14th Riversymposium, keynote presentation from Prof Barry Hart (2011)
1. The Basin Plan —
striking the right balance
Professor Barry Hart
2. Where is the Murray–Darling Basin?
Large system
1 million km2
1/7 area of Australia
Contains Australia’s
three longest rivers
– Murray — 2,380 km
– Darling — 1,480 km
– Murrumbidgee — 1,490 km
23 river basins
Major climate differences
(north to south)
Murray — highly regulated
Darling — unregulated
4. Basin Plan — why the need?
Significant changes to hydrology
less flooding (overbank flows)
changes to seasonal flow regimes
Overallocation of water resources
particularly severe in southern Basin
Degradation of the environment
river red gums dying
fish populations reduced
waterbird number reduced
algal blooms
water quality degradation — salinity
Murray mouth closed
Increased threat to agricultural production
5. Balancing the equation
Without
development Current
Interceptions
42% consumptive
Environment Diversions
60%
Environment
58% environment
Flow to sea
40%
Flow to the sea
Murray — 58%, 42%
Darling — 28%, 72%
6. Basin Plan — purpose
Objective
to develop and implement an integrated water
resource plan for the whole Basin
Basin Plan seeks to rebalance the system
more water for the environment
minimise the impacts on irrigators and local
communities
MDBA’s task
set the bounds with sustainable diversion
limits (SDLs) and work with the states and
local communities to implement
MDBA only has powers to do part of the reform
but ……
7. The Basin Plan
The Basin Plan must include:
sustainable diversion
limits (SDLs)
water resource plan
accreditation
Environmental
Watering Plan
Water Quality & Salinity
Management Plan
water trading rules
monitoring and
evaluation program
8. What are we aiming to achieve?
A healthy working Basin with:
critical drinking water needs met
rivers connected to creeks, billabongs and
floodplains
healthy ecosystems supporting a wide variety
of plants and animals
sufficient flows to flush nutrients and salt
through the system
sustainable growth in food and fibre production
long-term confidence for businesses and
communities
‘fit for purpose’ water quality
a free market for trading water
10. Four-stage process
Information Information
feedback formal submission Adoption
The The draft The Basin Initial
Guide Basin Plan Plan implementation
2010 2011 2012 2019
11. The task
Healthy rivers
Social and economic Balance | Judgement Environmental science
• Macro-economic models • Salt and nutrient export target
• Parliamentary enquiries • End-of-system flows
• Cost-benefit analysis • 106 hydrologic indicator sites:
• Local impacts study - key ecosystem functions
- key environmental assets
Environmentally
sustainable
level of
take
System constraints
• River operations
• Policy
• Physical
12. Decision-making process
Environment Implications
(science + judgements) • social and economic
• define the environment • environmental
we want to protect
• define what we want Balance
it to be (objectives)
• determine how much
water we need to achieve this
— the environmental water
requirement (EWR)
↔
Environmentally Sustainable more than
sustainable level diversion just a
of take (ESLT) limit (SDL) volume
13. Defining the environment
Largely done in the Water Act 2007 (Cwlth)
Key environmental assets
– wetlands, floodplain forests, rivers,
estuary (Coorong)
– largely specific areas, locations
– judgements required to define which are ‘key’
assets and how much water they need
Key ecosystem functions
– largely ecological processes
– primary production, fish migration,
triggers for breeding, material transport
– judgements required in relating
functions to flows
Ecosystem services
– not considered yet
14. How much water is needed?
Key environmental assets
Too many to assess — over
2000 identified
18 assets selected as
hydrologic indicator sites
These sites are:
– hydrologically representative
– have a good information
base
Most sites selected are
wetlands or floodplain forests
that require high flows largely
through overbank flows
High flows make the largest
contribution to volume and
therefore the largest influence Gwydir Wetlands, north-west
of Moree, New South Wales
on ESLT Photograph Ray Dawson
15. Hydrologic indicator sites (assets)
Lower Balonne River Floodplain System
Narran Lakes
Booligal Wetlands
Lachlan Swamps
Great Cumbung Swamp
Lower Murrumbidgee Wetlands
Lower Darling River System
Gwydir Wetlands
Hattah Lakes
Macquarie Marshes
Riverland – Chowilla Floodplain
Mid Murrumbidgee Wetlands
Coorong, Lower Lakes and
Murray Mouth
Wimmera River Terminal Wetlands
Barmah Millewa Forest
Edward Wakool River System
Lower Goulburn River Floodplain
Gunbower Koondrook
Perricoota Forests
20. Environmental water
Within each catchment, two components identified:
local requirements to water the assets and
functions in that catchment
downstream requirement to water assets and
functions in lower parts of the Basin
Example — Goulburn catchment
local for the river channel and lower Goulburn
Floodplain
downstream — contribution to River Murray assets
and functions
21. Social and economic effects
Long term, Basin scale
small economic effect
Short term, local scale
small communities
with high reliance
on irrigation will
be most at risk
Effects of drought at
Lake Alexandrina,
Milang, South Australia
Photo: Jim Donaldson
Yarrawonga Weir and
Lake Mulwala
Photo: Michael Bell
22. How much more
environmental water is needed?
