2009
2009
2009-12-14
Water Management Act 2000
act-2000-092
other
none
reprint
allinforce
website
Gazette No 106 of 24 July 2009, page
4439
0
sl-2009-0347
04293898-2c70-4094-b1fb-b75b9f6428b5
52025cfb-65c3-403a-8b00-1b032bf46ed1
Does not include amendments
by:
Statute Law
(Miscellaneous Provisions) Act (No 2) 2009 No 106 (not
commenced — to commence on 8.1.2010)
Pursuant to section 50 of the Water Management Act 2000, I, the
Minister for Water, make the following Minister’s Plan.
PHILLIP COSTA,
MPMinister for
Water
Part 1Introduction
1Name of this
Plan
This Plan is the Water Sharing Plan for the Hunter Unregulated and Alluvial
Water Sources 2009 (hereafter this
Plan).
2Nature and Status of this
Plan
(1)
This Plan is made under section 50 of the Water Management Act 2000 (hereafter
the Act).
(2)
This Plan is a plan for water sharing and
generally deals with the matters set out in sections 20 and 21 of the
Act.
3Date of
commencement
This Plan commences on 1 August
2009.
4Water sources to which this
Plan applies
(1)
The water sources in respect of which this Plan
applies are:
(a)
the Munmurra River Water
Source,
(b)
the Krui River Water Source,
(c)
the Bow River Water Source,
(d)
the Merriwa River Water
Source,
(e)
the Halls Creek Water Source,
(f)
the Baerami Creek Water
Source,
(g)
the Widden Brook Water
Source,
(h)
the Bylong River Water
Source,
(i)
the Wollar Creek Water
Source,
(j)
the Upper Goulburn River Water
Source,
(k)
the Lower Goulburn River Water
Source,
(l)
the Dart Brook Water Source,
(m)
the Pages River Water Source,
(n)
the Isis River Water Source,
(o)
the Upper Hunter River Water
Source,
(p)
the Rouchel Brook Water
Source,
(q)
the Muswellbrook Water
Source,
(r)
the Jerrys Water Source,
(s)
the Glennies Water Source,
(t)
the Glendon Brook Water
Source,
(u)
the Luskintyre Water Source,
(v)
the Singleton Water Source,
(w)
the Martindale Creek Water
Source,
(x)
the Doyles Creek Water
Source,
(y)
the Lower Wollombi Brook Water
Source,
(z)
the Black Creek Water Source,
(aa)
the Wallis Creek Water
Source,
(bb)
the Newcastle Water Source,
(cc)
the Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water
Source,
(dd)
the Williams River Water
Source,
(ee)
the Upper Paterson Water
Source,
(ff)
the Upper Wollombi Brook Water
Source,
(gg)
the North Lake Macquarie Water
Source,
(hh)
the South Lake Macquarie Water
Source,
(ii)
the Dora Creek Water Source,
(jj)
the Hunter Regulated River Alluvial Water
Source,
Note—
The Hunter Regulated River Alluvial Water Source
extends from the top of the high bank of the Hunter Regulated River or
Glennies Creek to the boundary of the alluvial aquifer covering the
unconsolidated alluvial sediments, excluding the alluvial sediments covered by
the Hunter Regulated River Water Sharing Plan. The Regulated Plan covers
waterfront land except for alluvial sediments within one metre of works taking
water pursuant to licences issued under Part 5 of the Water
Act 1912. This water source includes alluvial waters
only.
(kk)
the Wallis Creek Tidal Pool Water
Source,
Note—
The Wallis Creek Tidal Pool Water Source extends
between the mangrove and tidal limits and only includes the water within the
tidal stretch of Wallis Creek, not including any freshwater tributaries. This
water source includes unregulated waters only and excludes alluvial
groundwater.
(ll)
the Paterson River Tidal Pool Water Source,
and
Note—
The Paterson River Tidal Pool Water Source
extends between the mangrove and tidal limits and only includes the water
within the tidal stretch of the Paterson River, not including any freshwater
tributaries. This water source includes unregulated waters only and excludes
alluvial groundwater.
(mm)
the Hunter River Tidal Pool Water
Source,
Note—
The Hunter River Tidal Pool Water Source extends
between the mangrove and tidal limits and only includes the water within the
tidal stretch of the Newcastle Water Source, not including any freshwater
tributaries. This water source includes unregulated waters only and excludes
alluvial groundwater.
and shall be known as the Hunter Unregulated and
Alluvial Water Sources (hereafter these
water sources).
Note—
An overview of these water sources is shown in
Appendix 1.
(2)
These water sources are shown on the registered
plan called The Hunter Unregulated and Alluvial Water Sources (WSP003) held by
the Department (hereafter the registered plan for these water
sources).
Note—
Copies of the registered plans for these water
sources may be inspected at offices of the Department listed in Appendix
2.
(3)
Subject to subclause (4), these water sources
include:
(a)
all water occurring naturally on or below the
surface of the ground shown on the registered plan for these water sources,
and
(b)
all water in rivers, lakes and wetlands in these
water sources, and
(c)
all water contained within all alluvial sediments
below the surface of the land shown on the registered plan for these water
sources (hereafter the alluvial
sediments in these water sources), including any water
contained in those unconsolidated alluvial sediments underlying the waterfront
land within 1 metre of works taking water pursuant to licences issued under
Part 5 of the Water Act 1912 or
their equivalent aquifer access licence issued under the Act, that are not
part of the Hunter Regulated River Water Source.
Note—
The Hunter Regulated River Water Source is
defined in the Water Sharing Plan for the Hunter
Regulated River Water Source 2003.
(4)
These water sources do not include:
(a)
any water contained in alluvial sediments
downstream of the tidal limit in these water sources,
Note—
This exclusion applies to the Wallis Creek Tidal
Pool Water Source, the Paterson River Tidal Pool Water Source and Hunter River
Tidal Pool Water Source.
(b)
any water contained in the coastal sands in these
water sources,
(c)
any water contained in fractured rock aquifers
and basement rocks in these water sources,
(d)
any water contained in the unconsolidated
alluvial sediments underlying the waterfront land of all rivers within the
Hunter Regulated River Water Source, except as provided for in subclause (3)
(c),
Note—
The Hunter Regulated River Water Source is
defined in the Water Sharing Plan for the Hunter
Regulated River Water Source 2003.
(e)
the area of the Wybong Creek Water Source, as
defined in the Water Sharing Plan for the Wybong
Creek Water Source 2003,
(f)
the area of the Hunter Regulated River Water
Source, as defined in the Water Sharing Plan for the Hunter
Regulated River Water Source 2004,
(g)
the area of the Paterson Regulated River Water
Source, as defined in the Water Sharing Plan for the Paterson
Regulated River Water Source 2008, and
(h)
the area of land below the mangrove limit, except
for the Mannering Lake in South Lake Macquarie Water Source and the Belmont
Lagoon in the North Lake Macquarie Water Source.
Note—
The mangrove limit is defined in the
dictionary.
(5)
These water sources are within part of the Hunter
Water Management Area and part of the Central Coast Water Management
Area.
5Management
zones
For the purpose of this Plan, the following water
sources are divided into the following management zones and are shown on the
registered plan for these water sources:
(a)
the Halls Creek Water Source is divided into
the:
(i)
Halls Creek Management Zone,
and
(ii)
Giants Creek Management
Zone,
(b)
the Pages River Water Source is divided into
the:
(i)
Murrurundi Management Zone,
(ii)
Scotts Creek Management Zone,
(iii)
Kewell Creek Management Zone,
(iv)
Gundy Management Zone, and
(v)
Segenhoe Management
Zone,
(c)
the Dart Brook Water Source is divided into
the:
(i)
Upper Dart Brook Management
Zone,
(ii)
Upper Middle Brook Management
Zone,
(iii)
Petwyn Vale Management Zone,
(iv)
Lower Dart Brook Management Zone,
and
(v)
Lower Middle Brook and Kingdon Ponds Management
Zone,
(d)
the Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water Source is divided
into the:
(i)
Paterson River Tributaries Management Zone,
and
(ii)
Allyn River Management
Zone,
(e)
the Upper Wollombi Water Source is divided into
the:
(i)
Congewai Creek Management Zone,
and
(ii)
Wollombi Brook Arm Management
Zone,
(f)
the Williams River Water Source is divided into
the:
(i)
Williams River Management Zone,
and
(ii)
Seaham Weir Management
Zone,
(g)
the Hunter Regulated River Alluvial Water Source
is divided into the:
(i)
Upstream Glennies Creek Management Zone
(hereafter u/s
Glennies Creek Management Zone), for that part of the water
source adjacent to the Hunter River upstream of its junction with Glennies
Creek,
(ii)
Downstream Glennies Creek Management Zone
(hereafter d/s
Glennies Creek Management Zone), for that part of the water
source adjacent to the Hunter River downstream of its junction with Glennies
Creek, and
(iii)
Glennies Creek Management Zone, for that part of
the water source adjacent to Glennies Creek,
(h)
the Jerrys Water Source is divided into
the:
(i)
Jerrys Management Zone, and
(ii)
Appletree Flat Management Zone,
and
(i)
the Upper Hunter Water Source is divided into
the:
(i)
Upper Hunter Management Zone,
and
(ii)
Stewarts Brook Management
Zone.
6Amendment of this
Part
The Minister may amend this Part to:
(a)
amend (including to amend the boundaries of) an
existing water source or management zone in these water
sources,
(b)
establish new or additional water sources or
management zones in these water sources,
Note—
In instances where in-stream structure such as
weirs are removed, this is likely to result in a change to the tidal limit of
the water source, and a resultant change in the boundary of the water source
and management zones, where applicable.
(c)
vary the water sources included in these water
sources, including to add a river or section of river to one of these water
sources or to remove a river or section of river from one of these water
sources providing that:
(i)
the river or section of river that is to be added
has been removed from an order which declared that river or section of river
to be a regulated river, or
(ii)
the river or section of river that is to be
removed has been added to an order which declared that river or section of
river to be a regulated river, and
(iii)
the Minister is satisfied that there will be no
impact on environmental water, domestic and stock rights, native title rights
or on the water available to any access licences in these water
sources.
Note—
The registered plan for these water sources may
be amended or updated from time to time including as a result of any amendment
made by this Plan.
7Interpretation
(1)
Words and expressions that are defined in the Act
have the same meanings in this Plan.
(2)
Words and expressions that are defined in the
Schedule 1 of this Plan have the meanings set out in that
Schedule.
(3)
Notes in the text of this Plan do not form part
of this Plan.
(4)
Schedules to this Plan form part of this
Plan.
(5)
Appendices to this Plan do not form part of this
Plan.
Part 2Vision, objectives, strategies
and performance indicators
8Vision, objectives, strategies
and performance indicators
This Part is made in accordance with section 35
(1) of the Act.
9Vision
(1)
The vision of this Plan is to provide sustainable
and integrated management of these water sources for the benefit of both
present and future generations.
(2)
This Plan also recognises the following respect
statements for Aboriginal values in these water sources:
(a)
life-giving water is of extreme significance to
Aboriginal culture for its domestic, traditional and spiritual values,
and
(b)
whilst water supplied for the environment will
provide protection for native flora and fauna, water for fishing, food
gathering and recreational activities, it is important that the community
respects the spiritual significance of water to the Aboriginal
people.
10Objectives
The objectives of this Plan are to:
(a)
protect, preserve, maintain or enhance the
important river flow dependent and high priority groundwater dependent
ecosystems of these water sources,
(b)
protect, preserve, maintain or enhance the
Aboriginal, cultural and heritage values of these water
sources,
(c)
protect basic landholder
rights,
(d)
manage these water sources to ensure equitable
sharing between users,
(e)
provide opportunities for market based trading of
access licences and water allocations within sustainability and system
constraints,
(f)
provide recognition of the connectivity between
surface water and groundwater,
(g)
provide sufficient flexibility in water account
management to encourage responsible use of available water,
and
(h)
adaptively manage these water
sources.
Note—
For the purposes of the Inter-governmental Agreement on the
National Water Initiative (2004), the environmental and
other public benefit outcomes provided under this Plan include:
1.
the important river flow dependent environmental,
Aboriginal, cultural and heritage values of these water sources are protected,
preserved, maintained or enhanced,
2.
these water sources are managed to ensure
equitable sharing between users, and
3.
basic landholder rights of owners, or occupiers,
of land are protected.
11Strategies
The strategies of this Plan are to:
(a)
establish environmental water
rules,
(b)
identify water requirements for basic landholder
rights,
(c)
identify water requirements for access
licences,
(d)
establish rules for granting of access licences
and approvals,
(e)
establish rules that place limits on the
availability of water for extraction,
(f)
establish rules for making available water
determinations,
(g)
establish rules for the operation of water
accounts,
(h)
establish rules which specify the circumstances
under which water may be extracted, and
(i)
establish access licence dealing
rules,
(j)
establish performance indicators
and
(k)
identify triggers for and limit to changes to the
rules.
12Performance
indicators
The following indicators are to be used to
determine the performance of this Plan against its objectives:
(a)
change in low flow regime,
(b)
change in moderate to high flow
regime,
(c)
change in groundwater extraction relative to the
long-term average annual extraction limit,
(d)
extent of groundwater level
fluctuations,
(e)
change in local water utilities
access,
(f)
change in, or maintenance of, ecological value of
key water sources and their dependent ecosystems,
(g)
extent to which basic landholder rights
requirements have been met,
(h)
extent to which major and local water utility
requirements have been met,
(i)
extent to which native title rights requirements
have been met,
(j)
change in economic benefits derived from water
extraction and use, and
(k)
extent of recognition of spiritual, social,
economic and customary values of water to Aboriginal
people.
Note—
This Plan is to be audited pursuant to section 44
of the Act for the purpose of ascertaining whether its provisions are being
given effect to.
Part 3Basis for water
sharing
13Basis for water
sharing
This Part is made in accordance with sections 20
(2) (a) and 20 (2) (c) of the Act.
14Climatic
variability
This Plan recognises the effects of climatic
variability on river flow and groundwater level variability in these water
sources by having provisions that manage:
(a)
the sharing of water in these water sources
within the limits of water availability on a long-term average annual
basis,
(b)
the sharing of flows that occur in specified
water sources on a daily basis, and
(c)
water extraction to maintain groundwater
dependent ecosystems.
15Extraction management unit for
these water sources
(1)
The availability of water for extraction from
these water sources on a long-term average annual basis will be determined at
the level of an extraction management unit.
(2)
The extraction management units for these water
sources are the Goulburn Extraction Management Unit, the Hunter Extraction
Management Unit, the Lake Macquarie Extraction Management Unit and the Hunter
Regulated River Alluvium Extraction Management Unit (hereafter these Units), and are shown on the
registered plan for these water sources.
(3)
The Goulburn Extraction Management Unit consists
of the following water sources:
(a)
Munmurra River Water Source,
(b)
Krui River Water Source,
(c)
Bow River Water Source,
(d)
Merriwa River Water Source,
(e)
Halls Creek Water Source,
(f)
Baerami Creek Water Source,
(g)
Widden Brook Water Source,
(h)
Bylong River Water Source,
(i)
Wollar Creek Water Source,
(j)
Upper Goulburn River Water
Source,
(k)
Lower Goulburn River Water Source,
and
(l)
Wybong Creek Water Source as defined in the
Water Sharing Plan for the Wybong
Creek Water Source 2003.
(4)
The Hunter Extraction Management Unit consists of
the following water sources:
(a)
Dart Brook Water Source,
(b)
Pages River Water Source,
(c)
Isis River Water Source,
(d)
Upper Hunter River Water
Source,
(e)
Rouchel Brook Water Source,
(f)
Muswellbrook Water Source,
(g)
Jerrys Water Source,
(h)
Glennies Water Source,
(i)
Glendon Brook Water Source,
(j)
Luskintyre Water Source,
(k)
Singleton Water Source,
(l)
Martindale Creek Water
Source,
(m)
Doyles Creek Water Source,
(n)
Lower Wollombi Brook Water
Source,
(o)
Black Creek Water Source,
(p)
Wallis Creek Water Source,
(q)
Newcastle Water Source,
(r)
Paterson/Allyn River Water
Source,
(s)
Williams River Water Source,
(t)
Upper Paterson Water Source,
(u)
Upper Wollombi Brook Water
Source,
(v)
Wallis Creek Tidal Pool Water
Source,
(w)
Paterson River Tidal Pool Water Source,
and
(x)
Hunter River Tidal Pool Water
Source.
(5)
The Lake Macquarie Extraction Management Unit
consists of the following water sources:
(a)
North Lake Macquarie Water
Source,
(b)
South Lake Macquarie Water Source,
and
(c)
Dora Creek Water
Source.
(6)
The Hunter Regulated River Alluvium Extraction
Management Unit consists of the Hunter Regulated River Alluvial Water
Source.
16Flow reference
points
(1)
For the purposes of this Plan all flows referred
to in clause 17 (1) are estimated flows at the flow reference point(s) for
each water source or management zone, and are shown on the registered plan for
these water sources, or are as otherwise stated in this
Plan.
(2)
The Minister may amend this Plan to add or remove
flow reference points, including if there are any changes to flow classes
under subclause 17 (2) of this Plan.
(3)
The Minister may amend a flow reference point
where the flow reference point has been removed in line with the NSW Weirs
Policy.
Note—
In some instances flow reference points refer to
a weir site which may be removed in line with the NSW Weirs
Policy.
Note—
The registered plan for these water sources may
be amended as a result of the establishment of, or changes to, flow reference
points under this Part.
Note—
In the event of any failure of a flow reference
point in these water sources, flow classes in the water source may be imposed
pursuant to an order made under section 324 of the Act.
17Flow classes for these water
sources
(1)
This Plan establishes the following flow classes
as the basis for sharing of daily flows from these water sources:
Note—
Any restrictions specified in an order under
section 324 of the Act, for these water sources, may be based on local Water
User Association rostering arrangements.
Note—
It is recognised that Water User Associations
(WUAs) exist in many areas and play an important role in low flow rostering
and sharing of water between users. Where appropriate the flow classes
specified in this Plan reflect the existing sharing arrangements of these
groups. It is intended that WUAs will have an ongoing role in water management
and continue to assist in reducing the frequency of triggering the very low
flow classes specified within this Plan.
Note—
The following flow classes apply to all access
licences extracting from surface water specified for each water source from
the commencement date of this Plan, excluding those access licences to which
clause 77 applies and access licences that nominate a work that is a runoff
harvesting dam.
For those aquifer access licences in the Munmurra
River Water Source, the Krui River Water Source, the Bow River Water Source,
the Merriwa River Water Source, the Halls Creek Water Source, the Baerami
Creek Water Source, the Widden Brook Water Source, the Appletree Flat
Management Zone of the Jerrys Water Source, the Bylong River Water Source, the
Wollar Creek Water Source, the Upper Goulburn River Water Source, the Lower
Goulburn River Water Source, the Dart Brook Water Source, the Pages River
Water Source, the Martindale Creek Water Source, the Doyles Creek Water
Source, the Lower Wollombi Brook Water Source and the Upper Wollombi Brook
Water Source, the flow classes in clause 17 (1) will apply.
They will also apply to all aquifer access
licence holders in the Isis River Water Source, the Upper Hunter River Water
Source, the Rouchel Brook Water Source, the Muswellbrook Water Source, the
Jerrys Management Zone of the Jerrys Water Source, the Glennies Water Source,
the Glendon Brook Water Source, the Luskintyre Water Source, the Singleton
Water Source, the Black Creek Water Source, the Wallis Creek Water Source, the
Newcastle Water Source, the Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water Source, the Williams
River Water Source, the Upper Paterson Water Source, the North Lake Macquarie
Water Source, the South Lake Macquarie Water Source and the Dora Creek Water
Source extracting from alluvial aquifers within 40 metres of the top of the
high bank of the river from year six of this Plan, except where provided for
under clause 68 (3) of this Plan. For those aquifer access licences extracting
outside the 40 metres from the top of the high bank in the Isis River Water
Source, the Upper Hunter River Water Source, the Rouchel Brook Water Source,
the Muswellbrook Water Source, the Jerrys Water Source, the Glennies Water
Source, the Glendon Brook Water Source, the Luskintyre Water Source, the
Singleton Water Source, the Black Creek Water Source, the Wallis Creek Water
Source, the Newcastle Water Source, the Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water Source,
the Williams River Water Source, the Upper Paterson Water Source, the North
Lake Macquarie Water Source, the South Lake Macquarie Water Source and the
Dora Creek Water Source, the flow classes in clause 17 (1) will not
apply.
(a)
for the Munmurra River Water Source, no flow
classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
From year six of this Plan, the taking of water
from pools will only be permitted when there is a visible inflow and outflow
of that pool, as required under clause 19 (3) (c) of this Plan. This only
applies to licences with no existing conditions. Where higher or more
stringent flow conditions currently exist on licences, these conditions will
continue.
(b)
for the Krui River Water Source, no flow classes
are established by this Plan,
Note—
From year six of this Plan, the taking of water
from pools will only be permitted when there is a visible inflow and outflow
of that pool, as required under clause 19 (3) (c) of this Plan. This only
applies to licences with no existing conditions. Where higher or more
stringent flow conditions currently exist on licences, these conditions will
continue.
(c)
for the Bow River Water Source, no flow classes
are established by this Plan,
Note—
From year six of this Plan, the taking of water
from pools will only be permitted when there is a visible inflow and outflow
of that pool, as required under clause 19 (3) (c) of this Plan. This only
applies to licences with no existing conditions. Where higher or more
stringent flow conditions currently exist on licences, these conditions will
continue.
(d)
for the Merriwa River Water Source, as measured
at Merriwa River at Upstream Vallances Creek gauge (210066), no flow classes
are established for the first five years of this Plan, thereafter:
(i)
the Very Low Flow Class is when flows are at or
below 0.5 megalitres per day (hereafter ML/day), and
Note—
0.5 ML/day corresponds to the estimated 80th
percentile. The percentile refers to the lowest flow month at the gauge and
includes all days of record.
(ii)
A Class is when flows are greater than 0.5
ML/day,
Note—
The Merriwa River Water Source may be divided
into management zones during the term of this Plan based on the reinstatement
of gauging infrastructure, and flow classes amended, as set out under clause
17 (2) (h) of this Plan.
Note—
For the first five years of this Plan, the taking
of water from a river by a nominated water supply work is permitted only where
it complies with the flow conditions imposed on the authorised water supply
work, or in the absence of such condition, if there is a visible flow in the
river in the downstream vicinity of the water supply, as required under clause
19 (3) (d) of this Plan. This only applies to licences with no existing
conditions. Where higher or more stringent flow conditions currently exist on
licences, these conditions will continue.
(e)
for the Halls Creek Water Source, no flow classes
are established by this Plan,
Note—
By year ten of this Plan, Very Low Flow Class and
A Class may be established for access licences in the Halls Creek Management
Zone, based on studies to determine appropriate cease to pump level and flow
reference point, as required under clause 17 (2) (b) of this
Plan.
Note—
By year ten of this Plan, Very Low Flow Class and
A Class may be established for access licences in the Giants Creek Management
Zone, based on studies to determine appropriate groundwater levels and trigger
points, and appropriate infrastructure being in place to allow rule
development, as set out under clause 17 (2) (a) of this Plan. Where higher or
more stringent flow conditions currently exist on licences, these conditions
will continue.
(f)
for the Baerami Creek Water Source, no flow
classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
Very Low Flow Class and A Class may be
established by year ten of this Plan, based on studies to determine
appropriate groundwater levels and trigger points, and appropriate
infrastructure being in place to allow rule development, as set out under
clause 17 (2) (a) of this Plan.
(g)
for the Widden Brook Water Source, no flow
classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
Very Low Flow Class and A Class may be
established by year ten of this Plan, based on studies to determine
appropriate groundwater levels and trigger points, and appropriate
infrastructure being in place to allow rule development, as set out under
clause 17 (2) (a) of this Plan.
(h)
for the Bylong River Water Source, no flow
classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
Very Low Flow Class and A Class may be
established by year ten of this Plan, based on studies to determine
appropriate groundwater levels and trigger points, and appropriate
infrastructure being in place to allow rule development, as set out under
clause 17 (2) (a) of this Plan.
(i)
for the Wollar Creek Water Source, no flow
classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
Very Low Flow Class and A Class may be
established by year ten of this Plan, based on studies to determine
appropriate groundwater levels and trigger points, and appropriate
infrastructure being in place to allow rule development, as set out under
clause 17 (2) (a) of this Plan.
(j)
for the Upper Goulburn River Water Source, no
flow classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
Very Low Flow Class and A Class may be
established by year ten of this Plan, based on studies to determine
appropriate groundwater levels and trigger points, and appropriate
infrastructure being in place to allow rule development, as set out under
clause 17 (2) (a) of this Plan.
