A report by CQU's Institute for Sustainable Regional Development has sparked plans for a major crackdown to reduce water pollution.

The Queensland Government is proposing new laws to curb water pollution and avert the loss of thousands of jobs and tens of billions of dollars in tourism, fishing and aquaculture.

Premier Peter Beattie and the Minister for Local Government, Environment and Planning, Desley Boyle, said the proposed laws put the planning spotlight on three regions: Mary River Basin/Great Sandy Region; Douglas Shire - home to the Daintree Rainforest and shores of the Great Barrier Reef; and Moreton Bay/South East Queensland.

"Later this year the Government will put to the Parliament new laws and develop new programs to clean up our act on stormwater, sewerage, and agricultural run-off," Mr Beattie said.

"If we do nothing new to stop the decline in water quality, we will be penalised by crippling job losses in key industries - and that's just in the three regions under the microscope.

"Experts predict poor water quality could cost about 75,000 jobs and about $13 billion annually, in tourism in these regions.

"Fishing could lose $327 million and 3562 jobs, if we do not intervene.

Premier Beattie said the CQU ISRD report commissioned by the government shows the costs of inaction could include:.

- $10.5 billion and 72,400 jobs in tourism in Moreton Bay/South East Qld.

- $670m and 1600 jobs in tourism in the Mary River/Great Sandy Region.

- $2.1b and 690 jobs in tourism due to degraded water quality in Douglas Shire.

- $277m and 2000 jobs in recreational and commercial fishing in Moreton Bay/South East Queensland.

- $47m and 1500 jobs in recreational and commercial fishing in the Mary River/Great Sandy Region.

- $4m and 62 jobs in recreational and commercial fishing in the Douglas Shire.

- $14m and 153 jobs in aquaculture in Moreton Bay/South East Queensland.

- $6.9m and 84 jobs in aquaculture in Mary River/Great Sandy Region.

- up to $2m in aquaculture in the Douglas Shire.

Ms Boyle said the same study showed that, in these regions, new actions to prevent these problems would cost about $30 million in new sewerage treatment plants (over 5 years), $6 million in works to rehabilitate the banks of streams and rivers (over next 20 years) and $10 million in stormwater management infrastructure (over 20 years).

"The cost of action is dwarfed by the price of inaction," Ms Boyle said.

The ISRD report was led by Associate Professor John Rolfe and included input from colleagues Professor Bob Miles, Dr Khorshed Alam, Grant O'Dea and Peter Donaghy.

A full copy of the report is at: www.isrd.cqu.edu.au/about/2005_New%20Isrd%20Pub.htm