Responding to a question from South Australian media, Mr Shorten said the fact that South Australian irrigators are facing less than 100 per cent allocations at the start of next water season is an "ecological disaster", yet he has never shown concern for NSW irrigation farmers who are on zero percent.

While South Australian irrigators have been on 100 per cent every year since the Millennium Drought broke, irrigation farmers across most of NSW have been on zero percent for at least the past year and are facing similar conditions when the new water season commences on 1 July. These farmers have watched water flow down the river, past their barren land, on its way to South Australia - the State with the most secure water supply in the Nation thanks to rules that pre-date the Basin Plan and the environmental bonus the Plan gives them.

What Mr Shorten should be concerned about is how, in a year that has seen lowest system inflows on record, South Australia has not only kept the Lower Lakes at minor flood level but also managed to defer 341 billion litres to store in upstream dams. That volume is still there, available to the South Australian Government on demand.

He should be concerned that, at a time when the Murray River was naturally flowing at or above natural capacity the MDBA made significant releases from the Menindee Lakes system to flow to South Australia. Both irrigation farmers and graziers on the Lower Darling say this decision contributed in part to the fish deaths that caught the attention of the nation last summer.

He should also be concerned by the fact that, despite the South Australian Government last year saying the federally funded Adelaide desalination plant could enable the release of 50 billion litres of water to irrigators when their allocations were below 100 per cent, yet the plant is still idle. Last time Labor was in Government in both South Australia and Federally they promised the plant would reduce Adelaide's reliance on the Murray and supply up to 100 billion litres a year. But we are still waiting.

Why is Mr Shorten so concerned about irrigators in South Australia next year when he has shown no concern for the rest of the Murray Darling Basin, both environmentally and productively, that has been struggling through the devastating drought for more than a year now?

If anything, the current drought reminds us that we are a land of highly variable rainfall and all science is pointing to an increase of extreme events. All states need to look at how they manage their resources and how the overall system is managed. As a Nation we need to stop reactionary water policy and start thinking strategically about managing this precious resource without undermining existing industries and the communities that rely on them.

In our variable rainfall climate, the people of NSW and Victoria should not be sold out so that South Australia can maintain an artificial 100 per cent, 100 per cent of the time.

Perin Davey is the lead Senate Candidate for the NSW Nationals. She has worked on water policy and reform since 2010.

Have your say, send a letter to the editor.