(k)
for the Lower Goulburn River Water Source, no
flow classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
Very Low Flow Class and A Class may be
established by year ten of this Plan, based on studies to determine
appropriate groundwater levels and trigger points, and appropriate
infrastructure being in place to allow rule development, as set out under
clause 17 (2) (a) of this Plan.
Note—
The augmentation of the local water utility in
this water source may trigger review of the flow access rules specified within
this Plan in accordance with clause 17 (2) (l).
(l)
for the Upper Dart Brook Management Zone in the
Dart Brook Water Source, as measured at Dart Brook at Yarrandi Bridge gauge
(210124):
(i)
the Very Low Flow Class is when there is no
visible flow, and
(ii)
A Class is when there is a visible
flow,
Note—
The flow classes may be amended at year six of
this Plan, as set out under clause 17 (2) (c) of this
Plan.
(m)
for the Upper Middle Brook Management Zone in the
Dart Brook Water Source, as measured at the Middle Brook road bridge:
(i)
the Very Low Flow Class is when there is no
visible flow, and
(ii)
A Class is when there is a visible
flow,
Note—
The flow classes may be amended at year six of
this Plan, as set out under clause 17 (2) (c) of this
Plan.
(n)
for the Petwyn Vale Management Zone, the Lower
Dart Brook Management Zone and the Lower Middle Brook and Kingdon Ponds
Management Zone in the Dart Brook Water Source, no flow classes are
established by this Plan,
Note—
In the Lower Dart Brook and Lower Middle Brook
and Kingdon Ponds Management Zones the Very Low Flow Class and A Class may be
established by year ten of this Plan, based on studies to determine
appropriate groundwater levels and trigger points, and appropriate
infrastructure being in place to allow rule review, as set out under clause 17
(2) (a) of this Plan.
Note—
In the Petwyn Vale Management Zone from year six
of this Plan, the taking of water from pools will only be permitted when there
is a visible inflow and outflow of that pool, as required under clause 19 (3)
(c) of this Plan. This only applies to licences with no existing conditions.
Where higher or more stringent flow conditions currently exist on licences,
these conditions will continue.
Note—
The augmentation of the local water utility in
this water source may trigger review of the flow access rules specified within
this Plan in accordance with clause 17 (2) (l).
(o)
for the Murrurundi Management Zone in the Pages
River Water Source, as measured at Benhams Bridge:
(i)
the Very Low Flow Class is when there is no
visible flow, and
(ii)
A Class is when there is a visible
flow,
Note—
The augmentation of the local water utility in
this water source may trigger review of the flow access rules specified within
this Plan in accordance with clause 17 (2) (l).
(p)
for the Scotts Creek Management Zone in the Pages
River Water Source, as measured at the Pages River at Blandford gauge
(210061):
(i)
the Very Low Flow Class is when there is no
visible flow, and
(ii)
A Class is when there is a visible
flow,
Note—
The flow classes may be amended at year six of
this Plan, as set out under clause 17 (2) (c) of this
Plan.
(q)
in the Kewell Creek Management Zone in the Pages
River Water Source:
(i)
for the first five years of this Plan, the Very
Low Flow Class is when there is no visible flow as measured at the Pages River
upstream of Kewell Creek gauge (210142), thereafter, the Very Low Flow Class
is when flows are at or below a flow equivalent to the cease to pump level
identified for the Gundy Management Zone as per clause 16 (2) (d) of this
Plan,
(ii)
for the first five years of this Plan, A Class is
when there is a visible flow as measured at the Pages River upstream of Kewell
Creek gauge (210142), and less than 31 ML/day as measured at the Pages River
at Gundy Recorder gauge (210052), thereafter A Class is when flows are greater
than a flow identified for the Gundy Management Zone as per clause 16 (2) (d)
of this Plan, and less than 31 ML/day as measured at the Pages River at Gundy
Recorder gauge (210052), and
Note—
31 ML/day corresponds to the estimated 50th
percentile. The percentile refers to the lowest flow month at the gauge and
includes all days of record.
(iii)
B Class is when flows are equal to or greater
than 31 ML/day, as measured at the Pages River at Gundy Recorder gauge
(210052),
Note—
Due to the limited period that the Kewell Creek
gauge (210142) has been in place an equivalent flow cannot be determined at
the commencement of this Plan. The flow reference point and separate
management zone may be amended by year ten of this Plan, based on correlations
of the Kewell Creek gauge to the Blandford and Gundy gauges, as set out under
clause 17 (2) (e) of this Plan.
(r)
in the Gundy Management Zone in the Pages River
Water Source, as measured at the Pages River at Gundy Recorder gauge
(210052):
(i)
the Very Low Flow Class is when there is no
visible flow,
(ii)
A Class is when is when there is a visible flow
and flows are less than 31 ML/day, and
Note—
31 ML/day corresponds to the estimated 50th
percentile. The percentile refers to the lowest flow month at the gauge and
includes all days of record.
(iii)
B Class is when flows are equal to or greater
than 31 ML/day,
Note—
The flow classes may be amended by year six of
this Plan, as set out under clause 17 (2) (d) of this
Plan.
(s)
in the Segenhoe Management Zone in the Pages
River Water Source, no flow classes are established by this
Plan,
Note—
Very Low Flow Class and the bottom of A Class may
be established by year ten of this Plan, based on studies to determine
appropriate groundwater levels and trigger points, and appropriate
infrastructure being in place to allow rule development, as set out under
clause 17 (2) (a) of this Plan.
(t)
for the Isis River Water Source:
(i)
the Very Low Flow Class is when there is no
visible flow as measured at the Isis River at Stick-Me-Up Bridge gauge
(210118),
(ii)
A Class is when there is a visible flow as
measured at Stick-Me-Up Bridge gauge (210118) and flows are less than 31
ML/day as measured at the Pages River at Gundy Recorder gauge (210052),
and
Note—
31 ML/day corresponds to the estimated 50th
percentile. The percentile refers to the lowest flow month at the gauge and
includes all days of record.
(iii)
B Class is when flows are equal to or greater
than 31 ML/day as measured at the Pages River at Gundy Recorder gauge
(210052),
Note—
Due to the short period of record of flow data at
the specified gauge site, studies to determine environmental water
requirements and data extension may be undertaken during the term of this Plan
to amend the flow conditions by year six of this Plan, as set out under clause
17 (2) (n) of this Plan. This may include development of management zones,
separate flow reference points and flow classes. When sufficient data is
available B class flows will be measured at the Isis River at Stick-Me-Up
Bridge gauge.
(u)
for the Upper Hunter Management Zone of the Upper
Hunter River Water Source, as measured at Hunter River at Moonan Damsite gauge
(210018) and Hunter River at Belltrees gauge (210039):
(i)
for the first five years of this Plan, the Very
Low Flow Class is when there is no visible flow at the Hunter River at
Belltrees gauge, for years six to nine of this Plan the Very Low Flow Class is
when flows are at or below 7 ML/day at the Hunter River at Moonan Dam gauge
and there is no visible flow at the Hunter River at Belltrees gauge, and from
year ten of this Plan the Very Low Flow Class is when flows are at or below 12
ML/day at the Hunter River at Moonan Dam gauge and there is no visible flow at
the Hunter River at Belltrees gauge, and
Note—
7 ML/day corresponds to the estimated 97th
percentile and 12 ML/day corresponds to the estimated 95th percentile. The
percentile refers to the lowest flow month at the gauge and includes all days
of record.
(ii)
for the first five years of this Plan, A Class is
when there is a visible flow at the Hunter River at Belltrees gauge, for years
six to nine of this Plan A Class is when flows are greater than 7 ML/day at
the Hunter River at Moonan Dam gauge and there is a visible flow at the Hunter
River at Belltrees gauge, and from year ten of this Plan A Class is when flows
are at or below 12 ML/day at the Hunter River at Moonan Dam gauge and there is
a visible flow at the Hunter River at Belltrees
gauge,
Note—
The Very Low Flow Class and A Class may be
amended by year ten of this Plan, based on data extension and flow records for
the Hunter River at Belltrees gauge (210039) to develop an equivalent
percentile flow level to the level at the Moonan Damsite gauge (210018) if
this is determined appropriate in consultation with water users, or a new
management zone and flow classes may be established in the lower catchment, as
set out under clause 17 (2) (f) of this Plan.
(v)
for the Stewarts Brook Management Zone of the
Upper Hunter Water Source, as measured at Garlands Bridge and at Hunter River
at Belltrees gauge (210039):
(i)
the Very Low Flow Class is when there is no
visible flow at Garlands Bridge and at Hunter River at Belltrees gauge
(210039), and
(ii)
A Class is when there is a visible flow at
Garlands Bridge and at Hunter River at Belltrees gauge
(210039),
Note—
The Very Low Flow Class and A Class may be
amended by year ten of this Plan, based on data extension and flow records for
the Hunter River at Belltrees gauge (210039) to amend the visible flow level
to a flow level equivalent to the 95thth percentile flow class, as set out
under clause 17 (2) (f) of this Plan.
(w)
for the Rouchel Brook Water Source, as measured
at Rouchel Brook at Rouchel Brook (The Vale) gauge (210014):
(i)
during October to March inclusive:
(1)
the Very Low Flow Class is when flows are equal
to or less than 10 ML/day on a rising river, or equal to and less than 2
ML/day on a falling river,
Note—
2 ML/day corresponds to the estimated 85th
percentile and 10 ML/day corresponds to the estimated 75th percentile. The
percentile refers to the lowest flow month at the gauge and includes all days
of record.
(2)
A Class is when flows are greater than 10 ML/day
and less than 35 ML/day on a rising river, or greater than 2 ML/day and less
than 35 ML/day on a falling river, and
Note—
35 ML/day corresponds to the estimated 50th
percentile. The percentile refers to the lowest flow month at the gauge and
includes all days of record.
Note—
In addition to the cease to pump rules, the
taking of water from pools will only be permitted when there is a visible
inflow and outflow. Where higher or more stringent flow conditions currently
exist on licences, these conditions will continue.
(3)
B Class is when flows are equal to or greater
than 35 ML/day, and
(ii)
during April to September inclusive:
(1)
the Very Low Flow Class is when flows are equal
to or less than 10 ML/day on a rising river, or equal to or less than 1 ML/day
on a falling river,
Note—
1 ML/day corresponds to the estimated 88th
percentile and 10 ML/day corresponds to the estimated 75th percentile. The
percentile refers to the lowest flow month at the gauge and includes all days
of record.
(2)
A Class is when flows are greater than 10 ML/day
and less than 35 ML/day on a rising river or greater than 1 ML/day and less
than 35 ML/day on a falling river, and
Note—
35 ML/day corresponds to the estimated 50th
percentile. The percentile refers to the lowest flow month at the gauge and
includes all days of record.
Note—
In addition to the cease to pump rules, the
taking of water from pools will only be permitted when there is a visible
inflow and outflow. Where higher or more stringent flow conditions currently
exist on licences, these conditions will continue.
(3)
B Class is when flows are equal to or greater
than 35 ML/day,
Note—
2 ML/day and 1 ML/day are referred to as the
‘cease to pump’ on a falling river, and 10 ML/day referred to as
the ‘commence to pump’ on a rising river. The basis for using a
differential cease to pump in this water source is in recognition of the
location of the gauge mid way up the system and the ‘losing’
nature of the Brook. This means that increased flows are required during the
spring/summer months to achieve the same level of flow at the end of the water
source as would be achieved through the autumn/winter period. These figures
will be reviewed by year six of this Plan, as set out under clause 17 (2) (m)
of this Plan.
(x)
for the Muswellbrook Water Source, no flow
classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
From year six of this Plan, the taking of water
from pools will only be permitted when there is a visible inflow and outflow
of that pool, as required under clause 19 (3) (c) of this Plan. Where higher
or more stringent flow conditions currently exist on licences, these
conditions will continue. In Sandy Creek there are a number of licences with
existing conditions relating to Rouchel Lane Causeway which will be
maintained.
Note—
Licences located in the alluvial areas downstream
of Wells Gully road bridge will be identified as part of the relevant Hunter
Regulated River Alluvial Water Source.
(y)
for the Jerrys Management Zone of the Jerrys
Water Source, no flow classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
From year six of this Plan, in the Jerrys
Management Zone the taking of water from pools will only be permitted when
there is a visible inflow and outflow, as required under clause 19 (3) (c) of
this Plan. This only applies to licences with no existing conditions. Where
higher or more stringent flow conditions currently exist on licences, these
conditions will continue.
(z)
for the Appletree Flat Management Zone of the
Jerrys Water Source, no flow classes are established by this
Plan,
Note—
Very Low Flow Class and A Class may be
established by year ten of this Plan for the Appletree Flat Management Zone,
based on studies to determine appropriate groundwater levels and trigger
points, and appropriate infrastructure being in place to allow rule
development, as set out under clause 17 (2) (a) of this
Plan.
(aa)
for the Glennies Water Source, as measured at the
causeway on Goorangoola Creek (230 metres downstream of the boundary between
DP 752462, Lot 23 and Lot 24):
(i)
the Very Low Flow Class is when there is no
visible flow, and
(ii)
A Class is when there is a visible
flow,
(bb)
for the Glendon Brook Water Source, no flow
classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
From year six of this Plan, the taking of water
from pools will only be permitted when there is a visible inflow and outflow,
as required under clause 19 (3) (c) of this Plan. This only applies to
licences with no existing conditions. Where higher or more stringent flow
conditions currently exist on licences, these conditions will
continue.
(cc)
for the Luskintyre Water Source, no flow classes
are established by this Plan,
Note—
From year six of this Plan, the taking of water
from pools will only be permitted when there is a visible inflow and outflow,
as required under clause 19 (3) (c) of this Plan. This only applies to
licences with no existing conditions. Where higher or more stringent flow
conditions currently exist on licences, these conditions will
continue.
(dd)
for the Singleton Water Source, no flow classes
are established by this Plan,
Note—
From year six of this Plan, the taking of water
from pools will only be permitted when there is a visible inflow and outflow,
as required under clause 19 (3) (c) of this Plan. This only applies to
licences with no existing conditions. Where higher or more stringent flow
conditions currently exist on licences, these conditions will
continue.
(ee)
for the Martindale Creek Water Source, no flow
classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
Very Low Flow Class and A Class may be
established by year ten of this Plan, based on studies to determine
appropriate groundwater levels and trigger points, and appropriate
infrastructure being in place to allow rule development, as set out under
clause 17 (2) (a) of this Plan.
(ff)
for the Doyles Creek Water Source, no flow
classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
Very Low Flow Class and A Class may be
established at year ten of this Plan, based on studies to determine
appropriate groundwater levels and trigger points, and appropriate
infrastructure being in place to allow rule development, as set out under
clause 17 (2) (a) of this Plan.
(gg)
for the Lower Wollombi Brook Water Source, as
measured at Wollombi Brook at Warkworth gauge (210004):
(i)
no Very Low Flow Class or A Class is established
at the commencement of this Plan, and
(ii)
B Class is when flows are equal to or greater
than 38 ML/day,
Note—
38 ML/day corresponds to the estimated 50th
percentile. The percentile refers to the lowest flow month at the gauge and
includes all days of record.
Note—
Very Low Flow Class and A Class may be
established by year ten of this Plan, based on studies to determine
appropriate groundwater levels and trigger points, and appropriate
infrastructure being in place to allow rule development, as set out under
clause 17 (2) (a) of this Plan.
(hh)
for the Black Creek Water Source, no flow classes
are established by this Plan,
Note—
From year six of this Plan, the taking of water
from pools will only be permitted when there is a visible inflow and outflow,
as required under clause 19 (3) (c) of this Plan. This only applies to
licences with no existing conditions. Where higher or more stringent flow
conditions currently exist on licences, these conditions will
continue.
Note—
While it is recognised that the low flows down
Black Creek are largely provided for by discharge from Cessnock sewage
treatment plant, the Department cannot guarantee that these discharges will
continue. The flow access rules will continue in the event that the discharges
cease.
(ii)
for the Wallis Creek Water Source, no flow
classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
From year six of this Plan, the taking of water
from pools will only be permitted when there is a visible inflow and outflow,
as required under clause 19 (3) (c) of this Plan. This only applies to
licences with no existing conditions. Where higher or more stringent flow
conditions currently exist on licences, these conditions will
continue.
(jj)
for the Newcastle Water Source, no flow classes
are established by this Plan,
Note—
From year six of this Plan, the taking of water
from pools will only be permitted when there is a visible inflow and outflow,
as required under clause 19 (3) (c) of this Plan. This only applies to
licences with no existing conditions. Where higher or more stringent flow
conditions currently exist on licences, these conditions will
continue.
(kk)
for the Allyn River Management Zone of the
Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water Source, as measured at the Allyn River at Halton
gauge (210022):
(i)
the Very Low Flow Class is when flows are equal
to or less than 15 ML/day on a rising river, or equal to or less than 7 ML/day
on a falling river, and there is no visible flow at the Allyn River at Flying
Fox Lane (210143),
Note—
7 ML/day corresponds to the estimated 92nd
percentile and is referred to as the cease to pump on a falling river, and 15
ML/day corresponds to the estimated 85th percentile and is referred to as the
commence to pump on a rising river. The percentile refers to the lowest flow
month at the gauge and includes all days of record.
(ii)
A1 Class is when flows are greater than 15 ML/day
and less than 58 ML/day on a rising river, or greater than 7 ML/day and less
than 58 ML/day on a falling river, and there is a visible flow at the Allyn
River at Flying Fox Lane (210143),
Note—
58 ML/day corresponds to the estimated 50th
percentile. The percentile refers to the lowest flow month at the gauge and
includes all days of record.
Note—
A1 Class applies to all access licences,
excluding local water utility access licences, except where provided for under
clause 76 (8) and unregulated river (high flow) access
licences.
(iii)
A2 Class is when flows are greater than 25 ML/day
and less than 58 ML/day, and
Note—
25 ML/day corresponds to the estimated 75th
percentile. The percentile refers to the lowest flow month at the gauge and
includes all days of record.
Note—
A2 Class only applies to local water utility
access licences.
(iv)
B Class is when flows are equal to or greater
than 58 ML/day,
Note—
These figures may be reviewed during the term of
this Plan with the introduction of a new gauge at a point lower in the water
source than the existing gauge as specified in clause 17 (2)
(g).
(ll)
for the Paterson River Tributaries Management
Zone of the Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water Source, no flow classes are
established by this Plan,
Note—
From year six of this Plan, the taking of water
from pools will only be permitted when there is a visible inflow and outflow
of that pool, as required under clause 19 (3) (c) of this Plan. This only
applies to licences with no existing conditions. Where higher or more
stringent flow conditions currently exist on licences, these conditions will
continue.
(mm)
for the Williams River Management Zone of the
Williams River Water Source, as measured at the Williams River at Glen Martin
(Mill Dam Falls) (210010):
(i)
the Very Low Flow Class is when flows are equal
to or less than 6 ML/day,
Note—
6 ML/day has the same estimated frequency as 0
ML/day when Chichester Dam was not making transparent
releases.
(ii)
the Low Flow Class is when flows are equal to or
less than 15 ML/day, and
Note—
15 ML/day corresponds to the estimated natural
95th percentile flow as used in the Healthy Rivers Commission
deliberations.
(iii)
A Class is when flows are greater than 15
ML/day,
Note—
The Very Low Flow Class and Low Flow classes are
required for the operation of the Williams River Pilot Low Flow Accreditation
Scheme. Note that operation to the cease to pump (CtP) specified under the
Very Low Flow Class is only operational where an accreditation condition is
imposed on the use approval. The CtP level for the Low Flow Class applies to
all other access licences.
(nn)
for the Seaham Weir Management Zone of the
Williams River Water Source:
(i)
for all access licences, excluding major utility
access licences, as measured at the visual gauge board at Seaham Weir for
extractions from the Seaham Weir Pool:
(1)
the Very Low Flow Class is when water levels are
equal to or less than 0.38 metres pool height,
(2)
A Class is when water levels are greater than
0.38 metres pool height and less than or equal to 0.42 metres pool height,
and
Note—
The 0.38 metres pool height may be amended by
year five of this Plan based on studies as specified in clause 17 (2)
(i).
(3)
B class is when water levels are greater than
0.42 metres pool height,
(ii)
for all major utility access licences:
(1)
the Very Low Flow Class is when water levels are
equal to or less than 0.42 metres pool height, as measured at the visual gauge
board at Seaham Weir for the taking of water from the Seaham Weir Pool, or
when flows are equal to or less than 15 ML/day as measured at the Williams
River at Glen Martin (Mill Dam Falls) gauge (210010), and
(2)
the A Class is when water levels are greater than
0.42 metres pool height, as measured at the visual gauge board at Seaham Weir
for the taking of water from the Seaham Weir Pool, or when flows are greater
than 15 ML/day as measured at the Williams River at Glen Martin (Mill Dam
Falls) gauge (210010), and
(iii)
notwithstanding subclause (ii) when flows as
measured at the Williams River at Glen Martin (Mill Dam Falls) gauge (210010)
are greater than 600 ML/day, the taking of water by a major utility access
licences is only permitted when water levels in the Seaham weir pool in the
Williams River Water Source are greater than 0.32 metres pool
height,
Note—
Flow classes for major utility access licences
may be amended in the Williams River Water Source upon completion of studies
by the Hunter Water Corporation to develop water access rules for the Lower
Williams River based on the outcomes of the ‘Surface Water Access Rules
for the Lower Williams River’ Supplementary Study, as per clause 17 (2)
(i) of this Plan.
(oo)
for the Upper Paterson Water Source, as measured
at the Beresford property crossing:
(i)
the Very Low Flow Class is when there is no
visible flow, and
(ii)
A Class is when there is a visible
flow,
Note—
The Very Low Flow Class and A Class may be
amended at year six of this Plan to introduce a cease to pump at the 95th
percentile flow if infrastructure is in place, as set out under clause 17 (2)
(j) of this Plan.
(pp)
for the Upper Wollombi Brook Water Source, no
flow classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
By year ten of this Plan, Very Low Flow Class and
A Class may be established for access licences in the Wollombi Brook
Management Zone and Congewai Creek Management Zone, based on studies to
determine appropriate cease to pump level and reference site, as required
under clause 17 (2) (b) of this Plan.
(qq)
for the North Lake Macquarie Water Source:
(i)
for the Cockle Creek catchment, as measured at
the causeway on The Weir Road, Barnsley:
(1)
the Very Low Flow Class is when there is no
visible flow, and
(2)
A Class is when there is a visible flow,
and
(ii)
for all other tributaries, no flow classes
established by this Plan,
Note—
From year six of this Plan, the taking of water
from pools will only be permitted when there is a visible inflow and outflow
of that pool, in all tributaries apart from Cockle Creek, as required under
clause 19 (3) (c) of this Plan. Where higher or more stringent flow conditions
currently exist on licences, these conditions will
continue.
(rr)
for the South Lake Macquarie Water Source, no
flow classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
From year six of this Plan, the taking of water
from pools will only be permitted when there is a visible inflow and outflow
of that pool, as required under clause 19 (3) (c) of this Plan. Where higher
or more stringent flow conditions currently exist on licences, these
conditions will continue.
(ss)
for the Dora Creek Water Source:
(i)
for the Dora Creek catchment, as measured at the
weir downstream of the road bridge on Freemans Drive, Cooranbong:
(1)
the Very Low Flow Class is when there is no
visible flow, and
(2)
A Class is when there is a visible flow,
and
(ii)
for Stockton Creek, Jigadee Creek, and all other
tributaries, no flow classes established by this
Plan,
Note—
From year six of this Plan, the taking of water
from pools will only be permitted when there is a visible inflow and outflow
of that pool, in all tributaries apart from Dora Creek, as required under
clause 19 (3) (c) of this Plan. This only applies to licences with no existing
conditions. Where higher or more stringent flow conditions currently exist on
licences, these conditions will continue.
(tt)
for the Hunter Regulated River Alluvial Water
Source, no flow classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
The augmentation of the local water utility in
this water source may trigger review of the flow access rules specified within
this Plan in accordance with clause 17 (2) (l).
(uu)
for the Wallis Creek Tidal Pool Water Source, no
flow classes are established by this Plan,
Note—
Flow classes may be established during the term
of this Plan as per the studies specified in clause 17 (2) (k) of this
Plan.
(vv)
for the Paterson River Tidal Pool Water Source,
no flow classes are established by this Plan, and
Note—
Flow classes may be established during the term
of this Plan as per the studies specified in clause 17 (2) (k) of this
Plan.
(ww)
for the Hunter River Tidal Pool Water Source, no
flow classes are established by this Plan.
