threatened that they would not be paid. They were told to take out the table that was traffic light coded for an easy accessible understanding of how successful the additional flow would be. Too easy to spot the mistake so it had to be taken out. It worked for Bridget McKenzie sports rort but not here. Then they changed final figure to 2800 GL (from around 4000) which gave them a 39% chance of meeting 15 out 38 flow requirements for red gums.
As Richard Beasley says
at my old school, only a substantial donation from your parents...could get 39 per cent close to being a pass mark
Fact 2: The amount that is needed to achieve this is between 3900 GL to 7600GL. At 3900 there is a very small chance that your will achieve your targets. This is according to The Guide to the Proposed Basin Plan.
The Guide was unceremonially burnt by "farmers" in Griffith in October 2010.
There are other facts as well like that since the Water Act of 2007 and The Guide to the Proposed Basin Plan there has been obfuscation, alteration, evasion, spin and downright criminal activity which successive state and federal governments have turned a blind eye to or actually fostered and supported.
Is there any wonder that the Nats are losing ground and even the National Farmers Federation have been very wary of Barnaby Joyce being elected as head of the Nats again. He was Water Minister and will be again, probably. The Nats first action after Barnaby got elected was to try and stop water buy backs. Luckily it did not go through.
That brings us to obfuscation, alteration etc of the original plan. The amount of water that will be returned to the environment has been reduced to a number that starts with a "2". Probably less than 2700
More obfuscation and spin comes with "Efficiency Measures" which are not "Efficiency", because they actually result in less water coming back to the river system and costing the tax payer money in that we pay overseas agri companies to take our money and invest it in more trees that need more water or take the money overseas to the Cayman Islands.
Richard Beasley is very frustrated at this. He is frustrated because he had to deal with it and because when the Royal Commission asked for documents from the Federal Government they ended up trying to sue. The Feds actually took it to the High Court. He shows his frustration with words that are direct and irreverent and brought a smile to my face even thought we are dealing with "maladministration","gross negligence" , and probable end of our world heritage wetlands. These wetlands are where many of our birds come to nest and reproduce. It's very sad.
Ricard Beasley has, by this book, clarified and made accessible what the fuss about the Murray Darling is all about and why we should be very worried and engaged. It is $13,000,000,000 of tax payer money that is being used for this obfuscation, spin and maladministration. Every Australian from NSW, QLD and South Australia should read this book. There is so much more than this review can cover. Issues like Climate Change (it was ignored) and what Beasley calls The Fish Genocide project where there would be a loss of 23,000 (yes that's right) hectares of breeding habitat for native fish.
Thank you Quentin Dempster for the suggestion to write the book.
January 16, 2022
This book is surprisingly gratifying for a discussion of public policy and governance - abysmal policy and governance. Beasley frankly and fearlessly calls a spade a spade, a fuckwit a fuckwit, and a crime a crime. And that's what it's about - he makes it very clear that the Murray Darling Basin Plan is not only abysmal policy and governance but it is strictly illegal (and increasingly so, if that is possible).
Every literate Australian should read it not only because the fate of this river basin is incredibly important, but it reveals a lot about who rules Australia and how they do it and get away with it - something that has broader relevance to understanding many of Australia's depressing political issues of abysmal policy and governance. The popular satirical TV show Utopia is, sadly (ironically) not truly accurate of our government because it is too utopian. Reality is, it seems, far worse.
Further to that, Beasley writes plainly and clearly, and with a lot of invective which is at once entertaining and reassuring: you're not imagining it, our public policy and governance in Australia are truly abysmal. Most of those who are in some way engaged in political agitation and organising could learn a lot from his communication style. Not just plainly calling fuckwits fuckwits, but the way he breaks down impenetrable bureaucratese obfustications into the simple facts (mainly, that they are a crime).
Every literate Australian should read it not only because the fate of this river basin is incredibly important, but it reveals a lot about who rules Australia and how they do it and get away with it - something that has broader relevance to understanding many of Australia's depressing political issues of abysmal policy and governance. The popular satirical TV show Utopia is, sadly (ironically) not truly accurate of our government because it is too utopian. Reality is, it seems, far worse.
