Surface water usage NOT covered by a cap

Not all categories of water use in a catchment are subject to the declared cap, which diminishes the usefulness of this measure in managing sustainable water usage. The table below provides a summary of exceptions to proclaimed caps in each jurisdiction and shows that there are currently no surface water caps in Australia that can be considered to cover all existing surface water use and abstractions. Across eastern Australia and Tasmania , it is possible that farm dam impacts (minor catchment, on-stream and extracted storages), stock and domestic use and forestry impacts (reduction in yield due to revegetation, bushfire regrowth and plantation forestry) are significant in many surface water management areas. These uses and their impacts on the water resource should be included in the caps that have been implemented to date and in all future caps.

Surface water usage NOT covered by a cap

State or territory
ACT NSW NT QLD SA TAS VIC WA National
Total number of surface water management areas with a cap on surface water usage and abstraction in each state or territory 1 45 40 19 22 38 29 0 194
Number of capped surface water management areas where usage is NOT covered by the surface water cap Irrigation 0 0 0 0 12 0 0 0 12
Urban 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 2
Commercial and industrial 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Minor catchment storages 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 3
Minor on-stream storages 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 3
Minor extracted water storages 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 2
Stock and domestic 1 0 0 0 17 38 0 0 56
Mining, oil and gas 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Forestry 0 13 0 0 17 38 29 0 97
Floodplain harvesting 0 1 0 0 13 0 0 0 14
Drought supply 0 0 0 0 17 0 0 0 17
Greywater use 1 23 0 0 17 0 29 0 70
Effluent recycling 1 23 0 0 17 0 29 0 70
Aquifer storage and recovery 0 0 0 0 13 0 0 0 13
Other 0 23 0 18 17 0 0 0 58

Note: Zero indicates that the usage type is capped. A percentage higher than zero indicates the proportion of the capped surface water management areas in which the indicated type of water usage is not capped.

Australian Capital Territory

All catchments are under a cap in the Australian Capital Territory . The cap covers all water use except for minor catchment storages, minor on-stream storages, stock and domestic use, greywater use and effluent recycling.

New South Wales

Three surface water management areas in the north-west of New South Wales ( Cooper Creek , Lake Frome and Lake Bancannia ) do not currently have a surface water cap. These areas are not managed, and they are not expected to be covered by a future macro plan. There are no plans to introduce a surface water cap in those catchments because surface water is scarce and because there is little if any development of the water resource.

Northern Territory

There is a cap on surface water use in 40 surface water management areas in the Northern Territory . These caps include all surface water use.

Queensland

Within Queensland the extraction and storage of water into farm dams (minor catchment, on-stream and extracted storages) is not included in the surface water cap for six of the capped water resources plan areas. None of the water resource plan areas includes riparian rights in its surface water cap.

Surface water stock use is not covered by most caps
Surface water stock use is not covered by most caps
Image by Arthur Mostead, sourced from the MDBC

South Australia

Twenty-two surface water management areas in South Australia operate with a cap. Most water use is included in the cap except for stock and domestic use, forestry, drought supply, greywater use and effluent recycling. In addition, two surface water management areas (Barossa and Clare Valley prescribed water resources areas) exclude urban water use, and the River Murray Prescribed Watercourse area includes stock and domestic use through its permit system.

Tasmania

In Tasmania , stock and domestic and forestry use are not covered by the surface water cap.

Victoria

In Victoria , floodplain harvesting, greywater use and effluent recycling are not covered by the cap.

 

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Last Updated 12/10/2006