Note—
Flow classes may be established during the term
of this Plan as per the studies specified in clause 17 (2) (k) of this
Plan.
(2)
The Minister may amend subclauses (1) (a) to (1)
(ww) to alter the existing flow classes or establish new or additional flow
classes in:
(a)
the Baerami Creek, the Widden Brook, the Bylong
River, the Wollar Creek, the Upper Goulburn River, the Lower Goulburn River,
the Martindale Creek, the Doyles Creek and the Lower Wollombi Brook Water
Sources, the Appletree Flat Management Zone of the Jerrys Water Source, the
Segenhoe Management Zone of the Pages River Water Source, the Giants Creek
Management Zone of the Halls Creek Water Source, and the Lower Dart Brook
Management Zone, the Lower Middle Brook and the Kingdon Ponds Management Zone
of the Dart Brook Water Source, by the commencement of year ten of this Plan,
based on studies to determine appropriate groundwater levels, trigger points
and groundwater dependent ecosystems, and appropriate infrastructure being in
place to allow rule development, including the identification of appropriate
commence to pump levels,
Note—
Commence to pump levels may be required to assist
in the protection of recharge in highly connected surface waters and
groundwater.
(b)
the Halls Creek Management Zone of the Halls
Creek Water Source, and the Wollombi Brook Management Zone and the Congewai
Creek Management Zone of the Upper Wollombi Brook Water Source, by the
commencement of year ten of this Plan, based on studies to determine
appropriate groundwater levels or surface water levels, and flow reference
points, to allow rule development,
(c)
the Upper Dart Brook Management Zone and the
Upper Middle Brook Management Zone of the Dart Brook Water Source, and the
Scotts Creek Management Zone of the Pages River Water Source, by the
commencement of year six of this Plan, up to a maximum of the 95th percentile
flow level, subject to consideration of the socio-economic impacts and
environmental requirements,
(d)
the Gundy Management Zone of the Pages River
Water Source, by the commencement of year six of this Plan, amend the Very Low
Flow Class up to a maximum of 0.6 ML/day, subject to consideration of the
socio-economic impacts of the increased cease to pump level on water users,
and the environmental requirements of the water source,
Note—
In the Gundy Management Zone 0.6 ML/day (cease to
pump) and 1.0 ML/day (commence to pump) access rules were originally proposed
by the Pages River and Tributaries Water Users Association (WUA) as part of
the targeted consultation period. In light of concerns raised by water users
about the implementation of access rules at this level for the specified five
year period, the WUA is encouraged to review the frequency of these flow
levels and impacts on the taking of water and livelihood during the first five
years of this Plan to help inform the setting of appropriate cease to pump
rules at year six of this Plan.
(e)
the Kewell Creek Management Zone of the Pages
River Water Source, by the commencement of year six of this Plan, following
the extension of flow records for the Pages River upstream of Kewell Creek
gauge (210142), specify the equivalent flow of subclause 17 (2) (d) as
measured at the Pages River at Gundy Recorder gauge (210052), or amend the
Very Low Flow Class and A Class based on correlation of flows between the
Pages River upstream of Kewell Creek gauge (210142), the Pages River at Gundy
Recorder gauge (210052) and the Pages River at Blandford gauge
(210061),
Note—
The correlation of flows for the Kewell Creek
Management Zone may result in a change to the flow reference point used for
the access rules or the need for a separate management zone for Kewell
Creek.
(f)
the Upper Hunter Water Source, by year ten of
this Plan, following the extension of flow records for the Hunter River at
Belltrees gauge (210039) and consultation with water users:
(i)
for the Upper Hunter Management Zone to specify
the Very Low Flow Class as being when flows are at or below the equivalent
percentile flow, and A Class as being when flows are greater than the
equivalent percentile flow at the Hunter River at Belltrees gauge (210039), or
if more appropriate, a new management zone established between Hunter River at
Moonan Damsite gauge (210018) with flow classes triggered at the Hunter River
at Belltrees gauge (210039), at a flow level equivalent to the flow classes at
the Hunter River at Moonan Damsite gauge (210018), and
(ii)
for the Stewarts Brook Management Zone, to
specify the Very Low Flow Class as being when there is no visible flow at the
Hunter River at Moonan Damsite gauge (210018) and at a flow equivalent to the
95th percentile flow at Belltrees gauge (210039), and A Class as being when
there is a visible flow at the Hunter River at Moonan Damsite gauge (210018)
and at a flow greater than the 95th percentile flow at Belltrees gauge
(210039),
(g)
the Allyn River Management Zone of the
Paterson/Allyn Water Source, by year ten of this Plan, following the
introduction of a new flow gauge within the management zone located at a point
lower in the system than the existing gauge and studies to investigate
equivalent flow class levels, based on flow data from the new
gauge,
(h)
the Merriwa River Water Source, following the
reinstatement of infrastructure within the water source, taking into account
the previous licence conditions relevant to the Merriwa Town
gauge,
(i)
the Williams River Water Source:
(i)
by year five of this Plan, for B Class access,
following the completion of the supplementary study Development of Access
Rules for the Lower Williams River,
Note—
The supplementary study referred to is a
requirement of Hunter Water Corporation’s current water licence. The
study aims to determine appropriate entitlement and access rules to manage the
taking of water from Seaham Weir Pool by Hunter Water Corporation. The
outcomes of the study will be used to inform any amendment of this Plan
provisions.
(ii)
at the end of the trial for the Williams River
Flow Accreditation Scheme, to amend the Very Low Flow Class and Low Flow
Class, and
(iii)
during the term of this Plan, the Very Low Flow
Class for users extracting from the Seaham Weir Management Zone, following any
studies to determine the appropriateness of the 0.38 metres flow level cease
to pump in protecting environmental values,
(j)
the Upper Paterson Water Source, from year six of
this Plan, following any introduction of a flow gauge within the water source
and studies to investigate the 95th percentile flow level,
(k)
in the Hunter River Tidal Pool, the Wallis Creek
Tidal Pool and the Paterson River Tidal Pool Water Sources, during the term of
this Plan, following a study to determine the appropriate location for the
installation of a salinity probe, or other relevant infrastructure, and
assessment of the users and the taking of water within the water
source,
Note—
It is recognised that tidal pool water sources
are different systems from those upstream. Tidal influences and salinity may
impact on the ability of users to extract water generally more than
instantaneous flow levels. Flow levels are used to manage upstream water
sources, however, in tidal pool water sources different management options
such as salinity levels should be considered. The differences between the
tidal pool water sources in the Hunter should also be noted. For example the
Paterson River Tidal Pool Water Source and Hunter River Tidal Pool Water
Source receive different end of system flows due to the respective upstream
Water Sharing Plans for the regulated river systems, and also have differing
characteristics which may influence salinity levels (e.g. the size and
frequency of freshes). As a result the tidal pool water sources may not only
have different access rules in their respective upstream water sources but
also from each other due to the unique characteristics of each tidal pool
area.
(l)
the Pages River Water Source, the Dart Brook
Water Source, the Lower Goulburn River Water Source, the Hunter Regulated
River Alluvial Water Source, during the term of this Plan, based on
augmentation of the local water utility,
(m)
the Rouchel Brook Water Source, by the
commencement of year six of this Plan, up to a maximum of 2 ML/day and down to
a minimum of 0 ML/day, subject to consideration of the socio-economic impacts
and environmental requirements,
(n)
the Isis River Water Source, by the commencement
of year six of this Plan, if:
(i)
separate management zones are not established, up
to a maximum of the 95th percentile flow level or 1.5 ML/day, whichever is the
higher, subject to consideration of the socio-economic impacts and
environmental requirements, and
(ii)
separate management zones are established:
(1)
for an upper management zone, a cease to pump
based on studies to determine an appropriate surface water cease to pump
level, including consideration of longitudinal connectivity and links between
flows in the upper management zone and water levels in remnant pools in the
lower management zone, and flow reference points, and
(2)
for a lower management zone, up to a maximum of
the 95th percentile flow level or 1.5 ML/day, whichever is the higher, subject
to consideration of the socio-economic impacts and environmental requirements,
and
Note—
In the Isis River Water Source the determination
of a cease to pump level should take into the consideration the initial cease
and commence to pump levels of 1.5 ML/day and 3 ML/day respectively originally
proposed by the Pages River and Tributaries Water Users Association (WUA) as
part of the targeted consultation period. In light of concerns raised by water
users about the implementation of access rules at this level for the specified
five year period, the WUA is encouraged to review the frequency of these flow
levels and impacts on the taking of water and livelihood during the first five
years of this Plan to help inform the setting of appropriate access rules at
year six of this Plan. There is currently insufficient data available from the
river gauge on the Isis River to determine the 95th
percentile.
(o)
any water source where management zones or water
sources are added or amended as per clause 6 during the term of this
Plan.
(3)
The Minister may amend the existing flow classes
or establish new or additional flow classes based on the introduction of a
Flow Accreditation Scheme to a water source.
Note—
This reflects the level of interest shown by many
Water Users Associations during the targeted consultation period to the
potential application (dependent on available resources) of the Flow
Accreditation Scheme, currently being trialled in the Williams River, to other
water sources in the future. It is recognised that management of water
extraction is only one component of river management and many landholders are
carrying out on-farm activities to achieve environmental
outcomes.
Part 4Environmental water
provisions
18Environmental water
provisions
This Part is made in accordance with sections 8,
8A, 8B, 8C, 8D, 8E and 20 (1) (a) of the Act.
19Planned environmental
water
(1)
Planned environmental water is identified and
established in these water sources as follows:
(a)
water volume in excess of the respective
long-term average annual extraction limit established in clause 44 of this
Plan may not be taken and used for any purpose in these water sources, thereby
protecting a proportion of river flows for fundamental ecosystem needs from
increases in long-term water extraction, and
(b)
for all water sources, the water remaining in the
water source after the taking of water to meet basic landholder rights and for
access licences in accordance with the rules identified in subclause
(3).
(2)
The planned environmental water established in
subclause (1) (a) for these water sources is maintained by the rules in clause
47 that limit the availability of water for extraction under access licences,
thereby protecting a proportion of natural river flows for fundamental
ecological needs from increases in long-term water
extraction.
(3)
The planned environmental water established in
subclause (1) (b) is maintained as follows:
(a)
in management zones or water sources with a Very
Low Flow Class, the holders of access licences, excluding access licences
listed in Schedule 2, domestic and stock access licence or a domestic and
stock (subcategory “domestic”) access licence under clause 77 (7),
access licences taking water from the alluvial sediments in these water
sources that are not subject to the mandatory conditions under clause 68 of
this Plan, and access licences that nominate a runoff harvesting dam, are not
permitted to take water when flows are within the Very Low Flow
Class,
(b)
in the Rouchel Brook Water Source, and excluding
access licences listed in Schedule 2, domestic and stock access licence or a
domestic and stock (subcategory “domestic”) access licence under
clause 77 (7), access licences taking water from the alluvial sediments in
these water sources that are not subject to the mandatory conditions under
clause 68 of this Plan, and access licences that nominate a runoff harvesting
dam, notwithstanding all other rights and conditions, the taking of water from
a river by a nominated water supply work is permitted only where it complies
with the flow conditions imposed on the authorised water supply work, or in
the absence of such condition:
(i)
if there is a visible flow in the river in the
downstream vicinity of the water supply work, or
(ii)
where water is being taken from a pool, if there
is a visible inflow and outflow to and from that
pool,
(c)
in the Munmurra River Water Source, the Krui
River Water Source, the Bow River Water Source, the Muswellbrook Water Source,
the Jerrys Water Source, the Glendon Brook Water Source, the Luskintyre Water
Source, the Singleton Water Source, the Black Creek Water Source, the Wallis
Creek Water Source, the Paterson River Tributaries Management Zone of the
Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water Source, the Petwyn Vale Management Zone of the
Dart Brook Water Sources, the North Lake Macquarie Water Source excluding
Cockle Creek tributary, the South Lake Macquarie Water Source, the Dora Creek
Water Source excluding Dora Creek tributary, and the Newcastle Water Source,
from year six of this Plan, excluding access licences listed in Schedule 2,
domestic and stock access licence or a domestic and stock (subcategory
“domestic”) access licence under clause 77 (7), access licences
taking water from the alluvial sediments in these water sources that are not
subject to the mandatory conditions under clause 68 of this Plan, and access
licences that nominate a runoff harvesting dam, notwithstanding all other
rights and conditions, the taking of water from a river by a nominated water
supply work is permitted only where it complies with the flow conditions
imposed on the authorised water supply work, or in the absence of such
condition:
(i)
if there is a visible flow in the river in the
downstream vicinity of the water supply work, or
(ii)
where water is being taken from a pool, a visible
inflow and outflow to and from that pool, and
(d)
in the Merriwa River Water Source for the first
five years of this Plan, excluding access licences listed in Schedule 2,
domestic and stock access licence or a domestic and stock (subcategory
“domestic”) access licence under clause 77 (7) and access licences
that nominate a work that is a runoff harvesting dam, notwithstanding all
other rights and conditions, the taking of water from a river by a nominated
water supply work is permitted only where it complies with the flow conditions
imposed on the authorised water supply work, or in the absence of such
condition, if there is a visible flow in the river in the downstream vicinity
of the water supply work.
Note—
These rules protect the water for the environment
by limiting both water extracted over the long-term and the taking of water,
in accordance with the objectives of this Plan. Highly connected water sources
may not have such rules in place until year ten of this
Plan.
Note—
This Plan recognises that the environmental
health water provisions provide non-extractive benefits, including traditional
Aboriginal spiritual, social, customary, economic, cultural and recreational
benefits, and contributes to improved water quality.
(4)
Following the establishment of a flow class or
flow classes within any water source under clauses 17 (2) and 17 (3) of this
Plan, the Minister may amend subclauses (1), (2) and (3) to identify,
establish and maintain planned environmental water in the relevant water
source.
(5)
The Minister may amend this Plan to amend
subclause (3) in accordance with clause 88 of this Plan, within five years of
commencement of this Plan, to identify pools in applicable water sources, that
require special protection and to establish initial pool control levels at key
sites, so that, notwithstanding all other rights and conditions, the taking of
water from a designated pool is not permitted below a specified
level.
(6)
Before undertaking the amendment pursuant to
subclause (5) the Minister should consult with relevant Government agencies
and the water users in the water source, for the purpose of establishing the
pool control levels referred to in subclause (5).
20Adaptive environmental
water
(1)
The holder of an access licence in these water
sources may request that the Minister impose an adaptive environmental water
condition in respect of the access licence, pursuant to section 8B of the
Act.
(2)
An access licence may be granted in these water
sources, pursuant to sections 8C or 8D of the Act.
(3)
If an adaptive environmental water condition on
an access licence in these water sources requires water to be left in these
water source for environmental purposes, the Minister may establish Total
Daily Extraction Limits under clause 59 (5) of this Plan in the relevant water
source or management zone.
Note—
TDELs referred to in subclause (3) will not be
established unless enabling management systems are in place. This includes
monitoring and measurement systems which allow for accurate measurement of
flows and extraction.
Part 5Basic landholder
rights
21Basic landholder
rights
This Part is made in accordance with section 20
(1) (b) of the Act.
22Domestic and stock
rights
(1)
At the commencement of this Plan the water
requirements of holders of domestic and stock rights within these water
sources are estimated to total 39.68 megalitres per day (hereafter ML/day) and are distributed as
follows:
(a)
0.94 ML/day in the Munmurra River Water
Source,
(b)
0.87 ML/day in the Krui River Water
Source,
(c)
0.36 ML/day in the Bow River Water
Source,
(d)
1.71 ML/day in the Merriwa River Water
Source,
(e)
0.60 ML/day in the Halls Creek Water
Source,
(f)
0.32 ML/day in the Baerami Creek Water
Source,
(g)
0.19 ML/day in the Widden Brook Water
Source,
(h)
1.01 ML/day in the Bylong River Water
Source,
(i)
0.04 ML/day in the Wollar Creek Water
Source,
(j)
0.32 ML/day in the Upper Goulburn River Water
Source,
(k)
0.66 ML/day in the Lower Goulburn River Water
Source,
(l)
4.77 ML/day in the Dart Brook Water
Source,
(m)
2.33 ML/day in the Pages River Water
Source,
(n)
1.73 ML/day in the Isis River Water
Source,
(o)
3.27 ML/day in the Upper Hunter River Water
Source,
(p)
0.47 ML/day in the Rouchel Brook Water
Source,
(q)
0.14 ML/day in the Muswellbrook Water
Source,
(r)
2.14 ML/day in the Jerrys Water
Source,
(s)
0.82 ML/day in the Glennies Water
Source,
(t)
0.34 ML/day in the Glendon Brook Water
Source,
(u)
0.22 ML/day in the Luskintyre Water
Source,
(v)
1.00 ML/day in the Singleton Water
Source,
(w)
0.32 ML/day in the Martindale Creek Water
Source,
(x)
0.03 ML/day in the Doyles Creek Water
Source,
(y)
1.04 ML/day in the Lower Wollombi Brook Water
Source,
(z)
0.42 ML/day in the Black Creek Water
Source,
(aa)
2.39 ML/day in the Wallis Creek Water
Source,
(bb)
0.78 ML/day in the Newcastle Water
Source,
(cc)
1.71 ML/day in the Paterson/Allyn River Water
Source,
(dd)
4.81 ML/day in the Williams River Water
Source,
(ee)
0.07 ML/day in the Upper Paterson Water
Source,
(ff)
0.36 ML/day in the Upper Wollombi Brook Water
Source,
(gg)
0.12 ML/day in the North Lake Macquarie Water
Source,
(hh)
0.07 ML/day in the South Lake Macquarie Water
Source,
(ii)
0.22 ML/day in the Dora Creek Water
Source,
(jj)
2.7 ML/day in the Hunter Regulated River Alluvial
Water Source,
Note—
This estimate includes domestic and stock rights
for aquifer users only.
(kk)
0.07 ML/day in the Wallis Creek Tidal Pool Water
Source,
(ll)
0.16 ML/day in the Hunter River Tidal Pool Water
Source, and
(mm)
0.16 ML/day in the Paterson River Tidal Pool
Water Source.
Note—
The estimates of domestic and stock rights in the
Munmurra River, Krui River, Bow River, Merriwa River, Halls Creek, Baerami
Creek, Widden Brook, Bylong River, Wollar Creek, Upper Goulburn River, Lower
Goulburn River, Dart Brook, Pages River, Martindale Creek, Lower Wollombi
Brook, and Upper Wollombi Brook water sources include both aquifer and
unregulated users.
(2)
This Plan recognises that the exercise of
domestic and stock rights may increase during the term of this
Plan.
Note—
Domestic and stock rights must be exercised in
accordance with any mandatory guidelines established under section 336B of the
Act with respect to the taking and use of water for domestic consumption or
stock watering.
An increase in use of domestic and stock rights
may occur as a result of an increase in the number of landholdings fronting
rivers and lakes or overlying alluvial groundwater in these water sources
and/or as a result of the increase in the exercise of basic landholder rights
by existing landholders.
Inherent water quality and land use activities
may make the water in some areas unsuitable for human consumption. Water from
these water sources should not be consumed without it first being tested and
appropriately treated.
23Native title
rights
(1)
At the commencement of this Plan there are no
native title rights in these water sources and therefore the water
requirements for native title rights total 0 ML/year.
(2)
This Plan recognises that the exercise of native
title rights may increase during the term of this Plan.
Note—
A change in native title rights may occur
pursuant to the provisions of the Native Title Act
1993 (Cth).
24Harvestable
rights
The requirement for water under harvestable
rights is the amount of water that owners of land are entitled to capture
pursuant to a harvestable rights order made under section 54 of the Act and
published from time to time in the NSW Government
Gazette.
Part 6Bulk access
regime
25Bulk access
regime
(1)
This Part is made in accordance with section 20
(1) (e) of the Act.
(2)
This Plan establishes a bulk access regime for
the extraction of water under access licences in these water sources having
regard to:
(a)
the environmental water provisions established
under Part 4 of this Plan,
(b)
the requirements for basic landholder rights
identified under Part 5 of this Plan, and
(c)
the requirements for water for extraction under
access licences identified under Part 7 of this
Plan.
(3)
The bulk access regime established in subclause
(2):
(a)
recognises the effect of climate variability on
the availability of water as provided for under Part 3 of this
Plan,
(b)
establishes rules according to which access
licences are granted as provided for in Part 8 of this
Plan,
(c)
recognises and is consistent with limits to the
availability of water as provided for in Part 10, Division 1 of this
Plan,
(d)
establishes rules according to which available
water determinations are to be made as provided for in Part 10, Division 1 of
this Plan,
(e)
establishes rules according to which access
licences are managed as provided for in Parts 10 and 11 of this Plan,
and
(f)
establishes rules with respect to the priorities
according to which access licences are to be adjusted as a consequence of any
reduction in the availability of water as provided for in Part 10 of this
Plan.
Part 7Requirements for water under
access licences
26Requirements for water under
access licences
This Part is made in accordance with section 20
(1) (c) of the Act.
Note—
The amount of water specified in this Part
represents the total volumes or unit shares specified in the share components
on access licences in these water sources. The actual volumes of water
available at any time will depend on climate, access licence priority and the
rules in this Plan.
27Share component of domestic
and stock access licences
It is estimated that at the time of commencement
of this Plan, the share components of domestic and stock access licences
authorised to extract water from these water sources will total 736.5
megalitres per year (hereafter ML/year), distributed as
follows:
(a)
6 ML/year in the Munmurra River Water
Source,
(b)
0 ML/year in the Krui River Water
Source,
(c)
1 ML/year in the Bow River Water
Source,
(d)
6.5 ML/year in the Merriwa River Water
Source,
(e)
41 ML/year in the Halls Creek Water
Source,
(f)
0 ML/year in the Baerami Creek Water
Source,
(g)
5 ML/year in the Widden Brook Water
Source,
(h)
0 ML/year in the Bylong River Water
Source,
(i)
19 ML/year in the Wollar Creek Water
Source,
(j)
8 ML/year in the Upper Goulburn River Water
Source,
(k)
84.5 ML/year in the Lower Goulburn River Water
Source,
(l)
87 ML/year in the Dart Brook Water
Source,
(m)
94.5 ML/year in the Pages River Water
Source,
(n)
13 ML/year in the Isis River Water
Source,
(o)
18 ML/year in the Upper Hunter River Water
Source,
(p)
11 ML/year in the Rouchel Brook Water
Source,
(q)
67 ML/year in the Muswellbrook Water
Source,
(r)
7 ML/year in the Jerrys Water
Source,
(s)
0 ML/year in the Glennies Water
Source,
(t)
16.5 ML/year in the Glendon Brook Water
Source,
(u)
2 ML/year in the Luskintyre Water
Source,
(v)
7 ML/year in the Singleton Water
Source,
(w)
5 ML/year in the Martindale Creek Water
Source,
(x)
0 ML/year in the Doyles Creek Water
Source,
(y)
90 ML/year in the Lower Wollombi Brook Water
Source,
(z)
93 ML/year in the Black Creek Water
Source,
(aa)
2 ML/year in the Wallis Creek Water
Source,
(bb)
0 ML/year in the Newcastle Water
Source,
(cc)
11.5 ML/year in the Paterson/Allyn River Water
Source,
(dd)
24 ML/year in the Williams River Water
Source,
(ee)
0 ML/year in the Upper Paterson Water
Source,
(ff)
12 ML/year in the Upper Wollombi Brook Water
Source,
(gg)
0 ML/year in the North Lake Macquarie Water
Source,
(hh)
0 ML/year in the South Lake Macquarie Water
Source,
(ii)
5 ML/year in the Dora Creek Water
Source,
(jj)
0 ML/year in the Hunter Regulated River Alluvial
Water Source,
(kk)
0 ML/year in the Wallis Creek Tidal Pool Water
Source,
(ll)
0 ML/year in the Hunter River Tidal Pool Water
Source, and
(mm)
0 ML/year in the Paterson River Tidal Pool Water
Source.
Note—
Prior to the commencement of this Plan, use
within the Wallis Creek Tidal Pool Water Source, the Hunter River Tidal Pool
Water Source and the Paterson River Tidal Pool Water Source was not
licenced.
28Share component of local water
utility access licences
It is estimated that at the time of commencement
of this Plan, the share components of local water utility access licences
authorised to extract water from these water sources will total 5,597 ML/year,
distributed as follows:
(a)
232 ML/year in the Pages River Water
Source,
(b)
198 ML/year in the Dart Brook Water
Source,
(c)
105 ML/year in the Lower Goulburn River Water
Source,
(d)
55 ML/year in the Munmurra River Water
Source,
(e)
4,932 ML/year in the Hunter Regulated River
Alluvial Water Source,
(f)
75 ML/year in the Paterson/Allyn River Water
Source, and
(g)
0 ML/year in all other water
sources.
29Share component of major
utility access licences
(1)
It is estimated that at the time of commencement
of this Plan, the share components of major utility access licences authorised
to extract water from these water sources will total 346,700 ML/year
distributed as follows:
(a)
100,000 ML/year in the Newcastle Water
Source,
Note—
The 100,000 ML/year specified above refers to the
maximum historic extractions from Grahamstown Dam via the George Schroder
Pumping Station and may be increased in line with Grahamstown water treatment
plant upgrades.
(b)
239,000 ML/year in the Williams River Water
Source, including 189,000 ML/year extracted at Balickera Pumping Station, and
50,000 ML/year extracted at Chichester Dam,
Note—
The 189,000 ML/year specified provides for
Grahamstown Dam to be filled during a single wet year. This figure is an
interim figure pending the completion of the supplementary study on
Development of Access Rules for the Lower Williams River. Total use from the
Williams River and Newcastle Water Sources will be limited by Operating
Licence and the Integrated Water Resources Plan. The Integrated Water
Resources Plan may be amended during the term of this Plan to allow for future
growth in the area of operation of the major utility.
(c)
7,700 ML/year in the Jerrys Water Source,
and
(d)
0 ML/year in all other water
sources.
(2)
The Minister may, pursuant to section 68A of the
Act, amend the share and/or extraction components of a major utility access
licence in the water sources listed in subclauses (1) (a), (1) (b) and (1) (c)
above, following:
(a)
the completion of the supplementary study
Development of Access Rules for the Lower Williams River,
and/or
(b)
the completion of Tillegra Dam to provide a share
component in the Williams River Water Source for Tillegra Dam.
Note—
The NSW Government has announced that a town
water supply dam is proposed to be built at Tillegra on the Williams River
with a capacity of up to 450,000 ML within the next decade. This dam is
proposed to be used in conjunction with Chichester Dam and Grahamstown Dam,
and there may be opportunities at the time to review and redistribute Hunter
Water’s existing entitlements (for example, entitlements for extractions
at Seaham). Hunter Water’s overall demand for water from the Williams
River will continue to be driven by customer water use requirements. Any
growth in demand will largely occur as a result of population increase. A new
dam at Tillegra would provide a storage buffer against drought for the current
and growing population, but would not otherwise signal an increase in overall
demand for water from the Williams River. With the construction of the dam at
Tillegra, relevant plan provisions will need to be amended. The share
component established for the Tillegra pipeline link is anticipated to be
similar to that of the Chichester trunk gravity main e.g. in the vicinity of
50,000 ML/yr.
30Share component of unregulated
river access licences
It is estimated that at the time of commencement
of this Plan, the share components of unregulated river access licences
authorised to extract water from these water sources will total 80,652 unit
shares, distributed as follows:
(a)
109 unit shares in the Munmurra River Water
Source,
(b)
1,449 unit shares in the Krui River Water
Source,
(c)
200 unit shares in the Bow River Water
Source,
(d)
4,024 unit shares in the Merriwa River Water
Source,
(e)
3,096 unit shares in the Halls Creek Water
Source,
(f)
1,490 unit shares in the Baerami Creek Water
Source,
(g)
2,007 unit shares in the Widden Brook Water
Source,
(h)
65 unit shares in the Bylong River Water
Source,
(i)
78 unit shares in the Wollar Creek Water
Source,
(j)
1,661 unit shares in the Upper Goulburn River
Water Source,
(k)
14,205 unit shares in the Lower Goulburn River
Water Source,
(l)
1,219 unit shares in the Dart Brook Water
Source,
(m)
4,639 unit shares in the Pages River Water
Source,
(n)
2,000 unit shares in the Isis River Water
Source,
(o)
3,394 unit shares in the Upper Hunter River Water
Source,
(p)
1,086 unit shares in the Rouchel Brook Water
Source,
(q)
531 unit shares in the Muswellbrook Water
Source,
(r)
2,573 unit shares in the Jerrys Water
Source,
(s)
260 unit shares in the Glennies Water
Source,
(t)
1,530 unit shares in the Glendon Brook Water
Source,
(u)
387 unit shares in the Luskintyre Water
Source,
(v)
960 unit shares in the Singleton Water
Source,
(w)
3,241 unit shares in the Martindale Creek Water
Source,
(x)
570 unit shares in the Doyles Creek Water
Source,
(y)
6,663 unit shares in the Lower Wollombi Brook
Water Source,
(z)
5,113 unit shares in the Black Creek Water
Source,
(aa)
490 unit shares in the Wallis Creek Water
Source,
(bb)
551 unit shares in the Newcastle Water
Source,
(cc)
3,645.5 unit shares in the Paterson/Allyn River
Water Source,
(dd)
8,239 unit shares in the Williams River Water
Source,
(ee)
196 unit shares in the Upper Paterson Water
Source,
(ff)
2,703 unit shares in the Upper Wollombi Brook
Water Source,
(gg)
1,216 unit shares in the North Lake Macquarie
Water Source,
(hh)
169 unit shares in the South Lake Macquarie Water
Source,
(ii)
859 unit shares in the Dora Creek Water
Source,
(jj)
0 unit shares in the Hunter Regulated River
Alluvial Water Source,
(kk)
0 unit shares in the Wallis Creek Tidal Pool
Water Source,
(ll)
0 unit shares in the Hunter River Tidal Pool
Water Source, and
(mm)
0 unit shares in the Paterson River Tidal Pool
Water Source.
Note—
Prior to the commencement of this Plan, use
within the Wallis Creek Tidal Pool Water Source, the Hunter River Tidal Pool
Water Source and the Paterson River Tidal Pool Water Source was not
licenced.
Note—
The total share components for unregulated river
access licences specified in the clause above include total share components
for unregulated river (subcategory “Aboriginal community
development”) access licences.
31Share component of unregulated
river (high flow) access licences
It is estimated that at the time of commencement
of this Plan, the share components of unregulated river (high flow) access
licences authorised to extract water from these water sources will total 42
unit shares, distributed as follows:
(a)
a total of 0 unit shares in the Pages River Water
Source,
(b)
a total of 0 unit shares in the Isis River Water
Source,
(c)
a total of 0 unit shares in the Lower Wollombi
Brook Water Source,
(d)
a total of 0 unit shares in the Rouchel Brook
Water Source, and
(e)
a total of 42 unit shares in the Paterson/Allyn
Rivers Water Source.
Note—
The Pages River Water Source, the Isis River
Water Source, the Lower Wollombi Brook Water Source, the Rouchel Brook Water
Source and the Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water Sources are the only water sources
within this Plan area which have been identified as suitable for unregulated
river (high flow) access licences. This Plan allows for a specified amount of
unregulated river access licences to be converted to the unregulated river
(high flow) access licences, however at the commencement of this Plan, apart
from an existing licence in the Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water Source, there are
no other existing access licences of this category hence the 0 unit shares
indicated.
32Share component of aquifer
access licences
It is estimated that at the time of commencement
of this Plan, the share components of aquifer access licences authorised to
extract water from these water sources will total 80,391 unit shares,
distributed as follows:
(a)
10 unit shares in the Munmurra River Water
Source,
(b)
5 unit shares in the Krui River Water
Source,
(c)
5 unit shares in the Bow River Water
Source,
(d)
900 unit shares in the Merriwa River Water
Source,
(e)
421 unit shares in the Halls Creek Water
Source,
(f)
2,259 unit shares in the Baerami Creek Water
Source,
(g)
1,191 unit shares in the Widden Brook Water
Source,
(h)
5,843 unit shares in the Bylong River Water
Source,
(i)
1,354 unit shares in the Wollar Creek Water
Source,
(j)
2 unit shares in the Upper Goulburn River Water
Source,
(k)
2,494 unit shares in the Lower Goulburn River
Water Source,
(l)
28,051 unit shares in the Dart Brook Water
Source,
(m)
8,059 unit shares in the Pages River Water
Source,
(n)
0 unit shares in the Isis River Water
Source,
(o)
0 unit shares in the Upper Hunter River Water
Source,
(p)
0 unit shares in the Rouchel Brook Water
Source,
(q)
0 unit shares in the Muswellbrook Water
Source,
(r)
0 unit shares in the Jerrys Water
Source,
(s)
0 unit shares in the Glennies Water
Source,
(t)
0 unit shares in the Glendon Brook Water
Source,
(u)
0 unit shares in the Luskintyre Water
Source,
(v)
0 unit shares in the Singleton Water
Source,
(w)
593 unit shares in the Martindale Creek Water
Source,
(x)
0 unit shares in the Doyles Creek Water
Source,
(y)
5,071 unit shares in the Lower Wollombi Brook
Water Source,
(z)
0 unit shares in the Black Creek Water
Source,
(aa)
0 unit shares in the Wallis Creek Water
Source,
(bb)
0 unit shares in the Newcastle Water
Source,
(cc)
0 unit shares in the Paterson/Allyn River Water
Source,
(dd)
0 unit shares in the Williams River Water
Source,
(ee)
0 unit shares in the Upper Paterson Water
Source,
(ff)
10 unit shares in the Upper Wollombi Brook Water
Source,
(gg)
0 unit shares in the North Lake Macquarie Water
Source,
(hh)
0 unit shares in the South Lake Macquarie Water
Source,
(ii)
0 unit shares in the Dora Creek Water
Source,
(jj)
24,132 unit shares in the Hunter Regulated River
Alluvial Water Source,
(kk)
0 unit shares in the Wallis Creek Tidal Pool
Water Source,
(ll)
0 unit shares in the Hunter River Tidal Pool
Water Source, and
(mm)
0 unit shares in the Paterson River Tidal Pool
Water Source.
Note—
Prior to the commencement of this Plan, use
within the Wallis Creek Tidal Pool Water Source, the Hunter River Tidal Pool
Water Source and the Paterson River Tidal Pool Water Source was not
licenced.
Note—
The total share components for aquifer access
licences specified in these water sources could be higher as a result of
additional share components for unidentified aquifer access licences in the
alluvial groundwater.
33Changes to total share
components
This Plan recognises that the total requirements
for water for extraction within these water sources may change during the term
of this Plan as a result of:
(a)
the granting, surrender or cancellation of access
licences,
(b)
the granting, surrender or cancellation of access
licences through a dealing under Part 13 of this Plan,
(c)
the variation of local water utility licences
under section 66 of the Act,
(d)
the variation of major utility (subcategory
“urban water”) water access licence(s) held by Hunter Water
Corporation,
Note—
In the event that Hunter Water Corporation takes
on the share component of a cancelled local water utility access licences, the
share component of the major utility (subcategory “urban water”)
access licence may be increased by the amount of the cancelled access licence.
This is in addition to increases as a result of clause 29
(2).
(e)
the re-allocation of access licences into or out
of a water source covered by this Plan where they have been incorrectly
identified in relation to the taking of water from that water source,
and
(f)
any changes due to the volumetric conversion of
Water Act 1912 entitlements that are
currently non-volumetric.
Part 8Rules for granting access
licences
34Rules for granting access
licences
(1)
This Part is made in accordance with sections 20
(2) (b), 61 and 63 of the Act, having regard to the limits to water
availability in these water sources and the need to protect dependent
ecosystems.
(2)
In addition to those applications for specific
purpose access licences permitted under clause 19 of the Water Management (General) Regulation
2004 (hereafter the
Regulation) applications may also be made in these water
sources for access licences, as follows:
(a)
an access licence that may be granted in
accordance with an access licence dealing,
Note—
Dealings include the conversion of unregulated
river access licences to unregulated river high flow access licences as
specified in clause 72 of this Plan.
(b)
an unregulated river (subcategory
“Aboriginal community development”) access licence, to take water
from B Class flows only (flows greater than the 50th percentile flow),
provided that the grant of any such access licence will cause no more than
minimal harm to the water source at the water source level impact assessment
and provided that the total share components of all unregulated river
(subcategory “Aboriginal community development”) access licences
in the water sources listed below do not exceed:
(i)
170 unit shares in the Isis/Pages Rivers Water
Sources,
(ii)
208 unit shares in the Lower Wollombi Brook Water
Source,
(iii)
318 unit shares in the Paterson/Allyn River Water
Source, and
(iv)
192 unit shares in the Rouchel Brook Water
Source, and
Note—
Approval for granting of an unregulated river
(subcategory “Aboriginal community development”) access licence
will be subject to assessment of the application in regard to the level of
impact of the proposed extraction. This may include consideration of the
potential impact on high flow (e.g. flows greater than the 50th percentile
flow) values, and any potential impact on the water source as a
whole.
Note—
An unregulated river (subcategory
“Aboriginal community development”) access licence will not be
fully commercial. Allocations under these licences will be able to be traded
to non-Aboriginal people however the licence itself can only be traded amongst
Aboriginal people, and as such will remain in the Aboriginal community for the
life of the licence. These licences will not be able to be converted to any
other category of licence. Aboriginal communities, enterprises and individuals
are encouraged to seek financial assistance from funding bodies to purchase
fully commercial licences.
(c)
a major utility (subcategory “urban
water”) access licence which replaces a local water utility access
licence.
Section 61 (b) of the Act also allows a person to
apply for an access licence with a zero share component and section 61 (c) of
the Act allows for a person to apply for an access licence where the right to
apply for that access licence has been acquired under section 65 of the
Act.
(3)
Access licences applied for under clause 5 of the
Regulation shall only be granted in the Hunter River Tidal Pool Water Source,
the Paterson River Tidal Pool Water Source and the Wallis Creek Tidal Pool
Water Source if the applicant can demonstrate a history of extraction in the
area from the defined tidal limit to the mangrove limit.
(4)
An access licence granted under subclause (3)
will have the share component determined by a process in consultation with
local water users.
(5)
The determination of the share component under
subclause (4) will consider the historical maximum annual extraction of water
on the property.
(6)
An access licence of the subcategory
“Aboriginal cultural” shall only be granted if the application
does not exceed 10 ML/year.
(7)
A specific purpose access licence shall only be
granted if the share or extraction component of the access licence is the
minimum required to meet the circumstances in which the access licence is
proposed to be used.
(8)
Applications for new access licences shall not be
permitted to be made and new access licences should not be granted in the
Hunter Regulated River Alluvial Water Source, except as a result of an access
licence dealing.
Note—
Any new access licence granted in these water
sources may be subject to specific mandatory conditions as set out in Part 13
of this Plan.
Part 9Rules for granting or amending
water supply works approvals
Division 1General
35Granting or amending water
supply works approvals
(1)
This Part is made in accordance with section 21
(b) and 21 (e) of the Act.
(2)
A water supply work approval shall not be granted
under section 95 of the Act, amended under section 107 of the Act, or amended
under section 71W of the Act, where the water supply work to be constructed or
used is located upstream of the high priority groundwater dependent ecosystem
identified in Schedule 4 of this Plan in the Paterson/Allyn Rivers, the
Williams River, the Isis River or the Newcastle Water
Sources.
36Runoff harvesting
dams
(1)
A water supply work approval for a runoff
harvesting dam in these water sources shall not be granted if the dam capacity
exceed the volume equivalent to the share component for the access licence
proposing to nominate the work.
(2)
If the share component of an access licence which
nominates a water supply work which is a runoff harvesting dam is reduced
either by the Minister, or on application of the access licence holder, or by
a dealing under Part 12 of this Plan, the Minister shall amend the water
supply work approval for the runoff harvesting dam to impose a condition
requiring the dam to be modified so as to reduce its capacity, consistent with
the reduction in share component of the access licence.
Note—
The taking of water from a runoff harvesting dam
requires an access licence and a water supply works approval, except to the
extent that the runoff harvesting dam is an owner or an occupier’s
harvestable right entitlement under section 53 of the Act, in which case it
will not require an access licence or water supply work.
Note—
Following the assignment of water allocations
from a water allocation account of an access that nominates an approval for a
runoff harvesting dam, the Minister may impose conditions requiring that
runoff harvesting dam to by-pass flows.
37In-river
dams
A water supply work approval for a new in-river
dam in these water sources on a 3rd or higher order stream shall not be
granted in the Dora Creek, the Glennies, the Upper Paterson, the Merriwa
River, the Newcastle, the Paterson/Allyn Rivers, the Rouchel Brook, the Upper
Goulburn River, the Upper Hunter and the Upper Wollombi Brook Water
Sources.
Note—
Stream order is defined in the
Dictionary.
Note—
The taking of water from an in-river dam requires
an access licence unless it is taken in accordance with section 52 of the Act
(domestic and stock rights). The construction and the use of an in-river dam
requires a water supply work approval, unless it is exempted under the Act or
the regulations, or it is being used for stock and domestic rights in which
case a water supply work approval is required only for the construction of the
in-river dam. All new or modified in-river dams require assessment under the
Fisheries Management Act
1994.
Division 2Water supply works used to
take water from the alluvial sediments in these water
sources
38Rules for granting or amending
approvals for water supply works used to take water from the alluvial
sediments in these water sources
This division is made in accordance with sections
21 (c) and 21 (e) of the Act.
Note—
The taking of groundwater results in the drawdown
of water levels in the water source in vicinity of the extraction. Extraction
may result in unacceptable water level declines in other water supply
works/bore close by, increasing the pumping costs associated with this
extraction, or even cutting off supply altogether. It may interfere with the
results of the regional water level monitoring undertaken by the Department.
It may also lower the water levels in groundwater dependent ecosystems and
cultural features close by. Finally, it may mobilise contaminated groundwater
in the area, drawing it towards a point of extraction. It is important,
therefore, to manage the location at which groundwater is extracted to
minimise these local impacts, by applying a minimum distance conditions to
water supply works.
39Rules for granting water
supply works approvals
(1)
A water supply work approval shall not be granted
under section 95 of the Act, amended under section 107 of the Act, or amended
under section 71W of the Act, where a water supply work to be constructed or
used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water sources is
located within:
(a)
400 metres of a water supply work being
constructed or used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water
sources nominated by another access licence,
(b)
200 metres of a water supply work being
constructed or used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water
sources for basic landholder rights,
(c)
50 metres from the property
boundary,
(d)
500 metres from a water supply works being
constructed or used to take water from alluvial sediments in these water
sources by a local water utility or a major utility, or
(e)
400 metres of a Departmental observation or
monitoring bore.
Note—
The distance conditions in this clause apply to
new or amended approvals. That is, when the applicant wants to construct a new
water supply work being used to take water from the alluvial sediments in
these water sources, and add it to an existing approval. The distance
conditions also apply when the licence holder wants to nominate new or
different works on the licence.
(2)
The distance restrictions specified in subclause
(1) do not apply where the application:
(a)
relates to a water supply work which is
constructed or used solely for the purpose of exercising basic landholder
rights,
(b)
is for a replacement bore,
Note—
Replacement bore is defined in the
Dictionary.
(c)
relates to a water supply work which is to be
constructed or used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water
sources for monitoring, environmental management purposes, or remedial works,
or
(d)
relates to a water supply work which is to be
constructed or used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water
sources and which is nominated solely by a domestic and stock access licence,
a local water utility access licence, an access licence of the subcategory
“town water supply” or an access licence of the subcategory
“urban water”.
(3)
A water supply work approval shall not be granted
under section 95 of the Act, amended under section 107 of the Act, or amended
under section 71W of the Act, where the water supply work to be constructed or
used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water sources,
nominated by a local water utility access licence, or an access licence of the
subcategory “town water supply” or an access licence of the
subcategory “urban water” is located within:
(a)
400 metres of a water supply work constructed or
used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water sources
nominated by another access licence,
(b)
200 metres of a water supply work constructed or
used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water sources for
basic landholder rights,
(c)
200 metres from the property boundary, if the
property is greater than 500 metres in the minimum width or depth (whichever
is the lesser), and
(d)
400 metres of a Departmental observation or
monitoring bore.
(4)
A water supply work approval shall not be granted
under section 95 of the Act, amended under section 107 of the Act, or amened
under section 71W of the Act, where water supply work to be constructed or
used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water sources,
nominated only by a domestic and stock access licence is located
within:
(a)
200 metres of an approved water supply work
constructed or used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water
sources nominated by another access licence,
(b)
200 metres of a water supply work constructed or
used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water sources for
basic landholder rights,
(c)
40 metres from the property boundary, if the
property is greater than 100 metres in the minimum width or depth (whichever
is the lesser),
(d)
200 metres from water supply works being
constructed or used to take water from alluvial sediments in these water
sources by local water utility or a major utility, or
(e)
100 metres of a Departmental observation or
monitoring bore.
(5)
The distance restrictions specified in subclauses
(3) and (4) do not apply where:
(a)
the application is for a replacement bore,
or
Note—
Replacement bore is defined in the
Dictionary.
(b)
the application relates to a water supply work
which is to be constructed or used to extract water from alluvial sediments in
these water sources for monitoring, environmental management purposes or
remedial works.
(6)
Where the distance restrictions specified in
subclauses (1), (3) and (4) cannot be met, a water supply work approval may be
granted provided:
(a)
a hydrogeological study undertaken by the
applicant, and assessed as adequate by the Department, demonstrates that the
water supply work will have no more than minimal impacts on the existing
licenced taking of water from the water source,
(b)
all potentially affected persons in the near
vicinity of the water supply work, holding an access licence or having a right
under the Act to take water, have been notified by the applicant,
and
Note—
These persons may include neighbouring access
licence, approval holders or other persons having a right to take water in the
near vicinity of the water supply work.
(c)
any approval granted contains conditions setting
out a process for remediation in the event that any more than minimal impact
on existing extraction from the water source occurs in the
future.
Note—
In some water sources the general size of
properties means that the application of exclusion distances would result in
no new or replacement bores being able to be installed. Applicants must apply
to the Department for special consideration in these
instances.
(7)
The Minister may amend this Plan to alter the
distance restriction in specified in this clause or add additional
restrictions, after year 5 of this Plan or if a temporary water restriction
order is made in these water sources under section 324 (2) of the
Act.
40Rules for granting water
supply works approvals near contamination sources
(1)
A water supply work approval shall not granted
under section 95 of the Act, amended l under section 107 of the Act, or
amended under section 71W of the Act, where a water supply work to be
constructed or used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water
sources is located within:
(a)
100 metres of a contamination source as listed in
Schedule 3, unless the applicant can demonstrate to the Minister’s
satisfaction, that:
(i)
a lesser distance will result in no more than
minimal harm to the water source, and
(ii)
the taking of water will not impact on the
environment or cause a threat to public health as confirmed by the Minister
for Health, or
(b)
a greater distance than in subclause (a), as
determined by the Minister, to ensure that no more than minimal harm will
occur to the water source, and that extraction will not impact on the
environment or cause a threat to public health as confirmed by the Minister
for Health.
(2)
A water supply work approval shall not be granted
for a new water supply work to be constructed or used to take water from the
alluvial sediments in these water sources for any purpose, except basic
landholder rights, which is between 100 metres and 500 metres of a
contamination source listed in Schedule 3, unless the applicant provides
evidence, to the Minister’s satisfaction, that no drawdown of
groundwater within 100 metres of the respective contamination source will
occur.
Note—
Schedule 3 is relevant to the granting of access
licences and approvals for water supply works to be constructed or used to
take water from the alluvial sediments in these water
sources.
(3)
The distance restrictions specified in subclauses
(1) and (2) do not apply to:
(a)
a water supply work to be constructed or used for
monitoring, environmental management purposes or remedial works,
or
(b)
an application for a replacement
bore.
Note—
Replacement bore is defined in the
Dictionary.
(4)
The Minister may amend this Plan to include or
remove a contamination source from Schedule 3, based on the results of a site
inspection or any other relevant information provided to the
Minister.
(5)
Subclauses (1) and (2) may be applied by the
Minister in relation to contamination sources not in Schedule 3, based on the
results of a site inspection or other relevant information provided to the
Minister.
41Rules for granting water
supply works approvals near sensitive environmental
areas
(1)
A water supply work approval shall not be granted
under section 95 of the Act, amended under section 107 of the Act, or amended
under section 71W of the Act, where the water supply work to be constructed or
used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water sources,
excluding the Lower Goulburn River, the Upper Goulburn River and Hunter
Regulated River Alluvial Water Sources, is located within:
(a)
100 metres of a high priority groundwater
dependent ecosystem, excluding high priority karst environment groundwater
dependent ecosystems, listed in and shown on the maps in Schedule 4, for basic
landholders rights only, or
(b)
200 metres of a high priority groundwater
dependent ecosystem, excluding high priority karst environment groundwater
dependent ecosystems, listed in and shown on the maps in Schedule 4 for water
supply works nominated by an access licence, or
(c)
500 metres of a high priority karst environment
groundwater dependent ecosystem, listed in and shown on the maps in Schedule
4, or
(d)
in the bed of a third order of higher stream and
perennial rivers, unless assessment indicates that the work will have minimal
impact on the river environment or river stability, or
Note—
It is acknowledged that there will be some impact
from the replacement of works however these must not have a detrimental impact
on river bed levels or slope, cause diversion of flows or contribute to bank
destabilisation.
