Review of Water Governance issues in the Lower Fitzroy
report
posted on 2024-10-16, 03:34 authored by John RolfeJohn Rolfe, Nicole FlintNicole Flint, Delwar AkbarDelwar Akbar, Jayanath AnandaJayanath Ananda, Jeremy De ValckJeremy De Valck, Rodrigo Zilleruelo- Good governance is key to the establishment of accepted policy, planning, regulatory and administration systems and the efficient management of water and water markets. There is increasing recognition that attention needs to be paid to the ‘soft’ institutional systems as well as the ‘hard’ institutional systems that underpin good water governance.
- There are well established water resource planning and management systems for the lower Fitzroy in Queensland, with two supplemented schemes in the river system plus unsupplemented water and a robust regulatory and administrative framework provided under the Water Plan (Fitzroy Basin) 2011. These appear to have been sufficient to manage the system to recent times.
- However the system is rapidly becoming more complex, with additional demands emerging for urban, industry and agricultural needs, and with the new Rookwood weir being constructed.
- In recent years a greater knowledge of the value of water for maintaining ecosystem health has developed, including for protection of riparian habitats, fisheries production and the health of the Great Barrier Reef. Environmental flows in ephemeral waterways are an important aspect of water policy and planning, as are cultural flows which support cultural, spiritual, environmental, economic and social outcomes for First Nations people (DCCEEW, 2023).
- Currently there are a number of overlapping roles and processes to govern the lower Fitzroy system.
- The National Water Initiative (NWI) was agreed by all states and territories in 2004, demonstrating a shared commitment to sustainable management of Australia’s water resources.
- The Queensland Department of Regional Development, Manufacturing and Water (DRDMW) are responsible for system regulation and carriage of the Fitzroy Basin Water Plan, as well as the review of the water plan scheduled to be completed by 2025.
- DRDMW, Sunwater and Rockhampton Regional Council own water in the different impoundments, with the latter two organisations managing the supplemented schemes.
- Stanwell Power Corporation and Gladstone Area Water Board are the major holders of industrial allocations, while there is a large range of entitlements for medium security water for agriculture.
- Rockhampton Regional Council, Sunwater, DRDMW and local industries have interests in future development processes, including the potential to raise Eden Bann weir.
- There are number of issues about how to manage water supplies more efficiently.
- Currently there are three water owners and two water managers for supplemented schemes as well as the unsupplemented water. Having very different water supplies in the same river system may limit interest in joint planning, ownership and trading. Potential solutions here include the formation of a water utility to run the system on behalf of the various entities or better alignment of operating systems and rules. Water traceability and accounting will be important because of potential for individual irrigators to hold water from different entities that may have varying conditions, and the use of the Fitzroy Barrage as the offtake pond for both the Stanwell and Gladstone pipelines.
- There appears to be limited efficiency in the system with current low rates of water utilisation, although this is largely explained by reserves held for urban and industrial uses. Consequently larger scale investors have been unable to access water allocations in the Lower Fitzroy. Current market activities are limited and rudimentary, but the addition of Rookwood weir supplies and the increased demand for water (including by larger investors) are creating opportunities for more sophisticated operations. A review process is required to identify what the market rules should be given the complexity of the system and the different types of demands and enterprises involved. An essential part of good governance structures are mechanisms that ensure that power, rights and responsibilities are appropriately distributed. There has been limited attention to representativeness to date. The expansion of irrigated agriculture with the Rookwood weir development creates opportunities for irrigator networks to be formed to capture cooperative benefits and contribute to systems governance.
- The example of water reforms in the Murray Darling Basin offers insights into the societal challenges associated with water reform and effecting adaptive water governance (Alexandra, 2018).
- As well as agricultural, urban and industrial uses, there is recognition of the need to allocate water to ensure environmental and cultural/community uses are accounted for in planning processes, including in the context of climate change. Water allocation decisions must, under Queensland law and Australian water policies, consider the flows needed for good environmental health, cultural outcomes and water security (State of Queensland, 2021). These allocations will likely be a focus of the Fitzroy Basin Water Plan review.
Funding
Category 4 - CRC Research Income
History
Start Page
1End Page
39Number of Pages
39Publisher
CRC for Developing Northern Australia (CRCNA)Additional Rights
CC BYPeer Reviewed
- Yes
Open Access
- Yes
Author Research Institute
- Centre for Regional Economics and Supply Chain (RESC)
Era Eligible
- Yes
