The Greens are threatening to back South Australia's High Court challenge to deliver its Murray-Darling Basin water entitlements should the federal government fail to step up.
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Water Minister Keith Pitt last month hosed down calls to extend a deadline for the system's environmental recovery targets, with a report showing just 1.9 of 450 gigalitres of water earmarked for SA had been captured.
Mr Pitt said blowing out time-frames would create too much uncertainty for the state's basin communities and called on other relevant state governments to "pull out all stops to deliver on their commitments".
However South Australian Environment Minister David Speirs says it is the Morrison government that is legally obliged to secure the water by 2024.
Greens environment spokeswoman, SA senator Sarah Hanson-Young, echoed the claim on Saturday and said her home state was being blackmailed by NSW because it had caved in to big-money interests.
"South Australia needs to stand up to the upstream states to save the Murray-Darling and fight for our state and our environment," Senator Hanson-Young urged.
"If the federal government won't deliver the water needed and promised we should fight for it in the High Court.
"I'll work with all and any fellow South Australians to save our Murray."
Senator Hanson-Young said the Murray-Darling was an issue Greens, Labor and Liberals should be able to unite on.
"The NSW water minister (Melinda Pavey) declared at a senate inquiry last month that NSW would refuse to give any more water to the environment (and) demanded changes to the Murray-Darling Basin Plan because there was no more water for downstream states.
"South Australia cannot be blackmailed by a state that has mismanaged their end of the Plan and allowed corporate irrigators to run the show."
Despite last month's review of recovery targets finding a 2024 deadline would not be met, Canberra has ruled out buybacks meaning basin plan targets will have to be met through other water-saving projects.
"I don't want to see river health in downstream communities go backwards because of delays in delivering the target of 450 gigalitres," Mr Pitt said at the time.
"It is the lower Murray that will feel any shortfalls and delays ... most acutely."
He also pointed to $38 million in federal funding for SA Riverland health projects.
Australian Associated Press