(e)
if there is likely to be drawdown at the outside
edge of the distances referred to in subclauses (a) and
(b).
Note—
Subclause (1) will not apply to current
authorised extraction from an existing water supply work being used to take
water from the alluvial sediments in these water sources until such time as
the work is replaced.
(2)
A water supply work approval shall not granted
under section 95 of the Act, amended under section 107 of the Act, or amended
under section 71W of the Act, where the water supply work to be constructed or
used to take water from the alluvial sediments in the Lower Goulburn River and
the Upper Goulburn River Water Sources, where a water supply work being used
to take water from the alluvial sediments, is located:
(a)
Upstream of Kerrabee:
(i)
within 100 metres of a high priority groundwater
dependent ecosystem, excluding high priority karst environment groundwater
dependent ecosystems, listed in and shown on the maps in Schedule 4, for basic
landholders rights only, or
(ii)
within 200 metres of a high priority groundwater
dependent ecosystem, excluding high priority karst environment groundwater
dependent ecosystems, listed in and shown on the maps in Schedule 4, for water
supply works nominated by an access licence, or
(iii)
within 500 metres of a high priority karst
environment groundwater dependent ecosystem, listed in and shown on the maps
in Schedule 4, or
(iv)
within 40 metres of the top of the high bank of
any third order or above stream, or lagoon, or
(v)
within 40 metres of first and second order
stream, unless:
(1)
the water supply work to be constructed or used
is drilled into the underlying parent material, and the slotted intervals of
the works commences deeper than 30 metres, and
(2)
the applicant can demonstrate that the bore will
have no more than minimal impact on base flows in the stream,
and
(vi)
if there is likely to be drawdown at the outside
edge of the distances referred to in subclauses (a) (i) and (a) (ii),
and
(b)
Downstream of Kerrabee:
(i)
within 100 metres of a high priority groundwater
dependent ecosystems, excluding high priority karst environment groundwater
dependent ecosystems, listed in and shown on the maps in Schedule 4, for basic
landholders rights only, or
(ii)
within 200 metres of a high priority groundwater
dependent ecosystems, excluding high priority karst environment groundwater
dependent ecosystems, listed in and shown on the maps in Schedule 4, for water
supply works nominated by an access licence, or
(iii)
within 500 metres of a high priority karst
environment groundwater dependent ecosystems, listed in and shown on the maps
in Schedule 4,
(iv)
in the bed of a third order or higher stream and
perennial rivers, unless assessment indicates that the water supply work will
have no more than minimal impact on the river environment or river stability,
or
Note—
It is acknowledged that there will be some impact
from the replacement of works however these must not have a detrimental impact
on river bed levels or slope, cause diversion of flows or contribute to bank
destabilisation.
(v)
if there is likely to be drawdown at the outside
edge of the distances referred to in subclauses (b) (i) and (b)
(ii).
Note—
Subclause (2) will not apply to current
authorised extraction from an existing water supply work being used to take
water from the alluvial sediments in these water sources until such time as
the work is replaced.
(3)
A water supply work approval shall not granted
under section 95 of the Act, amended under section 107 of the Act, or amended
under section 71W of the Act, where the water supply work being used to take
water from the alluvial sediments in the Hunter Regulated River Alluvial Water
Sources, is located:
(i)
within 100 metres of a high priority groundwater
dependent ecosystem, excluding high priority karst environment groundwater
dependent ecosystems, listed in and shown on the maps in Schedule 4, for basic
landholders rights only, or
(ii)
within 200 metres of a high priority groundwater
dependent ecosystem, excluding high priority karst environment groundwater
dependent ecosystems, listed in and shown on the maps in Schedule 4, for water
supply works nominated by an access licence, or
(iii)
within 500 metres of a high priority karst
environment groundwater dependent ecosystem, listed in and shown on the maps
in Schedule 4, or
(iv)
within 200 metres of the top of the high bank of
the Hunter Regulated River, or any third order or above stream, or lagoon,
or
(v)
within 40 metres of first and second order
stream, unless:
(1)
the water supply work which is to be constructed
or used is drilled into the underlying parent material, and the slotted
intervals of the works commences deeper than 30 metres,
and
(2)
the applicant can demonstrate that the bore with
have no more than minimal impact on base flows in the stream,
or
(vi)
if there is likely to be drawdown at the outside
edge of the buffer zone referred to in subclauses (a) (i) and (a)
(ii).
(4)
Subclauses (1), (2) and (3) do not apply in
relation to a replacement bore.
Note—
Replacement bore is defined in the
Dictionary.
(5)
Subclauses (1) (a) (iv), (1) (a) (v), (3) (iv)
and (3) (v) do not apply to a new water supply works which are constructed or
used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water sources required
as part of a dealing involving the conversion of an unregulated river access
licence to an aquifer access licence under section 71O of the
Act.
(6)
The distance restrictions specified in subclauses
(1), (2) or (3) do not apply to a water supply work which is to be constructed
or used to take water from alluvial sediments in these water sources for
monitoring, environmental management purposes or remedial
works.
(7)
The Minister may amend this Plan to:
(i)
alter the exclusion distances in subclauses (1),
(2) or (3), during the term of this Plan, based on further studies of
groundwater ecosystem dependency caused to be undertaken by the Minister,
or
(ii)
include a new identified high priority
groundwater dependent ecosystem in Schedule 4 during the term of this Plan,
based on further studies of groundwater ecosystem dependency caused to be
undertaken by the Minister,
(iii)
delete a high priority groundwater dependent
ecosystem from Schedule 4 identified as not having groundwater dependency,
based on further studies of groundwater ecosystem dependency caused to be
undertaken by the Minister.
Part 10Limits to the availability of
water
Division 1Long-term average annual
extraction limit
42Limits to the availability of
water
This Division is made in accordance with section
20 (2) (a) of the Act.
43Extraction management unit for
these water sources
The availability of water to be taken from these
water sources and the management of the long-term average annual extraction of
water limit in these water sources will be undertaken in the Goulburn
Extraction Management Unit, Hunter Extraction Management Unit, Lake Macquarie
Extraction Management Unit and the Hunter Regulated River Alluvium Extraction
Management Unit (hereafter these
Units).
44Long-term average annual
extraction limit
(1)
The long-term average annual extraction limit for
the Lake Macquarie Extraction Management Unit is equal to the total of:
(a)
the quantity of water specified in conditions
attached to or included in entitlements issued under Part 2 of the Water Act 1912 in the Lake Macquarie
Extraction Management Unit, immediately prior to the commencement of this Plan
for water sources in the Lake Macquarie Extraction Management Unit,
plus
(b)
an estimate of annual extraction of water under
domestic and stock rights and native title rights in the water sources in the
Lake Macquarie Extraction Management Unit at the commencement of this Plan,
plus
(c)
the share component of access licences granted in
the Lake Macquarie Extraction Management Unit under the Regulations and Part 8
of this Plan.
(2)
The long-term average annual extraction limit for
the Goulburn Extraction Management Unit is equal to the total of:
(a)
the quantity of water specified in conditions
attached to or included in entitlements issued under Part 2 or Part 5 of the
Water Act 1912 in the Goulburn
Extraction Management Unit, immediately prior to the commencement of this Plan
for water sources in the Goulburn Extraction Management Unit,
plus
(b)
an estimate of annual extraction of water under
domestic and stock rights and native title rights in the water sources in the
Goulburn Extraction Management Unit, excluding the Wybong Creek Water Source,
at the commencement of this Plan, plus
(c)
the sum of share components of access licences in
the Wybong Creek Water Source at the commencement of the Water Sharing Plan for the Wybong Creek Water Source
2003, where the share component is expressed as a number
of ML/year, plus
(d)
the sum of share components of access licences in
the Wybong Creek Water Source at the commencement of the Water Sharing Plan for the Wybong Creek Water Source
2003, where the share component is expressed as a number
of unit shares, plus
(e)
an estimate of annual extraction of water under
domestic and stock rights and native title rights in the Wybong Creek Water
Source at the commencement of the Water Sharing
Plan for the Wybong Creek Water Source 2003,
plus
(f)
the share component of access licences granted in
the Goulburn Extraction Management Unit under the Regulations and Part 8 of
this Plan.
(3)
In the Hunter Extraction Management Unit there
will be separate long-term extraction limits applying to extractions
under:
(a)
basic landholder rights and access licences,
other than those major utility access licences held by Hunter Water
Corporation, and
(b)
major utility access licences held by Hunter
Water Corporation.
(4)
The long-term average annual extraction limit
established under subclause (3) (a) in the Hunter Extraction Management Unit
is equal to the total of:
(a)
the quantity of water specified in conditions
attached to or included in entitlements issued under Part 2 of the Water Act 1912 in this Unit, immediately
prior to the commencement of this Plan for water source in the Hunter
Extraction Management Unit, excluding entitlements held by Hunter Water
Corporation, plus
(b)
an estimate of annual extraction of water under
domestic and stock rights and native title rights in the Hunter Extraction
Management Unit at the commencement of this Plan, plus
(c)
the share component of access licences granted in
the Hunter Extraction Management Unit under the Regulations, Part 8 of this
Plan and any transitional regulations made pursuant to this
Plan.
(5)
The long-term average annual extraction limit
established under subclause (3) (b) for the major utility access licences held
by Hunter Water Corporation in the Hunter Extraction Management Unit will be
equal to 78,500 ML/year minus the long-term average annual extraction under
access licences held by Hunter Water Corporation in the Tomago, Tomaree and
Stockton Groundwater Source.
Note—
Water flowing from Hunter Water Corporation to
Gosford Wyong Councils will be accounted against the local water utility
long-term average annual extraction limit in the Tuggerah Lakes Extraction
Management Unit. Water transferred from Gosford Wyong Councils to Hunter Water
Corporation will be accounted against the major utility long-term average
annual extraction limit in the Hunter Extraction Management
Unit.
Note—
The 78,500 ML/year figure is based on demand
projections to 2013 taking into consideration projected increases in the
domestic and non-domestic sectors, as well as non-metered demand. Water
efficiency savings are incorporated in this estimate based on both NSW
Government and Hunter Water driven programs. This is the expected date that
releases will commence from Tillegra Dam and upgrade works will be finalised
for Grahamstown Dam. At this time operation of the water supply system will
vary and a number of relevant plan provisions will need to be reviewed to
determine their appropriateness in line with the new
operations.
(6)
After commencement of releases from Tillegra Dam,
or after 1 July 2013, whichever occurs sooner, the long-term average annual
extraction limit established under subclause (3) (b) for the major utility
access licences held by Hunter Water Corporation in the Hunter Extraction
Management Unit will be reviewed.
(7)
The review under subclause (6) shall consider the
need to vary the long-term average annual extraction limit specified in
subclause (5) based on consideration of the environmentally sustainable level
of extraction with regard to:
(a)
environmental flow releases from water supply
dams to meet:
(i)
instream habitat requirements,
and
(ii)
passage of flow through Seaham Weir to meet
estuary requirements, and
(b)
Seaham Weir infrastructure, operation and
extraction.
(8)
The Minister may amend the long-term average
annual extraction limit specified in subclause (5) in accordance with the
outcomes of the review specified in clauses (6) and (7).
(9)
The long-term average annual extraction limit for
the Hunter Regulated River Alluvium Extraction Management Unit is equal to the
total of:
(a)
the quantity of water specified in conditions
attached to or included in entitlements issued under Part 5 of the Water Act 1912 in this Unit, immediately
prior to the commencement of this Plan for water source in the Hunter
Regulated River Alluvium Extraction Management Unit, plus
(b)
an estimate of annual extraction of water under
domestic and stock rights and native title rights in the Hunter Regulated
River Alluvium Extraction Management Unit at the commencement of this Plan,
plus
(c)
the share component of access licences granted in
the Hunter Regulated River Alluvium Extraction Management Unit under the
Regulations and Part 8 of this Plan.
45Variation of the long-term
average annual extraction limits
(1)
The long-term average annual extraction limit for
one or more of these Units may vary following the granting, cancellation or
modification of access licences under the Act or through a dealing under Part
12 of this Plan.
(2)
The long-term average annual extraction limit for
an extraction management unit may vary following the purchase and cancellation
of an access licence in the extraction management unit.
(3)
The long-term average annual extraction limit for
the Hunter Extraction Management Unit may vary upon the conversion of access
licences from unregulated river access licence to an unregulated river (high
flow) access licence.
(3)
The variation in subclause (3) will result in the
long-term average annual extraction limit being reduced by the amount of the
cancelled share component of the unregulated river access licence and
increased by the amount of the share component of the granted unregulated
river (high flow) access licence.
46Assessment of the long-term
average annual extraction limit
(1)
This clause applies from the third year of this
Plan.
(2)
The total water extracted pursuant to basic
landholder rights and access licences in these Units, other than access
licences held by Hunter Water Corporation, will be assessed each water year to
determine if the long-term average annual extraction limit established by
clause 44 for each extraction management unit has been
exceeded.
(3)
The assessment referred to in subclause (2) is to
be based on a comparison of the water extracted in the current water year in
these Units, against the average extraction within these Units over the
preceding 2 water years.
47Compliance with the long-term
average annual extraction limits
Note—
Compliance with the long-term average annual
extraction limit is managed through the making of available water
determinations, under section 59 of the Act, for access licences in these
water sources. The rules for making the available water determinations
contained in Division 2 of this Part, are subject to this
clause.
(1)
If the assessment in clause 46 determines that
the long-term average annual extraction limit for any extraction management
unit in these water sources established under clause 44 has been exceeded by
5% or greater, then the available water determination made under Division 2 of
this Part for unregulated river access licences, unregulated river (high flow)
access licences and aquifer access licences, for the water sources in the
respective extraction management unit for the following water year shall be
reduced as necessary to return total water extraction under basic landholder
rights and access licences in the respective extraction management unit to the
long-term average annual extraction limit.
(2)
If the assessment in clause 46 determines that
the long-term average annual extraction limit for any extraction management
unit in these water sources is less than 95% of the respective long-term
average annual extraction limit established for any extraction management unit
in these water sources under clauses 44, then the available water
determination made under Division 2 of this Part for unregulated river access
licences, unregulated river (high flow) access licences, and aquifer access
licences, for the water sources in the respective extraction management unit
for the following water year shall be increased as necessary to allow total
water extraction under basic landholder rights and access licences in the
respective extraction management unit to increase to the long-term average
annual extraction limit.
(3)
Any reduction or increase to the available water
determination made under Division 2 of this Part for unregulated river access
licences, unregulated river (high flow) access licences and aquifer access
licences shall be the same.
(4)
Any reduction or increase to the available water
determinations made Division 2 of this Part for unregulated river access
licences, unregulated river (high flow) access licences and aquifer access
licences, in these water sources under this clause may be repeated for the
subsequent two water years, if necessary, to allow total water extraction
under basic landholder rights and access licences in the respective extraction
management unit to return to the long-term average annual extraction
limit.
(5)
Any reduction or increase to the available water
determinations made under Division 2 of this Plan for unregulated river access
licences in water sources within the Goulburn Extraction Management Unit,
under this clause, shall be equivalent to the corresponding reduction or
increase made to available water determinations for unregulated river access
licences in the Wybong Creek Water Source.
(6)
The average annual volume of water taken under
all major utility access licences held by Hunter Water Corporation in any 10
consecutive water years in the Hunter Extraction Management Unit may not
exceed a volume equal to the long-term extraction limit specified in clause 44
(5) of this Plan.
(7)
For the purpose of assessing growth above the
respective major utility long-term average annual extraction limit the water
taken in the Hunter Extraction Management Unit under major utility licences
within these water sources will be determined as:
(a)
the water passing the outlet of Grahamstown Water
Treatment Plant minus any water passing the boundary meter from Hunter Water
Corporation to Gosford Wyong Councils, plus
(b)
any water passing the boundary meter from Gosford
Wyong Councils to Hunter Water Corporation, plus
(c)
water taken by any other major utility
infrastructure nominated by Hunter Water Corporation and agreed to by the
Minister.
(8)
In the Hunter Extraction Management Unit total
water extractions under major utility access licences held by Hunter Water
Corporation, will be monitored each year to determine if there is any growth
in the volumes extracted above the extraction limit established under clause
44 (5) based on a comparison of the extraction limit against the average
extraction over a rolling ten year period commencing from the start of this
Plan, except where subclause (9) applies.
(9)
If the long-term average annual extraction limit
specified in clause 44 (5) is amended under clause 44 (8) then growth in
volumes extracted above the respective extraction limit specified in clause 44
(5) shall be determined based on a comparison of the extraction limit against
the average extraction under major utility access licences held by Hunter
Water Corporation within the Hunter Extraction Management Unit over a rolling
ten year period commencing from the water year in which the amendment was
made.
(10)
If monitoring of total water extractions under
major utility access licences held by the Hunter Water Corporation indicates
growth above the respective long-term average annual extraction limit as
specified in clause 44 (5), then a review shall be undertaken which
considers:
(a)
the Hunter Water Corporation’s urban water
supply requirements, and
(b)
the impacts associated with an increase to the
respective long-term average annual extraction
limit.
Note—
It is recognised that the initial long-term
average annual extraction limit (LTAAEL) for major utility access licences is
based on demand projections until 2013 and as such should cater for
anticipated extraction demands over this period within the proposed limit.
This figure however does not include provision for contingencies such as new
large scale development of regional significance. If such a development was to
occur, the major utility access licence holder could seek a review of the
LTAAEL to allow for an increase to meet the demands of such a
development.
(11)
For the purposes of auditing compliance against
the long-term average annual extraction limit established under clause 44, the
taking of water pursuant to an access licence that has been committed as
adaptive environmental water where the access licence has been granted under
section 8C of the Act shall not be accounted for as extraction under subclause
(1).
Division 2Available water
determinations
48Available water
determinations
(1)
This Division is made in accordance with section
20 (2) (b) of the Act.
(2)
All available water determinations in these water
sources shall be expressed as either:
(a)
a percentage of the share component for all
access licences where share components are specified as megalitres per year,
or
(b)
megalitres per unit share for all access licences
where share components are specified as a number of unit
shares.
(3)
An available water determination for each
category of access licence in these water sources should be made at the
commencement of each water year.
(4)
No available water determination made after the
first year of this Plan is to exceed 100% of access licence share component,
or 1 megalitre per unit share of access licence share
component.
Note—
Section 59 (1A) of the Act provides that an
available water determination that is made in relation to a particular
category of access licence applies to all subcategories of that category,
except to the extent to which it otherwise provides.
Where the long-term average annual extraction
limit in these water sources has been exceeded, or not reached, by 5% or more,
then available water determinations for certain access licence in these water
sources will be increased or reduced in accordance with Division 1 of this
Part, to allow extraction to return to the long-term average annual extraction
limit.
49Available water determinations
for domestic and stock access licences
(1)
The available water determination made at the
commencement of the first year of this Plan, for domestic and stock access
licences in these water sources, should be for 200% of access licence share
component.
(2)
The available water determination made at the
commencement of each subsequent water year for domestic and stock access
licences in these water sources and should, where possible, be for 100% of
access licence share component.
50Available water determinations
for local water utility access licences
(1)
The available water determination made at the
commencement of the first year of this Plan, for local water utility access
licences in these water sources, should be for 200% of access licence share
component.
(2)
The available water determination made at the
commencement of each subsequent water year for local water utility access
licences in these water sources should, where possible, be for 100% of access
licence share component.
51Available water determinations
for major utility access licences
An available water determination made at the
commencement of each water year for major utility access licences in these
water sources should, where possible, be for 100% of access licence share
component.
52Available water determinations
for unregulated river access licences
(1)
The available water determination made at the
commencement of the first year of this Plan, for unregulated river access
licences in these water sources, should be equal to 2 megalitres per unit
share of access licence share component.
(2)
The available water determination made at the
commencement of each subsequent water year for unregulated river access
licences in these water sources and should, where possible, be equal to 1
megalitre per unit share of access licence share component, or such lower
amount resulting from clause 47.
53Available water determinations
for unregulated river (high flow) access licences
(1)
The available water determination made at the
commencement of the first year of this Plan, for unregulated river (high flow)
access licences in these water sources, should be equal to 2 megalitres per
unit of access licence share component.
(2)
The available water determination made at the
commencement of each subsequent water year for unregulated river (high flow)
access licences in these water sources should, where possible, be equal to 1
megalitre per unit share of access licence share component, or such lower
amount resulting from clause 47.
54Available water determination
for aquifer access licences
(1)
An available water determination shall be made at
the commencement of each water year for aquifer access licences in these water
sources, excluding the Hunter Regulated River Alluvial, the Baerami Creek, the
Widden Brook, the Bylong River, the Wollar Creek, the Upper Goulburn River,
the Lower Goulburn River, the Martindale Creek, the Doyles Creek and the Lower
Wollombi Brook Water Sources, the Appletree Flat Management Zone of the Jerrys
Water Source, the Segenhoe Management Zone of the Pages River Water Source,
the Halls Creek, the Lower Middle Brook and Kingdon Ponds Management Zone of
the Lower Dart Brook, and the Upper Wollombi Brook Water Source, equal to 1
megalitre per unit of access licence share component.
(2)
An available water determination shall be made at
the commencement of each water year for all aquifer access licences in the
Hunter Regulated River Alluvial Water Source and should be equivalent to the
available water determination made for regulated river (high security) access
licences under the Water Sharing Plan for the Hunter
Regulated River Water Source 2003.
(3)
An available water determination shall be made at
the commencement of each water year for all aquifer access licences in the
Baerami Creek, the Widden Brook, the Bylong River, the Wollar Creek, the Upper
Goulburn River, the Lower Goulburn River, the Martindale Creek, the Doyles
Creek and the Lower Wollombi Brook Water Sources, the Appletree Flat
Management Zone of the Jerrys Water Source, the Segenhoe Management Zone of
the Pages River Water Source, the Halls Creek, the Lower Middle Brook and
Kingdon Ponds Management Zone of the Lower Dart Brook and the Upper Wollombi
Brook Water Source, equivalent to the available water determination made for
unregulated river access licences in these water
sources.
(4)
The Minister may amend this Plan, from year six
of this Plan, based on outcomes of further data collection and any
surface/groundwater connectivity studies undertaken, to amend the available
water determination in subclause (2) to be:
(a)
equivalent to 100% of the available water
determination made for regulated river (general security) access licences
under the Water Sharing Plan for the Hunter
Regulated River Water Source 2003, or
(b)
equivalent to 100% of the available water
determination made for aquifer access licences, or
(c)
the sum of specified percentages (equal to 100%)
of the available water determination made for regulated river (general
security) access licences under the Water Sharing
Plan for the Hunter Regulated River Water Source 2003 and
aquifer access licences.
Note—
For example, under subclause 4 (c) the available
water determination may be the sum of 50% of the available water determination
(AWD) for general security and 50% of the AWD for aquifer access licences or
some other variation of percentage equal to 100%. It may also be appropriate
to have a sliding scale of AWD application based on distance from the river if
justified.
(5)
In relation to any amendment under subclause (4)
an adjustment period may be included, if necessary, to allow for a phasing in
period in achieving the new available water
determination.
(6)
In reviewing the outcomes of data collection and
further studies as specified in subclause (4) and amendments of the available
water determination rules the Minister should consult with the Department of
Environment and Climate Change, the Department of Primary Industries, the
relevant Catchment Management Authority, and representatives of interest
groups and water users as appropriate.
Part 11Rules for managing access
licences
Division 1General
55Rules for managing access
licences
This Part is made in accordance with sections 20
(2) (b), 21 (a) and 21 (c) of the Act, having regards to:
(a)
the environmental water provisions in this
Plan,
(b)
requirements for water to satisfy basic
landholder rights, and
(c)
requirements for water for extraction under
access licences.
Division 2Water allocation account
management
56Individual access licence
account management rules
(1)
Water taken by a nominated water supply work
under an access licence will be debited against the water allocation account
for the access licence.
Note—
The volume of water extracted by a nominated
water supply work is used to account for the extractions against an individual
access licence water allocation account.
It is an offence under the Act to take water when
there is no, or insufficient water allocations credited to a water allocation
account for an access licence.
(2)
Where a water supply work is being used both to
take water for basic landholder rights and an access licence(s), the water is
to be accounted on the basis that an annual volume equal to the basic
landholder right for the water year will be the first volume regarded as being
taken and all other water taken in that year will be accounted as extraction
pursuant to the respective access licence(s).
