Mal Peters, chair of the NSW Northern Inland Regional Development Authority, which represents 13 local government areas and the Namoi, Gwydir and Border Rivers catchments, began shaping a local planning process after Simon Crean called for regional solutions in Narrabri last month.

"We're talking about regional people coming up with regional solutions, not getting stuff dictated from Sydney and Canberra," Mr Peters said.

"The MDBA have determined the end of valley flows. This process asks the region how it wants to manage that."

"I think this has to be the way to do it. We've got some huge capacity in the universities, CMAs, irrigation sector and the local business groups. This process will harness them together to come up with a solution.a"

"If we get all the community behind us—and I'm pretty confident we can—it would be a bloody stupid government that would ignore the result."