This article was written by Christina Crossman.
With proposed amendments to the legislation regulating water in NSW
anticipated to be introduced to Parliament later this year, we set out
below the recent developments in the water space so that you do not find
yourself up the creek without a paddle…
In December 2017, the NSW Government released the Water Reform Action Plan
(WRAP) in response to the Independent Investigation into
NSW Water Management and Compliance, conducted by Ken Matthew, AO (the Matthews Report) and the Murray-Darling Basin Water
Compliance Review.
The most significant finding of both the Matthews Report and the
Murray-Darling Basin Water Compliance Review was the urgent need for
greater protection of environmental water, particularly in the unregulated
river systems of the Northern Basin.
To reflect the recommendations outlined in the Matthews Report and the
Compliance Review, the WRAP has four central focus areas with ambitious
proposed implementation actions:
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Most notably, the WRAP targets greater transparency with respect to
usage and account data, greater protection of environmental flows and
improved metering and measurement of extractions.
To support the implementation of the WRAP, amendments will be required
to the Water Management Act 2000 (NSW) and the Natural Resources Access Regulator Act 2017 (NSW).
Accordingly, the ‘Water Management Amendment Bill 2018’ (WMA Bill) was recently released, with reforms focused
on best practice, metering and transparency.
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The WMA Bill was put on public consultation until 15 April 2018 and it
is expected that it will be introduced into Parliament later this year.
Further findings on the management of water in NSW and across Australia
will be revealed in the near future, with the Murray Darling Basin
Royal Commission currently underway in South Australia and civil and
criminal proceedings alleging water mismanagement recently instigated
in the NSW Land and Environmental Court. There is little doubt that the
adequacy of the State and Federal Government’s response to such
findings will continue to be heavily scrutinised by both industry and
the public.
We will continue to keep you updated on major water reforms in
Australia. For more information or to discuss any recent developments
in water management in NSW and across Australia, please contact any one
of our KWM water contacts.