(3)
The maximum volume that may be taken under a
domestic and stock, local water utility, unregulated river, unregulated river
(high flow) and aquifer access licences in these water sources, excluding
those within the Baerami Creek, the Widden Brook, the Bylong River, the Wollar
Creek, the Upper Goulburn River, the Lower Goulburn River, the Martindale
Creek, the Doyles Creek and the Lower Wollombi Brook Water Sources, the
Appletree Flat Management Zone of the Jerrys Water Source, the Segenhoe
Management Zone of the Pages River Water Source, the Halls Creek, the Lower
Middle Brook and Kingdon Ponds Management Zone of the Lower Dart Brook and the
Upper Wollombi Brook Water Source, in any 3 consecutive water years may not
exceed a volume equal to:
(a)
the sum of water allocations accrued under the
licence from available water determinations in those
years,
(b)
plus any water allocations assigned from another
access licence under section 71T of the Act, in those
years,
(c)
plus any water allocations recredited in
accordance with section 76 of the Act, in those years, and
(d)
minus any water allocations assigned to another
access licence under section 71T of the Act, in those
years.
(4)
Notwithstanding subclause (3), the maximum volume
that may be taken under a domestic and stock, local water utility, unregulated
river, unregulated river (high flow) and aquifer access licences in these
water sources, excluding those within the Baerami Creek, the Widden Brook, the
Bylong River, the Wollar Creek, the Upper Goulburn River, the Lower Goulburn
River, the Martindale Creek, the Doyles Creek, the Lower Wollombi Brook Water
Sources, the Appletree Flat Management Zone of the Jerrys Water Source, the
Segenhoe Management Zone of the Pages River Water Source, the Halls Creek, the
Lower Middle Brook and Kingdon Ponds Management Zone of the Lower Dart Brook
and the Upper Wollombi Brook Water Source, in the first 3 water years of this
Plan may not exceed a volume equal to:
(a)
3 times the access licence share component (for
access licences with share components expressed as megalitres per year), or 3
megalitres per unit share of access licence share component (for access
licences with share components expressed as a number of unit
shares),
(b)
plus any water allocations assigned from another
access licence under section 71T of the Act, in those
years,
(c)
plus any water allocations re-credited in
accordance with section 76 of the Act, in those years, and
(d)
minus any water allocations assigned to another
access licence under section 71T of the Act, in those
years.
(5)
The maximum volume that may be taken under a
domestic and stock, local water utility, unregulated river, unregulated river
(high flow) and aquifer access licences in the Baerami Creek, the Widden
Brook, the Bylong River, the Wollar Creek, the Upper Goulburn River, the Lower
Goulburn River, the Martindale Creek, the Doyles Creek and the Lower Wollombi
Brook Water Sources, the Appletree Flat Management Zone of the Jerrys Water
Source, the Segenhoe Management Zone of the Pages River Water Source, the
Halls Creek, the Lower Middle Brook and Kingdon Ponds Management Zone of the
Lower Dart Brook and the Upper Wollombi Brook Water Source may not exceed a
volume equal to:
(a)
the sum of water allocations accrued under the
licence from available water determinations in that year,
(b)
plus any water allocations assigned from another
access licence under section 71T of the Act, in that year,
(c)
plus any water allocations recredited in
accordance with section 76 of the Act, in that year, and
(d)
minus any water allocations assigned to another
access licence under section 71T of the Act, in that
year.
(6)
The Minister may amend subclauses (3), (4) and
(5) to amend the limits to volumes that may be taken under access licences in
the Baerami Creek, the Widden Brook, the Bylong River, the Wollar Creek, the
Upper Goulburn River, the Lower Goulburn River, the Martindale Creek, the
Doyles Creek and the Lower Wollombi Brook Water Sources, the Appletree Flat
Management Zone of the Jerrys Water Source, the Segenhoe Management Zone of
the Pages River Water, the Halls Creek, the Lower Middle Brook and Kingdon
Ponds Management Zone of the Lower Dart Brook and the Upper Wollombi Brook
Water Source, from year five of this Plan, following a review of the possible
impacts of differing carry over and 3 year annual use limits on the recovery
time of the aquifer, and when appropriate groundwater trigger levels can be
identified.
(7)
The Minister may amend this Plan to replace this
subclause with water allocation account management rules for major utility
access licences, or subcategories of major utility licences, for extraction
from Seaham Weir Pool, and natural inflows to Grahamstown Dam, based on the
supplementary study Development of Access Rules for the Lower Williams
River.
(8)
The maximum water allocation that can be carried
over in the accounts of domestic and stock, local water utility, unregulated
river, unregulated river high flow and aquifer access licences from one water
year to the next, in these water sources excluding the Hunter Regulated River
Alluvial, the Baerami Creek, the Widden Brook, the Bylong River, the Wollar
Creek, the Upper Goulburn River, the Lower Goulburn River, the Martindale
Creek, the Doyles Creek and the Lower Wollombi Brook Water Sources, the
Appletree Flat Management Zone of the Jerrys Water Source, the Segenhoe
Management Zone of the Pages River Water Source and the Wollombi Brook
Management Zone of the Upper Wollombi Brook Water Source, shall be equal
to:
(a)
100% of access licence share component, for
access licences with share components expressed as megalitres per year,
or
(b)
1 megalitre per unit share of access licence
share component, for access licences with share components expressed as a
number of unit shares.
(9)
The Minister may amend this Plan to replace this
subclause with carry over rules for major utility access licences, or
subcategories of major utility licences, for extraction from Seaham Weir Pool,
and natural inflows to Grahamstown Dam, based on the supplementary study
Development of Access Rules for the Lower Williams
River.
(10)
The maximum water allocation that can be carried
over in the accounts of access licences within the Hunter Regulated River
Alluvial Water Source from one water year to the next shall be equal
to:
(a)
10% of access licence share component for access
licences with share components expressed as megalitres per year,
or
(b)
0.1 megalitre per unit share of access licence
share component, for access licences with share components expressed as a
number of unit shares.
(11)
In the Baerami Creek, the Widden Brook, the
Bylong River, the Wollar Creek, the Upper Goulburn River, the Lower Goulburn
River, the Martindale Creek, the Doyles Creek and the Lower Wollombi Brook
Water Sources, the Appletree Flat Management Zone of the Jerrys Water Source,
the Segenhoe Management Zone of the Pages River Water Source and the Wollombi
Brook Management Zone of the Upper Wollombi Brook Water Source, water
allocations cannot be carried over from one water year to the
next.
(12)
The Minister may amend subclauses (8) and (11) to
include carryover provisions for the Baerami Creek, the Widden Brook, the
Bylong River, the Wollar Creek, the Upper Goulburn River, the Lower Goulburn
River, the Martindale Creek, the Doyles Creek and the Lower Wollombi Brook
Water Sources, the Appletree Flat Management Zone of the Jerrys Water Source,
the Segenhoe Management Zone of the Pages River Water Source and the Wollombi
Brook Management Zone of the Upper Wollombi Brook Water Source, from year five
of this Plan, following a review of the possible impacts of differing carry
over and 3 year annual use limits on the recovery time of the aquifer and when
appropriate groundwater trigger levels can be
identified.
(13)
If water that, pursuant to an access licence in
these water sources is committed as adaptive environmental water to be left in
a water source for environmental purposes, then the water allocation taken
under that access licence shall be assumed to be 100% of the available water
determination made in Division 2 Part 10 of this Plan.
57Accounting for bulk water
transfers to other water utilities
(1)
Any volume of water received from the Gosford
Wyong Councils Water Authority via the Hunter pipeline link will be accounted
against the long-term average annual extraction limit for the major utility
access licences in the Hunter Extraction Management
Unit.
(2)
Any volume of water sent to the Gosford Wyong
Councils Water Authority via the Hunter pipeline link from Hunter Water
Corporation will be accounted against the long-term average annual extraction
limit for the local utility access licences in the Gosford and Tuggerah
Extraction Management Units within the Water Sharing Plan for the Central
Coast Unregulated Rivers.
Note—
When water is transferred between Hunter Water
Corporation and Gosford Wyong Councils Water Authority, the long-term average
annual extraction limit for either utility is not changed. For the purposes of
accounting against the long-term average annual extraction limit, transfers
are treated as extractions by the recipient only. This means that the volume
of water able to be extracted from water sources within the recipient’s
plan area is reduced by this volume. The long-term average annual extraction
limit of the sender of the transfer is not affected.
(3)
The Minister may amend the accounting rules
specified in subclauses (1) and (2) following the commencement of release from
Tillegra Dam.
Division 3Sharing surface water flows on
a daily basis
58Sharing surface water flows on
a daily basis
This Division is made in accordance with sections
20 (2) (b) and 21 (a) of the Act.
59Establishment and assignment
of total daily extraction limits
(1)
At the commencement of this Plan, total daily
extraction limits (hereafter TDEL) have not been established or
assigned in the Munmurra River, the Krui River, the Bow River, the Merriwa
River, the Halls Creek, the Baerami Creek, the Widden Brook, the Bylong River,
the Wollar Creek, the Upper Goulburn River, the Muswellbrook, Lower Goulburn,
Dart Brook, the Upper Hunter River, the Jerrys, Glennies, the Glendon Brook,
the Luskintyre, the Singleton, the Martindale Creek, the Doyles Creek, the
Black Creek, the Wallis Creek, the Newcastle, the Upper Paterson, the Upper
Wollombi Brook, the North Lake Macquarie, the South Lake Macquarie, Dora
Creek, the Hunter Regulated River Alluvial, the Wallis Creek Tidal Pool, the
Hunter River Tidal Pool or the Paterson Tidal Pool Water
Sources.
(2)
This Plan establishes and assigns TDELs for
unregulated river (high flow) access licences in B Class flows in the
following water sources:
(a)
3.1 ML/day for B Class flows in the Pages River
Water Source and the Isis River Water Source combined,
Note—
This volume equates to a total of 10% of the
annual 50th percentile flow at the flow reference point (Pages River at Gundy
Recorder Gauge) in the Pages River Water Source and Isis River Water Source
combined.
(b)
3.8 ML/day for B Class flows in the Lower
Wollombi Brook Water Source,
Note—
This volume equates to a total of 10% of the
annual 50th percentile flow at the flow reference point (Wollombi Brook at
Warkworth Gauge) in the Lower Wollombi Brook Water
Source.
(c)
3.5 ML/day for B Class flows in the Rouchel Brook
Water Source, and
Note—
This volume equates to a total of 10% of the
annual 50th percentile flow at the flow reference point (Rouchel Brook at The
Vale Gauge) in the Rouchel Brook Water Source.
(d)
5.8 ML/day for B Class flows in the
Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water Source.
Note—
This volume equates to a total of approximately
10% of the annual 50th percentile flow at the flow reference points in the
Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water Source.
Note—
If this Plan is amended to change the flow
reference point for the Paterson/Allyn Water Source to Allyn River at Flying
Fox Lane gauge, the 10% of the 50th percentile will be calculated using that
flow reference point, once adequate data is available.
(3)
The Minister may amend this Plan to allow for the
establishment of TDELs in the Williams River Water Sources for major utility
access licences or subcategories of major utility access licences in any new
flow classes established under clause 17 (2) (i) of this
Plan.
(4)
Following the conversion of an unregulated river
access licence to an unregulated river (high flow) access licence under clause
72 of this Plan, the Minister may amend subclause (1) and (2) to establish a
TDEL for A Class in the relevant water source or management
zone.
(5)
Following the imposition of an adaptive
environmental water condition on an access licence that requires the water to
be left in the water source or management zone for environmental purposes,
then the Minister may establish TDELs in the relevant water source or
management zone.
Note—
TDELs referred to in subclauses (4) and (5) will
not be established unless enabling management systems are in place. This
includes monitoring and measurement systems which allow for accurate
measurement of flows and extraction.
60Unassigned
TDEL
At the commencement of this Plan, there is no
unassigned TDEL in these water sources.
61Granting of unassigned
TDEL
At the commencement of this Plan, there is no
unassigned TDEL in these water sources, therefore rules to grant unassigned
TDELs are not specified.
62Individual daily extraction
limits for access licences
(1)
At the commencement of this Plan, there are no
individual daily extraction limits (hereafter IDELs) established or assigned to
access licences in these water sources.
(2)
During the term of this Plan, the Minister may
amend this Plan to establish and assign IDELs for:
(i)
unregulated river (high flow) access licences in
B Class flows in the Pages River, the Isis River, the Lower Wollombi Brook,
the Rouchel Brook and the Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water Sources,
and
(ii)
any other access licence in these water sources
for which TDELs are established and assigned.
(3)
Where IDELs are established under subclause (2),
the IDEL is to be assigned in the same proportion as the TDEL for the access
licence bears to the sum of all share components of access licences of that
category, in the respective water source.
(4)
Notwithstanding subclause (3), where an access
licence contains more restrictive conditions than other access licences of the
same category in the water source, then any IDEL resulting from subclause (3)
shall be adjusted to reflect as far as possible the more restrictive
conditions.
63Adjustment to TDELS and
IDELS
(1)
The TDELs established in this Plan may be
adjusted, following:
(a)
the imposition of new adaptive environmental
water conditions that require water to be left in a water source,
or
(b)
the removal of adaptive environmental water
conditions that required water to be left in a water
source.
(2)
Where an IDEL is assigned under clause 62 and an
adaptive environmental water condition requiring water to be left in the water
source is:
(a)
imposed on an access licence, then the TDEL
established under clause 59 may be decreased by the IDEL on the access licence
so committed and clauses 59 and 62 adjusted accordingly,
or
(b)
removed from an access licence, then the TDEL
established under clause 59 will be increased by the IDEL on the access
licence so uncommitted and clause 59 and 62 adjusted
accordingly.
64Administrative arrangements
for managing access to daily flows (approved groups)
This Plan allows for the group management of
access licences in these water sources which have been assigned an IDEL,
subject to the following rules:
(a)
all access licences (except local water utility
access licences) in these water sources which are assigned an IDEL shall be
included in a group (hereafter approved
group),
(b)
an approved group shall have a group combined
IDEL, being the sum of the IDELs assigned to all access licences in the
approved group. The daily extraction of water by all access licences in an
approved group must not exceed the group combined IDEL. The daily extraction
of water under all access licences within an approved group will be assessed
as a whole against the group combined IDEL,
(c)
the Minister may, by notice in writing, remove
one or more access licences from an approved group, if:
(i)
the daily extraction of water by an approved
group exceeds the group combined IDEL, or
(ii)
the Minister is of the opinion that a holder of
an access licence within an approved group has caused the combined group IDEL
to be exceeded,
(d)
the daily extraction of water pursuant to an
access licence which is not in an approved group must not exceed the IDEL
assigned to the access licence,
(e)
the group combined IDEL shall be reduced by the
amount of the IDEL assigned to any access licence which is removed from the
approved group,
(f)
an access licence holder may, by request made in
writing to the Minister, apply to have their access licence removed from an
approved group. If the Minister consents to the removal of an access licence
from an approved group, the access licence will be removed from the approved
group,
(g)
the holder of an access licence which has been
assigned an IDEL and which is not in an approved group, may make a written
request to the Minister to:
(i)
form a new approved group, or
(ii)
be included in an approved
group,
(h)
the Minister may:
(i)
consent or refuse a request to form a new
approved group,
(ii)
consent or refuse to allow an access licence to
be included in an approved group,
(iii)
consent or refuse a request for an access licence
to be removed from one approved group and included in a new approved
group,
(i)
where the Minister consents to a new approved
group, a new approved group will be formed and will be subject to the rules
contained in this clause,
(j)
where an access licence is added to an approved
group, the group combined IDEL shall be increased by the amount of IDEL
assigned to the access licence,
(k)
an access licence may not be in more than one
approved group at any time,
(l)
any part of the IDEL of an access licence which
is committed to the environment pursuant to an adaptive environmental water
condition:
(i)
shall not be included in an approved group,
or
(ii)
where the IDEL is already included in an approved
group, shall be removed from the approved group.
65Amendments to this Plan for
the purposes of sharing of surface water flows on a daily
basis
(1)
This Part may be amended for the purpose of
enabling the sharing of surface water flows on a daily
basis.
(2)
Any such amendment may include, but need not be
limited to:
(a)
the establishment or modification of TDELs in
these water sources,
(b)
the establishment or modification of IDELs for
access licences in these water sources,
(c)
the establishment or modification of approved
groups and rules to govern the operation of those groups, with respect to
TDELs or IDELs in these water sources,
(d)
the imposition, removal or modification of
mandatory conditions, or
(e)
to provide for the amendment of the share
component or the extraction component of one or more access licences in these
water sources pursuant to section 68A of the Act.
66Williams River Water Source
Accreditation Scheme
There is a Williams River Water Source
Accreditation Scheme which affects unregulated river access licences in the
Williams River Water Source, as specified in clauses 76 (5) and 17 (1) (mm)
(ii) of this Plan.
Note—
The Williams River Water Source Accreditation
Scheme is defined in the Dictionary.
67Access to the Very Low Flow
Class in these water sources
Access to the Very Low Flow Class in these water
sources is limited to access licences, as specified in clause 77 of this
Plan.
Note—
Clause 93 provides for amendments to Schedule
2.
Division 4Management of surface and
groundwater connectivity
68Access licences which nominate
a water supply work which may be used to take water from the alluvial
sediments in these water sources
(1)
Except for an aquifer access licence referred to
in subclause (3), all aquifer access licences:
(a)
in the Isis River Water Source, the Upper Hunter
River Water Source, the Rouchel Brook Water Source, the Muswellbrook Water
Source, the Jerrys Management Zone of the Jerrys Water Source, the Glennies
Water Source, the Glendon Brook Water Source, the Luskintyre Water Source, the
Singleton Water Source, the Black Creek Water Source, the Wallis Creek Water
Source, the Newcastle Water Source, the Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water Source,
the Williams River Water Source, the Upper Paterson Water Source, the North
Lake Macquarie Water Source, the South Lake Macquarie Water Source or the Dora
Creek Water Source, and
(b)
which nominate a water supply work which may be
used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water sources, which
is located at or less than 40 metres from the top of the high bank of a
river,
shall, from year six of this Plan, be subject to the
same mandatory condition(s) imposed under clause 76 of this Plan on an
unregulated river access licence in the same water source or management zone
as the aquifer access licence.
(2)
Except for an aquifer access licence referred to
in subclause (3), all aquifer access licences:
(a)
in the Munmurra River Water Source, the Krui
River Water Source, the Bow River Water Source, the Merriwa River Water
Source, the Halls Creek Water Source, the Baerami Creek Water Source, the
Widden Brook Water Source, the Bylong River Water Source, the Wollar Creek
Water Source, the Upper Goulburn River Water Source, the Lower Goulburn River
Water Source, the Dart Brook Water Source, the Pages River Water Source, the
Martindale Creek Water Source, the Doyles Creek Water Source, the Lower
Wollombi Brook Water Source or the Upper Wollombi Brook Water Source,
and
(b)
which nominate a water supply work which may be
used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water
sources,
shall be subject to the same mandatory condition(s)
imposed under clause 76 of this Plan on an unregulated river access licence in
the same water source or management zone as the aquifer access
licence.
(3)
Any aquifer access licence arising from a dealing
involving the conversion of an unregulated river access licence to an aquifer
access licence, under Part 12 of this Plan, shall be subject to the same to
mandatory condition(s) imposed under clause 76 of this Plan on an unregulated
river access licence in the same water source or management zone as the
aquifer access licence.
(4)
A local water utility access licence which
nominates a new water supply work which may be used to take water from the
alluvial sediments in these water sources, which is at or less than 40 metres
from the top of the high bank of a river, shall be subject to the same
mandatory condition(s) imposed under clause 76 of this Plan on an unregulated
river access licence in the same water source or management zone as the local
water utility access licence.
(5)
A mandatory condition imposed on an unregulated
river access licence under clause 76 of this Plan which requires a visible
flow at the pump site shall, for the purposes of an aquifer access licence or
a local water utility access licence to which this clause applies, be taken to
mean a visible flow in the river immediately adjacent to the water supply work
nominated by the aquifer access licence or the local water utility access
licence.
Part 12Access licence dealing
rules
69Access licence dealing
rules
(1)
This Part is made in accordance with section 20
(1) (d) of the Act.
(2)
An access licence dealing may only be made in
accordance with the water management principles, the access licence dealing
rules established by this Plan and any access licence dealing principles order
which is in force under section 71Z of the Act.
(3)
If permitted pursuant to the principles and rules
referred to in subclause (2), an access licence with an adaptive environmental
water condition in these water sources may be the subject of an assignment
dealing under section 71T of the Act, but only to the extent that any part of
the water allocation of an access licence which is subject to an adaptive
environmental water condition is not required to meet the adaptive
environmental water condition.
(4)
If permitted pursuant to the principles and rules
referred to in subclause (2), an access licence with an adaptive environmental
water condition in these water sources may be the subject of a dealing,
provided that the benefit to the environment provided for in the adaptive
environmental condition remains the same.
Note—
There are a number of mechanisms within the Act,
called access licence dealings, to change either the holder of all or part of
an access licence, or the location within a water source at which all or part
of the share and extraction components of access licences can be
exercised.
Note—
Where there is an inconsistency between access
licence dealing rules established in this Plan and Minister’s access
licence dealing principles gazetted subsequent to the commencement of this
Plan, section 71Z of the Act provides for the Minister’s access licence
dealing principles to prevail.
Note—
An unregulated river (subcategory
“Aboriginal community development”) access licence is not fully
commercial. Allocations under these licences will be able to be traded to
non-Aboriginal people however the licence itself can only be traded amongst
Aboriginal people, and as such will remain in the Aboriginal community for the
life of the licence. These licences will not be able to be converted to any
other category of licence. Aboriginal communities, enterprises and individuals
are encouraged to seek financial assistance from funding bodies to purchase
fully commercial licences.
70Rules relating to constraints
within these water sources
(1)
This clause applies to any dealings under
sections 71Q, 71S, 71T and 71W of the Act within these water
sources.
(2)
The dealings specified in subclause (1) are
prohibited if:
(a)
the dealing involves an assignment of water
allocation under section 71T of the Act, from a major utility access licence
or from an unregulated river (high flow) access licence to another category of
access licence within these water sources,
(b)
the dealing would result in the amount of total
extraction of water from the alluvial sediments in these water sources, under
aquifer access licences which nominate a water supply work used to take water
from alluvial sediments in these water sources, plus basic landholder rights
extractions, requiring a temporary water restriction order to be made under
section 324 (2) of the Act,
(c)
the dealing involves an assignment of access
rights under section 71Q of the Act, or an allocation assignment under section
71T of the Act from an aquifer access licence that nominates a water supply
works which may be used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these
water source, which is located more than 40 metres from the top of the bank of
a river to a water supply works which may be used to take water from the
alluvial sediments in these water source, which is located within 40 metres
from the top of the bank of a river, in the Isis River Water Source, the Upper
Hunter River Water Source, the Rouchel Brook Water Source, the Muswellbrook
Water Source, the Jerrys Water Source, the Glennies Water Source, the Glendon
Brook Water Source, the Luskintyre Water Source, the Singleton Water Source,
the Black Creek Water Source, the Wallis Creek Water Source, the Newcastle
Water Source, the Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water Source, the Williams River Water
Source, the Upper Paterson Water Source, the North Lake Macquarie Water
Source, the South Lake Macquarie Water Source or the Dora Creek Water
Source,
(d)
the dealing involves an assignment of access
rights under section 71Q of the Act, or an allocation assignment under section
71T of the Act from an access licence which nominates a water supply works
that is located more than 200 metres from the top of the bank of a river to an
access licence which nominates a water supply works that is located within 200
metres from the top of the bank of a river, in the Hunter Regulated River
Alluvial Water Source,
(e)
the dealing involves an assignment of access
rights under section 71Q of the Act, or an allocation assignment under section
71T of the Act from an access licence which nominates a water supply work that
is located within 200 metres from the top of the bank of the a river to an
access which nominates a water supply work that is located at a distance that
is closer to the top of the bank of the river, in the Hunter Regulated River
Alluvial Water Source,
(f)
the dealing involves an assignment of access
rights under section 71Q of the Act, or an allocation assignment under section
71T of the Act from an access licence in:
(i)
the Upper Goulburn River Water Source, the
Rouchel Brook Water Source and the Upper Wollombi Brook Water Source, to
another access licence in an upstream direction, unless the dealing relates to
access licences for the same property,
Note—
In the Upper Wollombi Brook Water Source this
rule will allow for dealings in a downstream direction between the Congewai
Creek Management Zone and the Wollombi Brook Management
Zone.