Further to that, Beasley writes plainly and clearly, and with a lot of invective which is at once entertaining and reassuring: you're not imagining it, our public policy and governance in Australia are truly abysmal. Most of those who are in some way engaged in political agitation and organising could learn a lot from his communication style. Not just plainly calling fuckwits fuckwits, but the way he breaks down impenetrable bureaucratese obfustications into the simple facts (mainly, that they are a crime).
April 9, 2021
Beasley brings to life an extraordinary story, one that every Australian MUST read. Richard's literary skills bring understanding to a complex subject matter in an easy to read riveting history, one of tragic proportions. Beasley's outrage screams from every page!
"Dead In The Water" stands unique in its assessment of the tragic situation of a river system demanding environmental care, but instead suffers from horrific political interference and mismanagement. No-one will forget the images of millions of dead fish floating in the deoxygenated waters as a direct result of the lack of environmental flow requirements. Beasley with his legal expertise brings these images to the reader, who is left wondering, "how on earth could government fail all Australians in such an extraordinary fashion".
Roddy Doyle
"Dead In The Water" stands unique in its assessment of the tragic situation of a river system demanding environmental care, but instead suffers from horrific political interference and mismanagement. No-one will forget the images of millions of dead fish floating in the deoxygenated waters as a direct result of the lack of environmental flow requirements. Beasley with his legal expertise brings these images to the reader, who is left wondering, "how on earth could government fail all Australians in such an extraordinary fashion".
Roddy Doyle
May 6, 2021
Full of smartass lawyer dark humour, repetitive, circular, doesn’t encourage me to follow him as an author, BUT undoubtedly a book every Australian should read. He has made a complex and vitally important environmental issue painfully clear as he describes an ongoing environmental disaster being dragged through the mud of politics and short term economic gain.
March 11, 2021
He makes some good points and it might be quite entertaining but it is a biased and strange book. It might have helped to acknowledge that his job was to present one side of the argument as best he could but that without the other side being presented (which he does acknowledge) it is not a very useful way at getting to the truth or justice. He doesn’t even apply the same standards to the people who support his argument to those who don’t. For example he dismisses the views of some scientists because their analysis was based on desk-top analysis and it acknowledged uncertainties while accepting the views of others despite it being based on less detailed desk-top analysis and which does not acknowledge uncertainties.
May 18, 2021
An thoroughly frustrating account of the Government's prioritisation of agriculture interests over our environmental obligations.
Predominately addressed from a legal perspective, i.e. the legal failings of the Basin Plan, Beasley uses his first hand experiences from the SA Royal Commission to full effect to make this dry subject compelling and understandable even for non-enviro or legal types.
His use of repetition and no-nonsense language in calling a spade a spade is entertaining as well as consistent and informative.
We should be doing better, but we are not.
Predominately addressed from a legal perspective, i.e. the legal failings of the Basin Plan, Beasley uses his first hand experiences from the SA Royal Commission to full effect to make this dry subject compelling and understandable even for non-enviro or legal types.
His use of repetition and no-nonsense language in calling a spade a spade is entertaining as well as consistent and informative.
We should be doing better, but we are not.
August 5, 2022
Assuming the author's aim was to get me to care about water policy, he achieved it. This book is funny and entertaining but also maddening, sad and terrifying. It started to get a bit repetitive towards the end but if you, like me, have heard of issues with the Murray-Darling Basin, and knew of the massive fish die-off a couple of years ago but didn't really know what it was all about, this book explains what's going on in a very accessible (and ranty) way.
February 11, 2025
Yes it is a very angry book and has made me very angry. Everyone should read this book and get angry too. The maladministration of the Murray Darling ( outright corruption) needs to be condemned. But more so we are running out of time to fix things with Climate Change on our doorstep. I’m sick of old white men thinking they can bully the environment into submission.
January 14, 2026
I really enjoyed this book, however, I couldn't give it 5 stars for a couple of reasons:
1. Towards the end it got repetitive
2. Small spelling and grammar errors that drove me crazy
Well researched and argued and with enough humour to keep it engaging whilst deeply saddening and infuriating.
1. Towards the end it got repetitive
2. Small spelling and grammar errors that drove me crazy
Well researched and argued and with enough humour to keep it engaging whilst deeply saddening and infuriating.
December 20, 2022
Everyone should read this book! And if you are at all interested in the environment or the Murray Darling Basin, or you live there, or you care about where mankind is headed - read it!
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews