What is a Water Allocation Plan?

Where a water resource is prescribed, the Natural Resources Management Act 2004 (NRM Act) requires that a water allocation plan is prepared by the relevant natural resources management board (NRM board). There are eight NRM regions in South Australia.

Map of Water Resource Management Areas in South Australia 1.043MB PDF file 

Water allocation plans set the principles or rules under which consumptive pools, entitlements and allocations are created. The NRM Act requires that the water needs of the environment must be taken into account when determining the quantity of water available for consumptive use.

Water allocation plans also set out the water affecting activities that require a permit or approval, such as drilling a bore or constructing a dam. Regional NRM plans, developed for the eight NRM regions in South Australia, also set out principles relating to water affecting activities.

The Department for Water assists NRM boards in the preparation of water allocation plans by providing data (hydrogeological and hydrological) and advice about licensing, permits, legislation, policy and intergovernmental agreements.

Once an NRM board has prepared a draft water allocation plan or NRM plan in consultation with the Department for Water, the community is consulted on the draft plan. The NRM board coordinates the community consultation, including the submissions on the draft plan. The Minister is required to consider all submissions prior to adoption of the draft plan.

Once community consultation has been completed, water allocation plans are adopted by the relevant Minister and become Government policy.

Schedule for unbundling water rights

Following completion of unbundling for the River Murray Prescribed Watercourse in 2009, South Australia is continuing its program to unbundle water rights across South Australia and remove barriers to trading water entitlements, pursuant to Action 61 in Water for Good.

South Australia has specific commitments to implement unbundling within the following areas by the end of 2014:

• Peak, Roby and Sherlock Prescribed Wells Area
• Mallee Prescribed Wells Area
• Noora Prescribed Wells Area.

South Australia is also reviewing the feasibility of unbundling water in its unregulated surface water and groundwater systems. Where demonstrated to be feasible and of overall net-benefit, further unbundling will be implemented in consultation with stakeholders on a case by case basis.