(ii)
the Pages River Water Source in a downstream
direction from the Murrurundi Management Zone, the Scotts Creek Management
Zone, the Kewell Creek Management or the Gundy Management Zone into the
Segenhoe Management Zone,
(iii)
the Segenhoe Management Zone, the Gundy
Management Zone or the Kewell Creek Management Zone in the Pages River Water
Source, to another access licence in the Murrurundi Management Zone or the
Scotts Creek Management Zone in the Pages River Water Source,
Note—
This is to prevent dealings from below Camerons
Gorge National Park to above Camerons Gorge National
Park.
(iv)
the Upper Middle Brook Management Zone, the Upper
Dart Brook Management Zone or the Petwyn Vale Management Zone in the Dart
Brook Water Source to another access licence not in the same management
zone,
(v)
the Upper Middle Brook Management Zone, the Upper
Dart Brook Management Zone or the Petwyn Vale Management Zone to another
access licence in the Lower Dart Brook Management Zone or the Lower Middle
Brook and Kingdon Ponds Management Zone in the Dart Brook Water
Source,
(vi)
the Lower Dart Brook Management Zone to another
access licence in the Lower Middle Brook and Kingdon Ponds Management Zone in
the Dart Brook Water Source,
(vii)
the Muswellbrook Water Source, the Jerrys Water
Source, the Singleton Water Source, the Luskintyre Water Source or the
Newcastle Water Source, to another access licence in different tributaries in
the water source,
(viii)
the Glennies Water Source, from streams below
Glennies Creek Dam to another access licence in streams above Glennies Creek
Dam,
(ix)
the Black Creek Water Source from any access
licence which nominates a water supply work with a runoff harvesting dam to
another access licence in Black Creek or its tributaries,
(x)
the Williams River Water Source, from streams
below Chichester Dam to another access licence in streams above Chichester
Dam, or
(xi)
the Munmurra River, the Bow River, the Krui
River, the Merriwa River, the Martindale River, the Dart Brook, the Hunter
Regulated River Alluvial Water Source, the Pages River, the Upper Goulburn
River, the Lower Goulburn River, the Upper Wollombi Brook, the Lower Wollombi
Brook, the Halls Creek, the Baermai Creek, the Widden Brook, the Bylong River,
the Wollar Creek, the Upper Goulburn River, the Doyles Creek or the Lower
Goulburn River Water Sources, to another access licence in the water source
which is subject to an order under section 324 of the
Act,
(g)
the dealing involves an assignment of access
rights under section 71Q of the Act from an access licence in the Downstream
Glennies Creek Management Zone and the Glennies Creek Management Zone of the
Hunter Regulated River Alluvial Water Source, to an access licence the
Upstream Glennies Creek Management Zone of the Hunter Regulated River Alluvial
Water Source, where it would result in the sum of all share components in the
Upstream Glennies Creek Management Zone exceeding the total share components
of all access licences in the Upstream Glennies Creek Management Zone at the
commencement of this Plan,
(h)
the dealing involves an allocation assignment
under section 71T of the Act from an access licence in the Downstream Glennies
Creek Management Zone and the Glennies Creek Management Zone of the Hunter
Regulated River Alluvial Water Source, to the Upstream Glennies Creek
Management Zone, where in the opinion of the Minister:
(i)
the dealing would place the supply of water for
water allocations already in the water allocation accounts of access licences
nominating water supply works in Management Zone 1 specified in the Water Sharing Plan for the Hunter Regulated River Water
Source 2003, at risk, or
(ii)
the dealing would place the future reliability of
supply to access licences in Management Zone 1 specified in the Water Sharing
Plan for the Hunter Regulated River Water Source 2003, at significant
risk,
Note—
At the commencement of this Plan, the Access Licence Dealing Principles Order
2002 does not allow for dealings between regulated river
or unregulated river water sources to groundwater sources. Dealings between
regulated river access licences and aquifer access licences may be allowed in
future Water Sharing Plans. At the commencement of this Plan, the Water Sharing Plan for the Hunter Regulated River Water
Source 2003 does not currently allow for dealings between
alluvial and regulated river access licences.
(i)
the dealing involves an allocation assignment
under section 71T of the Act from an access licence in the Upstream Glennies
Creek Management Zone and the Downstream Glennies Creek Management Zone of the
Hunter Regulated River Alluvial Water Source, to the Glennies Creek Management
Zone of the Hunter Regulated River Alluvial Water Source, where in the opinion
of the Minister:
(i)
the dealing would place the supply of water for
water allocations already in the water allocation accounts of access licences
nominating water supply works in Management Zone 3 specified in the Water Sharing Plan for the Hunter Regulated River Water
Source 2003, at any risk, or
(ii)
the dealing would place the future reliability of
supply to access licences in Management Zone 3 specified in the Water Sharing Plan for the Hunter Regulated River Water
Source 2003, at significant
risk,
(j)
the dealing involves an access licence that
currently nominates a water supply works in:
(i)
the Upper Goulburn River Water Source, the
Rouchel Brook Water Source or the Upper Wollombi Brook Water Source, being
amended under section 71W of the Act to nominate a water supply work located
in an upstream direction,
(ii)
the Murrurundi Management Zone, the Scotts Creek
Management Zone, the Kewell Creek Management Zone or the Gundy Management Zone
in the Pages River Water Source being amended under section 71W of the Act to
nominate a water supply work in the Segenhoe Management Zone in the Pages
River Management Zone,
(iii)
the Segenhoe Management Zone, Gundy Management
Zone or Kewell Creek Management Zone in the Pages River Water Source, being
amended under section 71W of the Act to nominate a water supply work in the
Murrurundi Management Zone or the Scotts Creek Management Zone in the Pages
River Water Source,
(iv)
the Upper Middle Brook Management Zone, the Upper
Dart Brook Management Zone or the Petwyn Vale Management Zone in the Dart
Brook Water Source, being amended under section 71W of the Act to nominate a
water supply work not in the same management zone,
(v)
the Upper Middle Brook Management Zone, the Upper
Dart Brook Management Zone or the Petwyn Vale Management Zone in the Dart
Brook Water Source being amended under section 71W of the Act to nominate a
water supply work in the Lower Dart Brook Management Zone or Lower Middle
Brook and Kingdon Ponds Management Zone in the Dart Brook Water
Source,
(vi)
the Lower Dart Brook Management Zone in the Dart
Brook Water Source being amended under section 71W of the Act to nominate a
water supply work in the Lower Middle Brook and Kingdon Ponds Management Zone
in the Dart Brook Water Source,
(vii)
the Muswellbrook Water Source, the Jerrys Water
Source, the Singleton Water Source, the Luskintyre Water Source, the Newcastle
Water Source, being amended under section 71W of the Act to nominate a water
supply work in a different tributary within the water
source,
(viii)
streams below Glennies Creek Dam being amended
under section 71W of the Act to nominate a water supply work into streams
above Glennies Creek Dam in the Glennies Water Source,
(ix)
the Black Creek Water Source which is a runoff
harvesting dam being amended under section 71W of the Act to nominate a water
supply work which take water from Black Creek or its
tributaries,
(x)
streams below Chichester Dam being amended under
section 71W of the Act to nominate a water supply work into streams above
Chichester Dam in the Williams River Water Source,
(xi)
the Murmurra River, the Bow River, the Krui
River, the Merriwa River, the Martindale River, the Doyles River, the Dart
Brook, Hunter Regulated River Alluvial Water Source, the Pages River, the
Upper Goulburn River, the Lower Goulburn River, the Upper Wollombi Brook, the
Lower Wollombi Brook, the Halls Creek, the Baermai Creek, the Widden Brook,
the Bylong River, the Wollar Creek, the Upper Goulburn River and the Lower
Goulburn River Water Sources, being amended under section 71W of the Act to
nominate a water supply work in an area which is subject to an order under
section 324 of the Act,
(xii)
the Downstream Glennies Creek Management Zone and
the Glennies Creek Management Zone in the Hunter Regulated River Alluvial
Water Source being amended under section 71W of the Act to nominate a water
supply work in the Upstream Glennies Creek Management Zone in the Hunter
Regulated River Alluvial Water Source if the dealing would result in the sum
of all share components and basic landholder rights requirements in the
Upstream Glennies Creek Management Zone exceeding 12,615 megalitres and unit
shares, and
(xiii)
the Downstream Glennies Creek Management Zone and
the Upstream Glennies Creek Management Zone of the Hunter Regulated River
Alluvial Water Source, being amended under section 71W of the Act to nominate
a water supply work in the Glennies Creek Management Zone in the Hunter
Regulated River Alluvial Water Source if, in the opinion of the Minister, this
would place the supply of water allocations already in the water for water
allocation accounts of access licences which nominate a water supply work in
the Glennies Creek Management Zone, at risk,
(k)
the dealing involves an access licence that
nominate a water supply works which may be used to take water from the
alluvial sediments in these water sources, which is located more than 40
metres from the top of the bank of a river being amended under section 71W of
the Act to nominate a water supply work which may be used to take water from
the alluvial sediment in these water sources which is located within 40 metres
from the top of the bank of a river, in the Isis River Water Source, the Upper
Hunter River Water Source, the Rouchel Brook Water Source, the Muswellbrook
Water Source, the Jerrys Water Source, the Glennies Water Source, the Glendon
Brook Water Source, the Luskintyre Water Source, the Singleton Water Source,
the Black Creek Water Source, the Wallis Creek Water Source, the Newcastle
Water Source, the Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water Source, the Williams River Water
Source, the Upper Paterson Water Source, the North Lake Macquarie Water
Source, the South Lake Macquarie Water Source and the Dora Creek Water
Source,
(l)
the dealing involves an access licence that
nominates a water supply works which is located more than 200 metres from the
top of the bank of a river being amended under section 71W of the Act to
nominate a water supply work which is located within 200 metres from the top
of the bank of a river, in the Hunter Regulated River Alluvial Water Source,
and
(m)
the dealing involves access licence that
nominates a water supply work which is located within 200 metres from the top
of the bank of the a river being amended under section 71W of the Act to
nominate a water supply work which is located at a distance closer to the top
of the bank of the river, in the Hunter Regulated River Alluvial Water
Source.
(3)
The Minister may amend this Plan, at year five of
this Plan, to modify the rules relating to access licence dealings within the
Pages River Water Source to allow downstream dealings, based on studies which
determine how dealing rules influence the spread of access licences and the
ability to mitigate clustering of licenced entitlement.
Note—
The intention of the study is to prevent the
occurrence of hotspots in the Segenhoe Management Zone through the spread of
entitlement and adoption of appropriate dealing limits.
(4)
The Minister may amend this Plan, during the term
of this Plan, to modify the rules relating to access licence dealings within
the Upper Wollombi, the Upper Goulburn and the Rouchel Brook (excluding Back
Creek) Water Sources to allow upstream dealings, based on studies which define
groundwater dependent ecosystems or aquatic environmental features and their
water requirements.
Note—
The intention of the study is to allow for
increased flexibility in dealing rules whereby upstream dealings may be
considered where key environmental values can be identified and protected
within the water source.
(5)
The Minister may amend this Plan, during the term
of this Plan, to amend the access licence dealing rules within the Hunter
River, Paterson River and Wallis Creek Tidal Pool Water Sources in association
with the development of access rules for those water
sources.
(6)
The Minister may amend this Plan to increase the
limit set in subclause (2) (d) (xiii) providing that:
(i)
an assessment of the possible impacts on the
environment and water access has been carried out,
(ii)
consultation with access licence holders and the
Minister for the Environment has been undertaken, and
(iii)
the Minister is satisfied that there will be no
impact on environmental water in the water source or on water access in the
water source.
71Rules for change of water
source
(1)
This clause relates to dealings under section 71R
and 71W of the Act.
Note—
Section 71R dealings are the mechanism by which
access licences can move from one water source to another. Once the change in
water source has been affected, if permitted, the new licence will have to
nominate specified works (by a dealing under section 71W of the Act) in the
receiving water source before extraction can commence.
(2)
Dealings under section 71R and 71W of the Act to
change the water source to which an access licence applies are prohibited in
these water sources if:
(a)
the dealing involves a change of water source
from one extraction management unit to another extraction management unit,
and
(b)
the dealing is from any water source within the
Goulburn, Lake Macquarie or Hunter Extraction Management Units, except
for:
(i)
dealings from the Upper Wollombi Brook to the
Lower Wollombi Brook Water Sources, and
(ii)
dealings into the Krui River, the Bow River, the
Bylong River, the Wollar Creek, Halls Creek, the Baerami Creek, the Widden
Brook, Dart Brook, the Pages River, the Isis River, the Muswellbrook, the
Jerrys, the Glendon Brook, the Luskintyre, the Singleton, the Martindale
Creek, the Doyles Creek, the Lower Wollombi Brook, the Black Creek, the Wallis
Creek and the North Lake Macquarie Water Sources, provided that the dealing
does not cause the sum of all access licence share components in the
respective water sources to exceed the sum of all access licence share
components for the water source at the commencement of this
Plan.
Note—
Dealings between regulated river access licences
and aquifer access licences may be allowed in future Water Sharing Plans. The
Water Sharing Plan for the Hunter
Regulated River Water Source 2003 does not currently allow
for dealings between alluvial and regulated river access licences. These rules
should be reviewed at the term of this Plan.
(3)
Dealings under section 71R and 71W of the Act to
change the water source to which an access licence applies are prohibited in
these water sources if the dealing involves an unregulated river (high flow)
access licence.
(4)
Dealings under section 71R and 71W of the Act to
change the water source to which an access licence applies are prohibited in
these water sources if the dealing would result in the total extraction
pursuant to access licences which nominate a water supply works which may be
used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water sources, plus
basic landholder rights extraction would require a temporary water restriction
order to be made under section 324 (2) of the Act.
(5)
Unless the application is for a replacement water
supply work being used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these
water sources that is part of a bore network for a local water utility or town
water supply or a new water supply works which may be used to take water from
alluvial sediments in these water sources required as part of a dealing
involving the conversion of an unregulated river access licence to an aquifer
access licence under section 71O of the Act, consent to a nominated work under
section 71W, is not to be granted in these groundwater sources, if it would
result in a water supply work which may be used to take water from the
alluvial sediments in these water sources being authorised to extract water
within 40 metres of the top of the high bank of a river.
(6)
Dealings under section 71R and 71W of the Act to
change the water source to which an access licence applies are prohibited
except where both access licences involved in the dealing:
(a)
nominate the same water supply work,
or
(b)
the nominated water supply work exists on the
same area of land owned by the same person, or
(c)
the nominated water supply work exists on
adjoining areas of land owned by the same person.
Note—
This is to allow for dealings to occur on a
property, where the given property extends over two or more water sources, to
allow for the reasonable movement of water around the
property.
(7)
An access licence with a share component
specifying a water source in these water sources may be cancelled and a new
access licence issued in another water source outside these water sources only
if:
(a)
the new access licence issued is in a water
source that is within the Goulburn River, Hunter River or Lake Macquarie
Extraction Management Units, and
(b)
the access licence dealing rules in the other
surface water source permit such a dealing.
(8)
An access licence with a share component
specifying a water source outside of these water sources may be cancelled and
a new licence issued in a water source in these water sources only if:
(a)
the access licence cancelled is in a water source
that is within the Goulburn River, Hunter River or Lake Macquarie Extraction
Management Units, and
(b)
the access licence dealing rules in the other
surface water source permit such a dealing.
(9)
The share component on any access licence issued
under this clause is to be equal to the cancelled access licence share
component.
(10)
The extraction component of any cancelled access
licence is not to be carried over to the new access
licence.
(11)
The Minister may amend this Plan, at year five of
this Plan, to modify the rules for change of water source in the Goulburn
River Extraction Management Unit to allow downstream dealings based on studies
to determine how dealing rules influence the spread of access licences and the
ability to mitigate clustering of licenced entitlement.
Note—
The intention of the study is to prevent the
occurrence of hotspots through the spread of entitlement and adoption of
appropriate dealing limits.
(12)
The Minister may amend this Plan, during the term
of this Plan, to amend the dealing rules to permit dealings into and/or out of
the Hunter River, Paterson River and Wallis Creek Tidal Pool Water Sources in
association with the development of access rules for those water
sources.
(13)
The Minister may amend this Plan, during the term
of this Plan, to amend the rules relating to prohibition of no trading into
the Upper Goulburn River Water Source to allow no net gain dealings based on
studies which define groundwater dependent ecosystems or aquatic environmental
features and their water requirements.
Note—
The intention of the study is to allow for
increased flexibility in dealing rules whereby no net gain dealings may be
considered where key environmental values can be identified and protected
within the water source.
72Rules for conversion of access
licence category
(1)
This clause relates to dealings under section 71O
of the Act.
(2)
Conversion of an access licence of one category
to an access licence of another category is permitted only if the conversion
is from:
(a)
an unregulated river access licence to an aquifer
access licence in these water sources,
(b)
an aquifer access licence to an unregulated river
access licence in the Martindale Creek, the Doyles River, the Dart Brook, the
Pages River, the Upper Wollombi Brook, the Lower Wollombi Brook, the Munmurra
River, the Krui River, the Bow River, the Merriwa River, the Halls Creek, the
Baermai Creek, the Widden Brook, the Bylong River, the Wollar Creek, the
Jerrys, the Hunter Regulated River Alluvial, the Upper Goulburn River or the
Lower Goulburn River Water Sources,
(c)
an unregulated river access licence to an major
utility access licence, or
(d)
an unregulated river access licence to an
unregulated (high flow) access licence in the Pages River Water Source, the
Isis River Water Source, the Lower Wollombi Brook Water Source, the Rouchel
Brook Water Source or the Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water
Source.
(3)
For any conversion of an access licence under
subclause (2), the access licence being converted shall be cancelled and a new
licence issued.
(4)
The share component on an access licence issued
under subclause (2) (a), (b), and (c) is to be equal to the cancelled access
licence share component.
(5)
The share component on an access licence issued
under subclause (2) (d) is to be equal to 2 times the cancelled access licence
share component.
(6)
This Plan establishes the following limits for
the total amount of all access licence share components that may be converted
to unregulated river (high flow) access licences under subclause (2)
(d):
(a)
a total of 282.5 unit shares in the Pages River
Water Source (excluding the Murrurundi, Scotts Creek and Segenhoe Management
Zones) and Isis River Water Source combined,
(b)
346.5 unit shares in the Lower Wollombi Brook
Water Source,
(c)
159.5 unit shares in the Rouchel Brook Water
Source, and
(d)
528.5 unit shares in the Paterson/Allyn Rivers
Water Source (excluding the Paterson River Tributaries Management
Zone).
73Rules for interstate access
licence transfer and assignment of water allocation
(1)
This clause relates to dealings under section 71U
and 71V of the Act.
(2)
Dealings that result in the interstate transfer
of an access licence into or out of these water sources, or the interstate
assignment of water allocations to or from these water sources are
prohibited.
74Rules for water allocation
assignments between water sources
(1)
This clause relates to dealings under section 71T
of the Act, in relation to water allocation assignments between water
sources.
(2)
Dealings under section 71T of the Act that result
in water allocation assignments from a major utility access licence to any
other access licence are prohibited.
(3)
Dealings under section 71T of the Act that result
in water allocation assignments to or from an access licence in one of these
water sources to or from an access licence in another of these water sources
are prohibited if the dealing involves an unregulated river (high flow) access
licence.
(4)
Dealings under section 71T that result in water
allocation assignments to or from an access licence in one of these water
sources to or from an access licence in another of the water sources are
prohibited in these water sources if the dealing would result in the total
extraction under access licences through nominated water supply works which
may be used to take water from alluvial sediments in these water sources, plus
basic landholder rights extraction, requiring a temporary water restriction
order to be made under section 324 (2) of the Act.
(5)
Dealings under section 71T of the Act that result
in water allocation assignments to or from an access licence in one of these
water sources to or from an access licence in another of these water sources
are prohibited if:
(a)
the dealing involves a change of water source
from one extraction management unit to another extraction management unit,
and
(b)
the dealing involves a change of water source
from any water source within the Goulburn, Lake Macquarie or Hunter Extraction
Management Units, except for:
(i)
dealings between the Upper Wollombi Brook and
Lower Wollombi Brook Water Sources, and
(ii)
dealings into the Krui River, the Bow River, the
Halls Creek, the Baerami Creek, the Widden Brook, the Bylong River, the Wollar
Creek, the Lower Goulburn River, the Dart Brook, the Pages River, the Isis
River, the Muswellbrook, the Jerrys, the Glendon Brook, the Luskintyre, the
Singleton, the Martindale Creek, the Doyles Creek, the Lower Wollombi Brook,
the Black Creek, the Wallis Creek and the North Lake Macquarie Water Sources,
provided it does not cause the total access licence share components in the
respective water source to exceed the total access licence share components in
that water source at the commencement of this Plan.
(6)
The Minister may, during the term of this Plan,
amend the rules relating to prohibition of no trading into the Upper Goulburn
River Water Source to allow no net gain dealings based on studies to define
groundwater dependent ecosystems or aquatic environmental features and their
water requirements.
Note—
The intention of the study is to allow for
increased flexibility in dealing rules whereby no net gain dealings may be
considered where key environmental values can be identified and protected
within the water source.
(7)
Dealings that assign water allocations to or from
an access licence inside one of the water sources to or from a water source
outside these water sources, but inside the respective Goulburn River, Hunter
River or Lake Macquarie Extraction Management Units, are permitted only if the
access licence dealing rules in the other water source permit such a
dealing.
Part 13Mandatory
conditions
Division 1Mandatory conditions on access
licences
75Mandatory conditions on all
access licences
(1)
This Division is made in accordance with sections
17 (c) and 20 (2) (e) of the Act.
(2)
All access licences in these water sources must
have mandatory conditions to give effect to the following:
(a)
water must not be taken pursuant to an access
licence otherwise than:
(i)
by means of a water supply work nominated on the
access licence, as a work by means of which water credited to the water
allocation account for the access licence may be taken from the water source
specified on the access licence, unless otherwise allowed pursuant to the
Act,
(ii)
in accordance with the conditions specified on
the water supply work approval for the nominated water supply
work,
(iii)
in accordance with the IDEL (if any) assigned to
the access licence under Part 11 Division 3 of this Plan, or, if the access
licence is in an approved group at any time, in accordance with the group
combined IDEL for the approved group at that time,
Note—
IDELs are covered in Part 11 Division 3 of this
Plan.
Note—
Approved groups are established in Part 11
Division 3 of this Plan.
(b)
water must not be taken pursuant to an access
licence in excess of the volume of water allocated to, or assigned to, or
recredited to the water allocation account for that access
licence,
(c)
the water allocation account management rules in
Division 2 of Part 11 of this Plan,
(d)
any other conditions required to implement the
provisions of this Plan.
76Mandatory conditions relating
to the taking of water
(1)
Subject to subclause (2), in these water sources,
water must not be taken pursuant to an access licence, if any of the following
apply:
(a)
if flow classes are established in the water
source specified on the access licence under clause 17 (1) of this Plan, when
the Very Low Flow Class applies in the water source specified on the access
licence, subject to clause 77 of this Plan,
(b)
if the access licence replaces a Water Act 1912 entitlement which
contained a cease to pump limit, when flows in the water source specified on
the access licence are equal to or less than the cease to pump limit (if any)
specified on that Water Act 1912
entitlement,
(c)
when there is no visible flow in the water source
in the immediate downstream vicinity of the nominated water supply work taking
water pursuant to the access licence, or, where the nominated water supply
work is taking water from a pool, when there is no visible inflow and outflow
to and from that pool.
(2)
Subclause (1) does not apply to:
(a)
major utility access licences in the Seaham Weir
Management Zone of the Williams River Water Source,
Note—
See subclause (3) below.
(b)
unregulated river (high flow) access
licences,
Note—
See subclause (4) below.
(c)
unregulated river (subcategory “Aboriginal
community development”) access licences,
Note—
See subclause (4) below.
(d)
unregulated river access licences in the Williams
River Management Zone of the Williams River Water Source,
Note—
See subclause (5) below.
(e)
aquifer access licences in these water
sources,
Note—
See subclause (6) below.
(f)
local water utility access licences in these
water sources which nominate a new water supply work which may be constructed
or used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water
sources,
Note—
See subclause (7) below.
(g)
access licences which nominate a water supply
work which is a runoff harvesting dam, but only in relation to water taken
using the runoff harvesting dam,
(h)
access licences which nominate a water supply
work which is an in-river dam, but only if the in-river dam is passing or
releasing the amount of all inflows into the in-river dam,
(i)
local water utility in the Allyn River Management
Zone of the Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water Source.
Note—
See subclause (8) below.
