The Water Act 2007
Key elements of the Act are:
- Murray-Darling Basin Authority
- The Basin Plan
- Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder
- Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC)
- Bureau of Meteorology
Murray-Darling Basin Authority
The Act establishes an independent Murray-Darling Basin Authority with the functions and powers, including enforcement powers, needed to ensure that Basin water resources are managed in an integrated and sustainable way.
Key functions of the Authority include:
- preparing a Basin Plan for adoption by the Minister, including setting sustainable limits on water that can be taken from surface and groundwater systems across the Basin;
- advising the Minister on the accreditation of state water resource plans;
- developing a water rights information service which facilitates water trading across the Murray-Darling Basin;
- measuring and monitoring water resources in the Basin;
- gathering information and undertaking research; and
- engaging the community in the management of the Basin's resources.
The Authority will report to the Commonwealth Minister for Climate Change and Water.
The Authority members must have significant relevant expertise to be eligible for appointment, for example in fields such as water resource management, hydrology, freshwater ecology, resource economics, irrigated agriculture, public sector governance and financial management.
The Basin Plan
The Act requires the Authority to prepare a strategic plan for the integrated and sustainable management of water resources in the Murray-Darling Basin. This plan is referred to as the Basin Plan.
The Act establishes mandatory content for the Basin Plan, including:
- limits on the amount of water (both surface and ground water) that can be taken from Basin water resources on a sustainable basis - known as long-term average sustainable diversion limits. These limits will be set for Basin water resources as a whole and for individual water resources;
- identification of risks to Basin water resources, such as climate change, and strategies to manage those risks;
- requirements that a state water resource plan will need to comply with if it is to be accredited under this Act;
- an environmental watering plan to optimise environmental outcomes for the Basin by specifying environmental objectives, watering priorities and targets for Basin water resources;
- a water quality and salinity management plan which may include targets; and
- rules about trading of water rights in relation to Basin water resources.
The Basin Plan will be complemented through water resource plans prepared by Basin States and provided to the Commonwealth Minister for accreditation. The Authority will provide advice to the Minister on whether to accredit such plans. Water resource plans will only be accredited if they are consistent with the Basin Plan, including the long-term average sustainable diversion limits.
The Basin Plan will also play an important role in identifying responsibilities for managing risks associated with reductions in water availability and changes in reliability. Where the Basin Plan specifies a reduction in the long-term average sustainable diversion limit, the Basin Plan will also identify the percentage of that reduction for which the Australian Government is responsible. This percentage relates to the risk sharing arrangements set out in the Act, which are modelled on those agreed by the Commonwealth and state and territory governments through the National Water Initiative in June 2004.
The Australian Government has made a commitment to respect water sharing arrangements that are provided for in existing water resource plans. This commitment is implemented through the transitional arrangements set out in the Act.
The Basin Plan will be prepared in consultation with Basin States and communities.
Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder
The Act establishes a Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder. The Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder will manage the Commonwealth's environmental water to protect and restore the environmental assets of the Murray-Darling Basin, and outside the Basin where the Commonwealth owns water.
The Australian Government's water holdings will include its share of water savings made through the programs of the national water plan, Water for the Future.
In the Murray-Darling Basin, these holdings will be managed consistent with the Environmental Watering Plan that will be developed by the Murray-Darling Basin Authority. The Environmental Watering Plan will be part of the Basin Plan and will be developed by the Murray-Darling Basin Authority in consultation with state governments and stakeholders. The Murray-Darling Basin Authority will coordinate its activities with other holders of environmental water in the Basin.
Existing state environmental water entitlements will be held separately to the Australian Government entitlements. Protocols will be developed among holders of environmental water to enable this water to be managed in a coordinated manner.
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC)
The Act provides the ACCC with a key role in developing and enforcing water charge and water market rules along the lines agreed in the National Water Initiative. The aim of these new functions is to ensure that water markets are able to operate freely across state boundaries and that perverse outcomes from inconsistent water charging arrangements are avoided.
Specifically, the ACCC will provide advice to the Commonwealth on water charge and market rules to apply within the Murray-Darling Basin and will be responsible for enforcing these rules. The rules will ensure that charges are set efficiently and that participants in the water market act competitively. The ACCC will determine bulk water charges.
Bureau of Meteorology
The Act gives the Bureau of Meteorology water information functions that are in addition to its existing functions under the Meteorology Act 1955. The Bureau will now be authorised to collect and publish high-quality water information. The publications will include a National Water Account and periodic reports on water resource use and availability. The Bureau will also be empowered to set and implement national standards for water information. A major outcome of the Bureau's work will be increased transparency, confidence and understanding of water information.
Contact for further information
For further information on Water for the Future and the Water Act 2007 you can email WaterPlanEnquiries@environment.gov.au or call 1800 218 478 and leave a message with your name, contact details and the subject of your enquiry. An officer from the Department will respond to your enquiry as soon as possible.
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