Water Sharing in NSW - The Way Forward

Presentation By Bob Smith
Director General
NSW Department of Land and Water Conservation

Water Sharing in NSW - Access and Use

• Paper released for comment in April
• Refreshing our memory on contents:

- Access rights

- Trading in Water Rights

- Riparian rights, farm dams and flood plain harvesting

- Sleeper and Dozer Licences

- Groundwater

YOUR VIEWS

Expected Eventual Outcomes

• a comprehensive water rights system a licensing system that is streamlined and efficient
• one that is fair and equitable
• ensures security for user's rights
• supports business investment
• considers the desire of business for long term certainty of rights
• recognises environmental rights and rights of special interest groups

Issue 1 - Possible Separation of the Access and Use Right

Access Right is the right to physically take water from a water source. It is transferable

Use Right covers the management and use of water on a property after it is taken from the water source(s). It is not transferable.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of separation?

Issues 2 & 3 – Term of Access and use Rights & Review Period

• what should be the term and review period?

Term Options

• 5 year, 10 years, rolling 10 or 20 year licence, perpetuity?

Review Options

• On renewal. tied to term of water management plan – 5 years or possibly 10 years?

Issue 4 - Link Between Access and Use Rights

Should it be possible to obtain an access right before the use right is granted?

Options

1 yes - it allows flexibility in business decisions

2 No-it could lead to speculation and tying up water unproductively.

Issue 5 - The Hierarchy of Access Rights - Is the current hierarchy appropriate?

Under the Water Act, a priority is specified for restrictions to access to surface water during periods of shortage. The order Is

1.one year permits for purposes other than for domestic and stock supply

2. irrigation

3 industry research, recreation, stock

4 domestic, town and village water supply

No Groundwater hierarchy

Issue 6 – Converting Licences to New System

How should licences be converted?

Options:

1. Straight Conversion- Access licence linked to water management plan. Use conditions would remain the same as they are now

2. Licences be subject to new Use Conditions at renewal or when additional water is obtained.

Issue 7(A) Town Water Supply and Embargoes

Should town water supply access be limited, and if so, how?

Options:

1. retain exemption from embargo but require demand management

2. as above, plus restrict future rights to high flow

3. embargo and require additional water to be bought on the market

4. cap requirements at a future level and then require water to be purchased on the market.

Issue 7 (B) Industries in Municipal Areas

How should towns' industrial water demands be managed?

Options:

1. new large industrial demands to be met from market

2. towns to have separate town water supply and industrial access rights with different priorities.

3. allow some growth in industrial demand then trade in.

4. allow some growth in total demand (town + country) and then trade in

Issue 7(C) Towns and Water Trading

Should towns be permitted to transfer their access rights?

Options:

1. Only if subject to embargo-once towns were unable to simply apply for more licence increases should they be treated as other licence holders

2. Not even if they are subject to embargo – this would protect other users from the impact of increased use of town entitlement.

Issue 8 - Transferability of Access rights

How should rules be developed which protect the environment and other water users but also allow trade to be as free as possible?

Options:

1. via the local water management plan - rules for each area would be specified in local plan

2. General rules and principles developed at State level to ensure consistency but tailored to local systems.

Issue 9 - Appeal and Objection Mechanisms

What are the appropriate appeal and objection mechanisms?

Options:

1.retain existing mechanisms, but make consistent across all types of water use

2.Iimit grounds to inconsistency with water management plan only

General Issues

3. exclude all grounds once plans are in place

Issue 10 - Riparian Rights

How should they be managed?

Options:

I .register

2.Iicence

3.reduce allowable pump capacity I area irrigated

4.size of right restricted to existing properties

5.require minimum river frontage

6.limit to existing use

7. impose restrictions only in areas where there are problems

8. deal with through LEPs

Issue 11 - Small farm dams and harvestable right

New Policy:

10% Runoff as harvestable right

Issue 12 - High Security Entitlements

How should they be treated?

Options:

1. limit their ability to trade to times when allocations for general security licences are a certain level

2. convert all higher security licences to (larger) general security licences and introduce a continuously accounted allocation system

Issue 13 – Continuous Accounting

Continuous Accounting = an ongoing system of debits and credits

Capacity Sharing = licence holders receive a share of each element of the supply system -dam storage, dam inflows and tributary inflows

How would continuous accounting or capacity sharing affect different water users and interests?

Issue 14 (A) Licensing of Off-Allocation

Should 'rights' to access off-allocation flows be separately licensed?

Options:

1. Yes. It would give users a clearer control over the share of available off-allocation and enable better environmental management

2. No. Access is likely to erode over time because of cap and environmental flow rules

Issue 14 (B) Sharing of Off- Allocation

If off-allocation rights are licensed, how should the initial off-allocation rights be shared?

Options:

1. in proportion to history of use

2. as a proportion of licensed entitlement

3. combination of 1 and 2

4. by auction

Issue 14 Trading of Off-Allocation

Should rights to off-allocation be transferable?

Options:

I Yes, allows greater business flexibility

2 .No, because access is likely to diminish over time

Issue 15 – Floodplain Harvesting

Pumping of floodplain water into storages and works, such as levees, which are used to capture flows on floodplains are now required to be licensed.

How should existing works harvesting water on floodplains be licensed?

What sort of requirements and controls need to be included in the licence?

Issue 16 Water Savings

How should water saved by changes to supply system operation or through works be used?

Options:

1. to satisfy river health needs

2. to increase reliability of supply to existing users

3. to be traded on the water market

Issue 17 - Inter-Valley and Interstate Trading

Currently trades are being undertaken on a trial basis.

The discussion paper calls for views on interstate and inter-valley transfers.

Issue 18 - Sleeper and Dozer Licences

How should sleeper and dozer a licences be treated?

Options:

1 cancellation of sleepers, reduction in dozer entitlement to maximum past use

2 restrict access of sleepers and dozers to high flow periods

3 partial reduction in unused entitlements

4 no restrictions – allow licences to develop

Issue 19 Sleeper, Dozer and Ghost Licences

What are options for managing sleeper, dozer and ghost licences?

Options:

1 realign all licences to past maximum use

2 treat all licences equally in over-allocated systems, all allocations would be reduced

3 combination of 1 & 2

Issue 20 Unlicensed Bores

What should be done about unlicensed bores in NSW?

Options:

I declare an amnesty after which prosecutions will apply

2 licence all bores in systems at high risk from over-extraction or contamination

3 licence all bores in both medium and high risk systems

Issue 21 - Conjunctive use Licences

Conjunctive use licences are a special category or licence which enable use of ground water as "make up" when surface allocations are restricted.

No further conjunctive licences will be issued.

How should conjunctive licences be split into separate surface water and ground water access rights?