Basin wide
Additional 2,800 GL/y
(long-term average) however
since 2009
890 GL therefore
recovered by 2019
< 1,900 GL
to be recovered
23. Indicative rebalancing
2,700 GL/y Interceptions
33%
8,100 GL/y Diversions
consumptive
Additional
environmental
water
16,800 GL/y Environment
67%
environment
5,100 GL/y Flow to the sea
North — 25%, 75%
South — 44%, 56%
24. Implementation
Major rural reform —
will take time
The Basin Plan as part
of a plan for the Basin
Will need a ‘whole of
government’ response
to minimise impacts on
local communities
States and community
will be vital part of the
implementation through
developing and
implementing regional Kulcurna area on the
Chowilla floodplain before
water resource plans environmental watering, 2010
Photo: Corey Brown
Need less focus on the SDLs and more
focus on how the extra water is used
25. Strategies for adjustment
Irrigators
• Commonwealth
Current Basin Plan
buybacks ($3.1 billion)
Interceptions Interceptions • Modernisation
program ($5.9 billion)
42% Consumptive
consumptive
Diversions Diversions
Environment
Environment
58% Environment
Communities/
environment businesses
• Lost water = $ lost to
towns/regions
Flow to the sea • Debt levels high
Flow to the sea
due to drought
• Mitigating impacts —
government assistance?
26. Opportunities
Time extension to 2019
provides opportunity
In 2012 the Basin Plan will
recommend ‘indicative
SDLs’ for each catchment
and the Basin
This is within a
‘constrained’ system
Opportunities to address
some of these constraints
(with potential changes
to SDLs)
Opportunity to Kulcurna area on the
Chowilla floodplain after
progress towards more environmental watering, 2010
Photo Corey Brown
contemporary river management
27. Constraints
Operational constraints
change river operating rules
(currently focused on consumptive water delivery)
optimise storage management
Policy constraints
modify storage carryover rules
water sharing plans — alter to better protect environmental
water during droughts
remove state-based policies that impact of environmental
outcomes
Physical constraints
remove/modify infrastructure that impede high flows
purchase easements to allow high flows to be delivered
adopt engineering works and other innovative solutions
28. An adaptive plan
• More buybacks
Final SDL
• Address some constraints
Consumptive water •
•
More modelling & science
Environmental works
Indicative
SDL
Gap
890 GL/y
850 GL/y recovered
recovered
Environmental water
2004 2009 2012 2015 2019
National Water Basin Plan Basin Plan Basin Plan
Initiative commenced adopted ‘pause point’ fully enforced
SDLs need to be met
29. Summary
Development and
implementation of the Basin
Plan — major rural reform
Significant reductions
in current diversion limits
required
Commonwealth investment
($9 billion) should ‘purchase’
all the water required
But still need a
whole-of-government response Azure kingfisher.
Photo: David Kleinert
to minimise impacts on some local communities
Many opportunities to progress towards more
contemporary river management by addressing
many of the current constraints
This is a ‘journey’ we have just begun
Hinweis der Redaktion
Been in the role since middle of the year.Acknowledgement of Rob Freeman (who is Chairing the Conference)
Current water use/year:Interceptions – 2740 GL (9%)Diversions – 10940 GL (33%)Environment – 14000 GL (43%)Flow to sea – 5100 GL (15%)
The Basin Plan is the next step on the journey.The Water Act requires the plan provide for “the integrated management of the Basin’s water resources” in a way that optimises economic, social and environmental outcomes. In other words, water management in the Basin, like the rivers themselves, wont stop at a state border.The Water Act is specific in setting out 15 elements that must be included in the Basin Plan.These include: limits on the amount of water use (both surface water and groundwater), called sustainable diversion limits requirements that state water resource plans must comply with a plan to coordinate environmental water use a water quality and salinity management plan rules about trading of water rights a monitoring and evaluation program.
