The pressure is mounting for listeners of Radio National’s Bush Telegraph. Over the past five weeks, they have been given the responsibility of debating and voting on the allocation of 1000 megalitres of environmental water from the Hume Dam as part of Bush Telegraph’s Water Challenge.

That’s the equivalent of 1000 Olympic-sized swimming pools – or five buckets of water for every Australian. It’s very real water, worth over $100,000 on the open market, and therefore a significant decision. Who gets the water? The irrigators, the Murray River, or the wetlands?

To vote people must call 1800 880 244 or log on to http://abc.net.au/water by Wednesday, 10th December. The website has the history of the Water Challenge and fully explains the voting options.

The winning option will be broadcast live at an outside broadcast from the Hume Dam Wall on Bush Telegraph on Wednesday, 17th December. It will be an historic day when for the first time a radio audience gets to be politicians and change the fate of the Murray River.

The broadcast will be held at the Hume Dam Village recreation area, right on the Dam wall. The site is 16kms north of Albury Wodonga along the Riverina Highway.

For the last six weeks, water challengers have been reading their water meters to gauge how they consumer our water, more than 5000 meter readings and registrations have been received.