Conjunctive water management and Australian Capital Territory water policy
The Water Resources Act 1998 provides for the sustainable management of surface water and groundwater within the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). The Act requires that the Water Resources Management Plan and Environmental Flow Guidelines be developed to meet the environmental needs of the waterways and aquifers of the ACT, the allocation requirements for supply and to ensure protection of aquatic ecosystems through adequate environmental flows. Clear priority is given to the environmental uses of water.
Future surface water allocations in the ACT must be provided for in the management plan for the relevant subcatchment in order to be granted. 10% of flows above the 80th percentile (that is the flow that occurs 80% of the time) is regarded as the suitable portion of water available for surface water abstraction in the majority of subcatchments within the ACT, however water supply subcatchments differ slightly.
Future groundwater allocations must be provided for in the management plan under both the groundwater sustainable limit and the total sustainable limit for the relevant subcatchment. Following the precautionary approach of the Environmental Flow Guidelines, and the base flow recharge to surface water, the management plan states that no more than 10% of average annual groundwater recharge in a subcatchment may be available for extraction for use.
Relevant Links
Environment ACT
Australian Capital Territory Water Legislation
References
NGC, 2004. Surface water-groundwater integration and legislative constraints. National Groundwater Committee