What are we trying to achieve with the Basin Plan:We want a healthy working Basin – not a return some ‘natural’ or pre-European state. The health is important, but the working is also important. Key outcomes for the Basin Plan include: maintain water for human consumption in times of drought rivers regularly connected to creeks, billabongs and floodplains healthy ecosystems and functions supporting a wide variety of plants and animalsan environment that supports food and fibre production and provides long-term confidence for businesses and communities water of a quality suitable for drinking and other uses, sufficient flows that flush salts and excess nutrients from the Basin a free market for trading water with clear, consistent rules.
One of the main things I have learned since arriving at the Authority is that environmental water needs and use is complicated. In managing national parks it is not as simple as just fencing off a forest. It requires active management.It is exactly the same for environmental watering. It is not just a case of acquiring a volume of water for the environment from current irrigation users.As shown on this slide, the wetlands and rivers of the Basin require a variety of flows with varying frequencies. These range from low flows and pulses within the river channel, to overbank flows of varying sizes that water different areas of the landscape.It is also important to realise that it is not possible to manage these sites in isolation. The Basin’s rivers, wetlands and floodplains operate as a system, and therefore must be managed as a system.
Objectiveto develop and implement an integrated water resource Plan for the whole Basin Basin Plan seeks to rebalance the system:more water for the environment, butminimise impacts on irrigators and local communitiesMDBAs task:set the bounds (SDLs)work with the States to implement But MDBA only has powers to do part of the reformmitigating social and economic impacts role of Governments
Objectiveto develop and implement an integrated water resource Plan for the whole Basin Basin Plan seeks to rebalance the system:more water for the environment, butminimise impacts on irrigators and local communitiesMDBAs task:set the bounds (SDLs)work with the States to implement But MDBA only has powers to do part of the reformmitigating social and economic impacts role of Governments
Objectiveto develop and implement an integrated water resource Plan for the whole Basin Basin Plan seeks to rebalance the system:more water for the environment, butminimise impacts on irrigators and local communitiesMDBAs task:set the bounds (SDLs)work with the States to implement But MDBA only has powers to do part of the reformmitigating social and economic impacts role of Governments
Objectiveto develop and implement an integrated water resource Plan for the whole Basin Basin Plan seeks to rebalance the system:more water for the environment, butminimise impacts on irrigators and local communitiesMDBAs task:set the bounds (SDLs)work with the States to implement But MDBA only has powers to do part of the reformmitigating social and economic impacts role of Governments
Objectiveto develop and implement an integrated water resource Plan for the whole Basin Basin Plan seeks to rebalance the system:more water for the environment, butminimise impacts on irrigators and local communitiesMDBAs task:set the bounds (SDLs)work with the States to implement But MDBA only has powers to do part of the reformmitigating social and economic impacts role of Governments
Objectiveto develop and implement an integrated water resource Plan for the whole Basin Basin Plan seeks to rebalance the system:more water for the environment, butminimise impacts on irrigators and local communitiesMDBAs task:set the bounds (SDLs)work with the States to implement But MDBA only has powers to do part of the reformmitigating social and economic impacts role of Governments
Changes to water use will have social and economic affects in the Basin. The Authority has listened to the views, hopes and concerns of people living in the Basin.It has also commissioned over 16 studies, as well as drawing on numerous existing studies, in order to better understand the potential social and economic affects, The main findings of these studies has been that over the long term and at a Basin wide scale, the economic affects of the Basin Plan will be minimal.However, there will be a number of communities that will be particularly sensitive to changes in water use, particularly small communities with a high reliance on irrigation.The extent of these effects will be dependent on many other factors, as water availability is one of these factors. It will be dependent on commodity prices, the Australian dollar, and also where and what type of water is bought and the extent to which Australian farmers continue to innovate and adapt to changing circumstances.Importantly, failure to act and achieve sustainable water use will have negative social and economic affects.
I would like to emphasise that these numbers represent our current thinking and knowledge, and we are currently undertaking further modelling and analysis to look at volumes both above and below 2,800 GL
Current water use/year:Interceptions – 2740 GL (9%)Diversions – 10940 GL (33%)Environment – 14000 GL (43%)Flow to sea – 5100 GL (15%)