NSW Department of Industry Michael Wrathall Drought Coordination - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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NSW Department of Industry Michael Wrathall Drought Coordination - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Managing water shortages in NSW: drought community meetings NSW Department of Industry Michael Wrathall Drought Coordination May and June 2019 Drought policy framework 1. Extreme events policy: why? what? how? 2. Incident response guides:

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Managing water shortages in NSW: drought community meetings

NSW Department of Industry

Michael Wrathall – Drought Coordination

May and June 2019

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Drought policy framework

  • 1. Extreme events policy: why? what? how?
  • 2. Incident response guides: why? what? how?
  • 3. Who’s who in NSW Government
  • 4. Post-February 2019 meetings: updates and events

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  • 1. Extreme events policy: why do we need it?

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Normal rules

  • Assume some future inflows
  • Shares the small risk of more

severe conditions between high priority and low priority needs

Shortfall

  • f inflows

What happens if inflows don’t arrive?

  • In the Millennium drought we

switched off the rules and managed adaptively

  • Now we’re providing more clarity

while retaining adaptability

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1. Extreme events policy: what does it do?

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Defining extreme events Guiding principles Governance: who does what Evaluation & review

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1. Extreme Events policy: what does it do?

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Governance & decision-making

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1. Extreme Events policy: what does it do?

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Principles

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1. Extreme Events policy: what does it do?

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Policy framework

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1. Extreme Events policy: what does it do?

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Evaluation & review

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Stage

Water quantity Water quality Stage 1 Normal management Deliver water as normal Raw water can be treated with usual methods Stage 2 Emerging drought/ water shortage Restrictions on water delivery for general security licences Potential or actual impacts on groundwater Potential for aquifer subsidence Minor adjustments to treat raw water Stage 3 Severe drought/ water shortage Restrictions on water for:

  • High priority licences
  • General security licences

Unacceptable groundwater impacts Major adjustments are needed to treat raw water Stage 4 Critical drought/ water shortage Water only available for critical human needs. Risk to long term availability of the groundwater resources Not possible to treat raw water with standard processes to meet health values and drinking guidelines

  • 1. Extreme

event stages

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The policy sets

  • ut the 4 stages

for managing extreme events

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1. Drought status: October 2018

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Incident Response Guide: Drought stage Stage 1: Normal operations Stage 2: Emerging drought Stage 3: Severe drought Stage 4: Critical drought

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1. Drought status: December 2018

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Incident Response Guide: Drought stage Stage 1: Normal operations Stage 2: Emerging drought Stage 3: Severe drought Stage 4: Critical drought

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1. Drought status: February 2019

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Incident Response Guide: Drought stage Stage 1: Normal operations Stage 2: Emerging drought Stage 3: Severe drought Stage 4: Critical drought

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1. Drought status: May 2019

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Incident Response Guide: Drought stage Stage 1: Normal operations Stage 2: Emerging drought Stage 3: Severe drought Stage 4: Critical drought

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1. Hierarchy of water priorities in drought

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Priority Take/type of use

1

  • Critical human water needs:
  • core human consumption requirements
  • non-human consumption requirements that a failure to meet

would cause prohibitively high social, economic or national security costs 2

  • Needs of the environment

3

  • Stock
  • High security licences
  • Commercial and industrial activities authorised by local water utility
  • Water for electricity generation on a major utility licence
  • Conveyance in supplying water for any priority 3 take

4

  • General security

5

  • Supplementary
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Extreme Events Policy NSW Water Management Act 2000 IRGs IRGs IRGs

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  • 2. Incident response guides: why do we

need them?

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  • Specific guidelines for

managing each water source

  • Within water resource plans
  • Identifies the tools in the toolkit

But how do we decide which tools we actually use?

  • 1. Information
  • 2. Consultation
  • 3. Decision framework
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2i. Information

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  • Rules & legislation
  • High priority water

demands (towns, other domestic, environment, stock, industry)

  • River system supplies
  • Options to mitigate any

shortfall

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  • 2ii. Input into water management decision

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Water management decision

Water resource assessment ROSCCO Local water utilities Critical needs of environment Critical Water Advisory Panel Public sessions

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  • 2ii. Community drought sessions

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Purpose:

  • Present information
  • Local feedback
  • Advice to CWAP
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  • 2ii. Community drought sessions
  • Purpose: to provide advice to the government on the range of

local views on possible drought management measures

  • Identify community/user impacts of particular options

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  • This advice will feed into the next critical water advisory panel

meetings to discuss management options for the next 6-18 months:

  • Barwon-Darling/Lower Darling CWAP: 12 June 2019
  • Northern CWAP: 12 June 2019
  • Southern CWAP: 12 June 2019
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  • 2ii. Critical water advisory panels

Membership :

∙ Department of Industry ∙ WaterNSW ∙ Environment Protection Authority ∙ Department of Primary Industries – Agriculture ∙ Rural Assistance Authority ∙ Office of Environment and Heritage ∙ Department of Primary Industries - Fisheries ∙ NSW Health – Water Unit ∙ Local Land Services ∙ Department of Premier and Cabinet ∙ Joint Organisations of Councils

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Operating:

  • Northern Inland Regulated River

Valleys CWAP

  • Barwon-Darling/Lower Darling

CWAP

  • Southern Inland Rivers CWAP

Role:

  • Advise on appropriate

management actions in extreme events

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  • 2iii. Decision framework

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Objectives High priority water needs Available supplies Management

  • ptions

Decision

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  • 2iii. Decision framework
  • Structured process for making decisions
  • Assists decision-maker with substantial evidence base
  • Subject to independent review

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  • 3. Who’s who in NSW Government: drought

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NSW Department of Industry WaterNSW Natural Resources Access Regulator Office of Environment & Heritage Dept of Primary Industries – Agriculture DPI Fisheries Rural Assistance Authority Local Land Services

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  • 3. Who’s who in NSW Government: water
  • Natural Resources Access Regulator (NRAR) - enforces compliance

with licence conditions and temporary water restrictions, licences major water users

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  • Department of Industry - determines water allocations, imposes

temporary (system) water restrictions, sets policy, develops water sharing plans, provides hydrogeological expertise for groundwater trades and bore applications, provides technical and financial assistance for town water supply providers

  • Office of Environment and Heritage - advises on releases of planned

environmental water, holds water licences for environmental purposes, works with Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder on use of its water licences for environmental purposes.

  • WaterNSW - operates the storages, monitors flows and groundwater

levels and water quality, liaises directly with water customers, licences most water users, assesses and approves surface water trades, bills water customers

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  • 3. Who’s who in NSW Government: DPI & LLS
  • Department of Primary Industries (Agriculture) - produces drought

maps, provides advice to farmers on managing during drought, undertakes research

  • DPI (Fisheries) - provides advice on fish requirements, reports and reacts

to fish kills (aerators, fish relocations)

  • Rural Assistance Authority - manages the NSW Government’s financial

assistance to farmers

  • Local Land Services - on the ground advice to farmers and landholders

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3. Drought coordination forums

  • Drought Interagency Executive Committee - chaired by DPC, drought

meeting of NSW agency heads from DPC, NSW Treasury, NSW Department of Industry, DPI, LLS, Land & Water Commissioner, Cross Border Commissioner, WaterNSW, Sydney Water, Hunter Water, local government

  • Drought Interagency Working Group - chaired by DPI, discusses

drought actions across number of agencies: DPI, DPC, RAA, DOI Water, OEH, Planning & Environment, Office of Small Business, FACS, Health, Transport, Rural Crime Squad, LLS, Dept of Financial Services, Education,

  • BOM. Meets fortnightly
  • Regional Assistance Advisory Committee (RAAC) - an independent

body that provides advice to the NSW Government on drought

  • Critical water advisory panels - chaired by NSW Department of Industry
  • advises on actions to manage water shortages in the major river valleys.

Meets every few months or in response to events requiring a response

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  • 4. February 2019 drought community meetings

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  • 4. What have we done since February 2019?
  • Drought updates on websites → NSW Department of Industry, WaterNSW,

DPI DroughtHub

  • Protection of small flows in northern basin, including QLD request
  • Expansion of CWAPs and community meetings to southern NSW
  • Local government reps included on critical water advisory panels
  • Purpose of releases added to Macquarie & Gwydir allocation statements
  • Groundwater allocation presentations
  • Improved information on water allocations → Allocations dashboard
  • Improved information on water trade → Trade dashboard

Follow-up since previous drought community meetings

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4. Northern flows: early-2019

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  • 4. Temporary water restrictions

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GS carryover vs HS allocation

Clause 46 of the Murrumbidgee Water Sharing Plan Available water determinations for regulated river (high security) access licences (6) The available water determinations made under subclauses (2)–(5) should not be made until water becomes available after making provisions for the following: (g) sufficient water has been set aside to meet the water allocations already in the regulated river (general security) access licence water allocation accounts

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Section 58 of the Water Management Act 2000 (1) The following priorities are to be observed in relation to access licences: (a) LWUs, major utility and D&S have priority over all other access licences, (b) HS licences have priority over all other access licences (other than those referred to in paragraph (a)), (d) supplementary licences have priority below all other licences.

Need to consider both

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  • 4. Water reforms and Water Renewal Taskforce

NSW Government’s water goals

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4. New metering rules

  • The drought emphasises how important it is for water to be

taken fairly and according to the rules

  • The NSW Government is implementing new rules over the next

five years to improve the coverage and standard of non-urban water metering

  • From 1 December 2019, the new metering requirements will

apply to surface water works 500 mm and above

  • Information sessions will be held across NSW mid-year to help

water users understand the new rules and what they will need to do to comply Dates and locations of the sessions will soon be published: www.industry.nsw.gov.au/water-reform/metering-framework Please email any questions to water.reform@industry.nsw.gov.au

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www.mdba.gov.au/media/mr/accurate-metering- measure-confidence-murray-darling-water-use

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  • 4. Water quality and response to fish deaths

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Evidence

  • Weir pools

begin to stratify

  • Heatwaves

& low flows Stage 1 Response

  • Increased

monitoring

  • Review river
  • perations
  • Consider

WQA Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4

Incident response guide

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  • 4. Water quality and response to fish deaths

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  • 4. Communications: website

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  • 4. Website and updates

Website: www.industry.nsw.gov.au/water Email updates: www.industry.nsw.gov.au/media/subscribe

Monthly newsletter and water allocation statements

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