A new chapter in Australia’s water debate has just opened up: critical minerals. An employee monitors the 8mm diameter copper cable which is rolled up before passing through a rolling mill to become cable at the Nexans manufacture in Lens, France, on May 11, 2022. 6/29/2026|Updated: 6/29/2026 For decades, Australia’s water debate has revolved around the Murray-Darling Basin, irrigation, drought, and lately data centres.