(3)
All major utility access licences in the Seaham
Weir Management Zone of the Williams River Water Source must have a mandatory
condition specifying that water must not be taken, if any of the following
apply:
(a)
when the Very Low Flow Class specified in clause
17 (1) (nn) (ii) applies, subject to clause 77 of this
Plan,
(b)
if the access licence replaces a Water Act 1912 entitlement which
contained a cease to pump limit, when flows in the water source specified on
the access licence are equal to or less than the cease to pump limit (if any)
specified on that Water Act 1912
entitlement,
(c)
when there is no visible flow in the immediate
downstream vicinity of the nominated water supply work taking water pursuant
to the access licence, or, where the nominated water supply work is taking
water from a pool, when there is no visible inflow and outflow to and from
that pool,
(d)
when flows in the water source, as measured at
the Glen Martin (Mill Dam Falls) gauge (210010), are less than or equal to 600
ML/day,
(e)
when water levels in the Seaham Weir Pool are at
or below 0.32 metres pool height.
(4)
All unregulated river (high flow) access licences
and unregulated river (subcategory “Aboriginal community
development”) access licences in these water sources must have a
mandatory condition specifying that water must not be taken, if any of the
following apply:
(a)
if flow classes are established in the water
source specified on the access licence under clause 17 (1) of this Plan, when
flows in the water source are below B Class, subject to clause 77 of this
Plan,
(b)
if the access licence replaces a Water Act 1912 entitlement which
contained a cease to pump limit, when flows in the water source specified on
the access licence are equal to or less than the cease to pump limit (if any)
specified on that Water Act 1912
entitlement,
(c)
when there is no visible flow in the immediate
downstream vicinity of the nominated water supply work taking water pursuant
to the access licence, or, where the nominated water supply work is taking
water from a pool, when there is no visible inflow and outflow to and from
that pool.
(5)
All unregulated river access licences in the
Williams River Management Zone of the Williams River Water Source must have a
mandatory condition specifying that water must not be taken, if any of the
following apply:
(a)
if the access licence holder is not accredited
under the Williams River Accreditation Scheme, when flows in the water source
are below A Class, subject to clause 77 of this Plan, or, if the access
licence holder is accredited under the Williams River Accreditation Scheme,
when flows in the water source are below the Low Flow Class, subject to clause
77 of this Plan,
(b)
if the access licence replaces a Water Act 1912 entitlement which
contained a cease to pump limit, when flows in the water source specified on
the access licence are equal to or less than the cease to pump limit (if any)
specified on that Water Act 1912
entitlement,
(c)
when there is no visible flow in the immediate
downstream vicinity of the nominated water supply work taking water pursuant
to the access licence, or, where the nominated water supply work is taking
water from a pool, when there is no visible inflow and outflow to and from
that pool.
(6)
All aquifer access licences in these water
sources must have mandatory conditions to give effect to clause 68 of this
Plan.
(7)
All local water utility access licences in these
water sources which nominate a new water supply work which may be constructed
or used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water sources, must
have a mandatory condition to give effect to clause 68 (4) of this
Plan.
(8)
All local water utility access licences in these
Allyn River Management Zone of the Paterson/Allyn Rivers Water Source must
have a mandatory condition specifying that water must not be taken, if any of
the following apply:
(a)
if flow classes are established in the water
source specified on the access licence under clause 17 (1) of this Plan, when
flows in the management zone are below A2 Class, subject to:
(i)
subclause (d) when water quality in the Paterson
Regulated River is unable to be treated to a potable standard by the Gresford
Water Treat Plant due to blue green algae toxins being present at the water
treatment plant offtake,
(ii)
clause 77 of this
Plan,
(b)
if the access licence replaces a Water Act 1912 entitlement which
contained a cease to pump limit, when flows in the water source specified on
the access licence are equal to or less than the cease to pump limit (if any)
specified on that Water Act 1912
entitlement,
(c)
when there is no visible flow in the immediate
downstream vicinity of the nominated water supply work taking water pursuant
to the access licence, or, where the nominated water supply work is taking
water from a pool, when there is no visible inflow and outflow to and from
that pool,
(d)
if flow classes are established in the water
source specified on the access licence under clause 17 (1) of this Plan, when
flows in the management zone are below A1 Class.
77Mandatory conditions for
access to the Very Low Flow Class
(1)
This clause only applies to:
(a)
an access licence which replaces a Water Act 1912 entitlement listed in
Schedule 2 of this Plan, if the access licence specifies a water source in
which flow classes are established under clause 17 (1) of this
Plan,
(b)
a domestic and stock access licence or a domestic
and stock (subcategory “domestic”) access licence which replaces a
Water Act 1912 entitlement that allowed
water to be taken in the Very Low Flow Class, if the access licence specifies
a water source in which flow classes are established under clause 17 (1) of
this Plan.
(2)
A local water utility access licence to which
this clause applies must have a mandatory condition specifying that water may
be taken when the Very Low Flow Class applies in the water source specified on
the access licence:
(a)
for the purposes of town water supply only,
and
(b)
only until major augmentation to the
utility’s water supply work(s) has taken
place.
(3)
For the purposes of subclause (2), major
augmentation includes anything which enhances or increases the local water
utility’s capacity to take water to meet town water supply requirements
as a result of demand for water exceeding the sustainable yield of the
utility’s existing infrastructure, for example, a larger pump, a larger
storage facility, a larger pipe, or a secondary or additional water
source.
(4)
An access licence to which this clause applies,
other than a local water utility access licence, a domestic and stock access
licence or a domestic and stock (subcategory “domestic”) access
licence, must have a mandatory condition specifying that water may be taken
when the Very Low Flow Class applies in the water source specified on the
access licence, for any of the following purposes only:
(a)
fruit washing,
(b)
cleaning of dairy plant and equipment for the
purpose of hygiene,
(c)
poultry watering and misting,
or
(d)
cleaning of enclosures used for intensive animal
production for the purpose of hygiene.
(5)
The maximum daily volume that may be taken under
subclause (4) must:
(a)
be the minimum required to satisfy the
purpose,
(b)
be specified on each access licence,
and
(c)
not exceed 20 kilolitres per
day.
(6)
Once specified under subclause (5) (b), the
maximum daily volume must not be increased.
(7)
For the first three years of this Plan only, a
domestic and stock access licence or a domestic and stock (subcategory
“domestic”) access licence to which this clause applies, must have
a mandatory condition specifying that water may be taken when the Very Low
Flow Class applies in the water source specified on the access licence, for
domestic consumption only.
Note—
Domestic consumption is defined in section 52 of
the Act.
78Mandatory conditions on
domestic and stock access licences
In addition, all domestic and stock access
licences in these water sources must have a mandatory condition which
specifies that water must only be taken pursuant to the access licence for the
purposes of domestic consumption or stock watering.
Note—
Domestic consumption and stock watering are
defined in section 52 of the Act.
79Mandatory conditions on
aquifer access licences
In addition, all aquifer access licences in these
water sources must have a mandatory condition which specifies that water must
only be taken from an aquifer in these water sources.
80Mandatory conditions on
Aboriginal cultural and Aboriginal community development access
licences
(1)
In addition, all access licences of the
subcategory “Aboriginal cultural” in these water sources must have
a mandatory condition which specifies that water must only be taken pursuant
to the access licence by Aboriginal persons or Aboriginal communities for
personal, domestic or communal purposes, including drinking, food preparation,
washing, manufacturing traditional artefacts, watering domestic gardens,
cultural teaching, hunting, fishing, gathering and for recreational, cultural
and ceremonial purposes.
(2)
In addition, all unregulated river (subcategory
“Aboriginal community development”) access licences in these water
sources must have a mandatory condition which specifies that water must only
be taken pursuant to the access licence by Aboriginal persons or Aboriginal
communities for commercial purposes.
81New access licences granted in
these water sources
(1)
In addition, the following new access licences
granted in these water sources must have a mandatory condition specifying that
water must not be taken unless flows exceed a level or flow class which is
specified on the access licence:
(a)
a new local water utility access licence granted
pursuant to section 66 (3) or (4) of the Act,
(b)
a major utility (subcategory “Urban
water”) access licence granted pursuant to Part 8 of this Plan, which
specifies a water source in which B Class is not established under clause 17
(1) of this Plan,
(c)
a new unregulated river (subcategory
“Aboriginal community development”) access licence granted
pursuant to Part 8 of this Plan, which specifies a water source in which B
Class is not established under clause 17 (1) of this
Plan.
(2)
In addition, the following new access licences
granted in these water sources, pursuant to Part 8 of this Plan, must have a
mandatory condition which specifies that water must not be taken when flows in
the water source specified on the access licence are below B Class:
(a)
a new local water utility access licence, which
specifies a water source in which B Class is established under clause 17 (1)
of this Plan,
(b)
a new major utility access licence, which
specifies a water source in which B Class is established under clause 17 (1)
of this Plan,
(c)
an access licence of the subcategory
“Aboriginal Community Development”, which specifies a water source
in which B Class is established under clause 17 (1) of this Plan,
or
(d)
an access licence with a zero share component,
which specifies a water source in which B Class is established under clause 17
(1) of this Plan.
Division 2Mandatory conditions on water
supply work approvals
82Mandatory conditions on all
water supply work approvals (except works taking water from the alluvial
sediments)
(1)
All water supply work approvals which authorise
the construction or use of a water supply work in these water sources, other
than a water supply work approval which authorises the construction or use of
a water supply works to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water
sources, must have mandatory conditions to give effect to the
following:
(a)
the water supply work must not be used to take
water otherwise than pursuant to the conditions of an access licence which
nominates the water supply work as a work by means of which water credited to
the water allocation account for the access licence may be taken from the
water source specified on the access licence, unless otherwise allowed
pursuant to the Act,
(b)
when required by the Minister by notice in
writing:
(i)
metering equipment must be installed and
maintained for use in connection with the water supply
work,
(ii)
metering equipment must be operated and
maintained in a proper and efficient manner,
(iii)
if the Minister has specified that metering
equipment must be of a type or standard or has specified other criteria, any
metering equipment installed, operated or maintained must comply with that
type, standard or other criteria (if any) specified by the
Minister,
(c)
when required by the Minister by notice in
writing, the approval holder must provide details of water extraction,
property water management infrastructure and cropping to the Minister, within
the time period specified and to the standard specified in the
notice,
(d)
the water supply work must not be used to take
water, if any of the following apply:
(i)
if the water supply work approval replaces a
Water Act 1912 entitlement which
contained a cease to pump limit, when flows in the water source are equal to
or less than the cease to pump limit (if any) specified on that Water Act 1912
entitlement,
(ii)
when there is no visible flow in the water source
in the immediate downstream vicinity of the water supply work or, where the
water supply work is taking water from a pool when there is no visible inflow
and outflow to and from that pool, and
(e)
any other conditions required to implement the
provisions of this Plan.
(2)
A water supply work approval which authorises the
construction or use of a water supply work which is an in-river dam in these
water sources must include a mandatory condition requiring the in-river dam to
pass or release such flows as the Minister determines to be
appropriate.
(3)
A water supply work approval which authorises the
construction or use of a water supply work which is nominated on a major
utility access licence in these water sources, including all subcategories of
major utility access licences, must have mandatory conditions to give effect
to the release rules for major utility storages specified in Part 14 of this
Plan.
(4)
A new water supply work approval granted pursuant
to clause 39 (6) must have a mandatory condition to give effect to clause 39
(6) (c) of this Plan.
(5)
A water supply work approval which authorises the
construction or use of a water supply work which is a runoff harvesting dam in
these water sources must, if the share component of the access licence that
nominates the water supply work is reduced, be amended to impose a mandatory
condition to give effect to clause 36 (2) of this Plan.
83Mandatory conditions on
approvals for water supply works taking water from the alluvial sediments in
these water sources
A water supply work approval which authorises the
construction or use of a water supply work to take water from the alluvial
sediments in these water sources must have mandatory conditions to give effect
to the following:
(a)
the approval holder must not construct the work,
or cause or allow the work to be constructed, unless the construction is
carried out by a person holding a current driller’s licence issued
pursuant to the Water Act 1912 or
the Water Management Act 2000, which is of a
class that allows construction of the work to be
constructed,
(b)
the approval holder must ensure that the
construction of the work complies with:
(i)
the construction standards prescribed in the
Minimum Construction Requirements
for Water Bores in Australia, 2003, ISBN 1 9209 2009
9, as may be amended from time to time, or any standards
which supersede those standards,
(ii)
if the Minister has specified any standards or
requirements, in accordance with those standards or requirements (if any)
specified by the Minister,
(iii)
must prevent contamination between aquifers
through appropriate construction,
(c)
the approval holder must ensure that any work
which is decommissioned or abandoned complies with:
(i)
the ‘minimum requirements for
decommissioning bores’ prescribed in the Minimum Construction Requirements for Water Bores in
Australia, 2003, ISBN 1 9209 2009 9,
as amended from time to time, or any standards which supersede those
standards,
(ii)
if the Minister has specified any other standards
or requirements, in accordance with the standards or requirements (if any)
specified by the Minister,
(d)
within 2 months of the decommissioning or
abandonment of the work, the approval holder must notify the Minister that the
work has been decommissioned or abandoned in accordance with subclause
(c),
(e)
any new or replacement bore to take water for
basic landholder rights must be constructed to a sufficient depth to ensure
that access to water is not unacceptably impacted by other authorised
extractions,
(f)
the approval holder must, within 2 months of
completion of the construction of the work, or within 2 months after the issue
of the approval if the work is existing, submit to the Department the
following:
(i)
the completed approved form,
(ii)
details of the location of the work on a copy of
the lot and deposited plan, its GPS reference, and the respective distance(s)
of the work from the property boundaries,
(iii)
if the Minister has requested any water analysis
and/or pumping tests to be carried out, details of the water analysis and/or
pumping tests as required by the Minister,
(g)
if, during the construction of the work, saline
or contaminated water is encountered above the production aquifer, the
approval holder must:
(i)
notify the Department,
(ii)
ensure that such water is sealed off by:
(1)
inserting casing to a depth sufficient to exclude
the saline or contaminated water from the work,
(2)
if specified by the Minister, placing an
impermeable seal between the casing(s) and the walls of the work from the
bottom of the casing to ground level as specified by the
Minister,
(iii)
if the Minister has specified any other
requirements, comply with the requirements (if any) specified by the
Minister,
(h)
the approval holder must supply to the Minister
on request, and to the required standard, a report pertaining to the quality
of any water obtained from the work,
(i)
the work must be constructed within 3 years of
the approval being granted,
(j)
the water supply work must not be used to take
water otherwise than pursuant to the conditions of an access licence which
nominates the water supply work as a work by means of which water credited to
the water allocation account for the access licence may be taken from the
water source specified on the access licence, unless otherwise allowed
pursuant to the Act,
(k)
when required by the Minister by notice in
writing:
(i)
metering equipment must be installed and
maintained for use in connection with the water supply
work,
(ii)
metering equipment must be operated and
maintained in a proper and efficient manner,
(iii)
if the Minister has specified that metering
equipment must be of a type or standard or has specified other criteria, any
metering equipment installed, operated or maintained must comply with that
type, standard or other criteria (if any) specified by the
Minister.
(l)
when required by the Minister by notice in
writing, the approval holder must provide details of water extraction,
property water management infrastructure and cropping to the Minister, within
the time period specified and to the standard specified in the
notice,
(m)
if the water supply work approval replaces a
Water Act 1912 entitlement which
contained a limit(s) on the amount of water that may be taken through the
work, the water supply work must not be used to take more water than the
limit(s) (if any) contained on the Water Act
1912 entitlement,
(n)
any other conditions required to implement the
provisions of this Plan.
84Mandatory conditions for
existing water supply works taking water from the alluvial sediments in these
water sources
(1)
In addition, a water supply work approval which
authorises the use of an existing water supply work to take water from the
alluvial sediments in these water sources which is located within 500 metres
of a contamination source identified in this Plan, must have a mandatory
condition which specifies an annual extraction limit, being the maximum amount
of water that may be taken through the water supply work each year, which is
the equivalent amount of the share component of the access licence that
nominates the water supply work as at the commencement of this
Plan.
(2)
In addition, a water supply work approval which
authorises the use of an existing water supply work to take water from the
alluvial sediments in these water sources which is located within the distance
criteria specified in clauses 39, 40 or 41, must have a mandatory condition
which specifies an annual extraction limit, being the maximum amount of water
that may be taken through the water supply work each year, which is the
equivalent amount of the share component of the access licence that nominates
the water supply work as at the commencement of this
Plan.
Part 14System operation
rules
85Release rules from major
utility storages
(1)
In the Williams River Water Source:
(a)
when combined inflows from the Chichester and
Wangat Rivers into Chichester Dam storage are less than 14 ML/day, a daily
flow release equivalent to the combined inflows must be
maintained,
(b)
when combined inflows from the Chichester and
Wangat Rivers into Chichester Dam storage are equivalent to or greater than 14
ML/day, and Chichester Dam is not spilling, a minimum flow release of 14
ML/day must be maintained,
(c)
notwithstanding subclause (b), when the combined
inflows from the Chichester and Wangat Rivers are equivalent to or greater
than 14 ML/day, and Chichester Dam is not spilling, Hunter Water Corporation
may operate Chichester Dam releases in the range of 5 ML/day to 30 ML/day as
per the release pattern shown in Attachment 1 of their licence or approval
until the study as referred to in subclause (d) is completed, and must operate
releases as directed by the Minister to achieve the requirements of this
study,
(d)
releases of water are not required to be made
when Chichester Dam is spilling at a rate that equals or exceeds the minimal
flow release requirement referred to in subclauses (a), (b) and
(c),
(e)
the Minister may suspend or alter the release
requirements under subclauses (a), (b) and (c) for the purpose of an emergency
or maintenance activity that has the potential to temporarily affect the flow
volume or behaviour of water for periods of more than 24 hours,
and
(f)
the Minister may amend this Plan to vary the
rules under subclause (c), during the term of this Plan, based on an
assessment of the implementation of release rules recommended in the
‘Chichester Dam Flow Release Acceptance Levels
Study’.
Note—
The ‘Chichester Dam Flow Release Acceptance
Levels Study’ was a study required as part of Hunter Water
Corporation’s licence conditions, to review current release arrangements
from Chichester Dam, with the aim of optimising the environmental
outcomes.
(2)
The Minister may amend this Plan, during the term
of this Plan, to amend subclause (1) to include release rules for Seaham Weir
storage, based on the outcomes of the ‘Surface Water Access Rules for
the Lower Williams River’ Supplementary Study to be undertaken by Hunter
Water Corporation.
Note—
A study, as part of the licence requirements, is
currently being undertaken to determine access rules and entitlements for the
major utility access licence in this water source. The major utility currently
extracts from both low and high flows however a breakdown of the volume from
each has not been undertaken.
(3)
In the Jerrys Water Source:
(a)
no releases are required to be made from Lake
Plashett, and
(b)
releases from Lake Lidell may only be made in
accordance with the Protection of the Environment
Operations (Hunter River Salinity Trading Scheme) Regulation
2002.
(4)
In the Upper Hunter Water Source, all natural
inflows to Oakey Creek Dam must be allowed to pass downstream to Oakey
Creek.
(5)
In the Newcastle Water Source, no releases are
required to be made from Grahamstown Dam.
Part 15Amendment of this
Plan
86Amendment of this
Plan
(1)
This Plan may be amended as specified in this
Plan, pursuant to section 45 of the Act.
(2)
Any amendment to this Plan, that is authorised by
a provision of this Plan, which results in a variation to the bulk access
regime, is an amendment authorised by this Plan for the purposes of section 87
(2) (c) of the Act.
87Amendment of tidal pool
provisions
(1)
The Minister may amend this Plan to:
(i)
establish or modify flow classes,
or
(ii)
amend access licence dealing
rules,
in the Wallis Creek Tidal Pool Water Source, the
Paterson River Tidal Pool Water Source and the Hunter River Tidal Pool Water
Source, following review of the study referred to in clause 17 (2) (k) and the
determination of licence entitlements.
(2)
The Minister should cause the development of
access rules, and review of dealing rules in subclause (1) to be undertaken by
year five of this Plan where possible, and no later than year ten of this
Plan.
(3)
In developing the access rules and reviewing the
dealing rules the Minister should consult with the Department of Environment
and Climate Change, the Department of Primary Industries, the relevant
Catchment Management Authority, and representatives of interest groups and
water users as required.
88Amendment of pool protection
provisions
(1)
The Minister may amend this Plan to establish
pool control levels and key sites in applicable water
sources.
(2)
For the purpose of such amendments, a study to
identify pool control levels and key sites should be undertaken as soon as
practicable, but before year six of this Plan.
(3)
The study should assess whether the pool control
levels and key sites are required and whether they meet the objective
specified in clause 10 (a) of this Plan, and specifically considering:
(a)
the suitability of the location of the key sites
used in assessing pool health upstream of the site,
(b)
the drawdown of the water levels from the pool
upstream of the key site during periods of extraction, and
(c)
the significance of the pools that are impacted
by the drawdown.
(4)
In preparing the study:
(a)
consultation with the Department of Environment
and Climate Change, the Department of Primary Industries, the relevant
Catchment Management Authority and representatives of interest groups should
be undertaken, as required, and
(b)
a report should be prepared to be used by the
agencies and stakeholders specified in subclause (a) documenting:
(i)
the methodology adopted,
(ii)
the hypotheses tested,
(iii)
the field results and conclusions in terms of the
degree to which the objective in clause 10 (a) is met,
(iv)
the pool control levels and key sites recommended
to meet the objective, and
(v)
the socio-economic impacts of the recommended
changes to the pool controls.
89Amendments due to floodplain
harvesting
This Plan may be amended to provide for the
floodplain harvesting of water, subject to the amendments not affecting the
outcomes of the long-term average annual extraction limit specified within
this Plan.
Note—
This means that this Plan can be changed to issue
and manage floodplain harvesting licences provided that the long-term average
annual extraction limit does not increase or decrease.
90Amendments due to the
construction and/or operation of Tillegra Dam
At commencement of flow capture by the Tillegra
Dam storage, the Minister may amend this Plan:
(a)
to establish alternate management zones in the
Williams River Water Source,
(b)
to amend or establish alternate flow classes in
the Williams River Water Source,
(c)
to amend the share components in the Williams
River and/or Newcastle Water Sources,
(d)
to amend the long-term average annual extraction
limit for the Hunter Extraction Management Unit,
(e)
to amend and/or establish additional accounting
provisions,
(f)
to limit dealings into or within management zones
that are upstream of Tillegra Dam, and
(g)
to establish rules for the release of water from
Tillegra Dam.
91Amendments for alluvial
aquifers downstream of the tidal limit
The Minister may amend this Plan, where required,
to include provisions and rules for any alluvial aquifer that is downstream of
the tidal limit and within or outside of the area of this
Plan.
92Amendments for stormwater
harvesting
The Minister may amend this Plan to include rules
for any new category of access licence established under the Act for the
purpose of stormwater harvesting.
93Amendments in relation to
Schedule 2 (Very Low Flow)
The Minister may amend this Plan to:
(a)
add a Water Act
1912 entitlement to Schedule 2, but only if the taking of
water under that entitlement was for a purpose referred to in this clause and
the purpose existed prior to 1 July 2008, or
(b)
remove a Water Act
1912 entitlement from Schedule 2, if:
(i)
any access licence dealing results in water being
extracted, under the access licence which replaced the Water
Act 1912 entitlement, from a different location,
or
(ii)
an alternative water supply is obtained that
satisfies the requirement(s) for water for the purposes listed in this clause,
or the purpose no longer exists, or
(iii)
the access licence which replaced the Water Act 1912 entitlement is
surrendered or cancelled,
(c)
amend or remove Schedule 2 to this Plan,
following an assessment which determines that the requirement for access to
water in the Very Low Flow Class under this clause is no longer required
generally or for specific access licences.
Dictionary
The following definitions apply to this Plan in
addition to the definitions set out in the Act:
drawdown refers to a lowering of the
level to which water will rise in cased bores. Natural drawdown may occur due
to seasonal climatic changes. Groundwater pumping may also result in seasonal
and long-term drawdown.
flow
gauging station is a device that is used to measure the
height of a river or flow in a river.
groundwater is water that occurs
beneath the ground surface in the saturated zone.
groundwater dependent ecosystems
include ecosystems which have their species composition and natural ecological
processes wholly or partially determined by groundwater.
high
priority groundwater dependent ecosystems include
groundwater dependent ecosystems which are considered high priority for
protection or restoration.
in-river
dam is a dam located in or on a river.
is described in clause 62 of this
Plan.
karst
environment means an area of land, including subterranean
land, that has developed in soluble rock through the processes of solution,
abrasion or collapse, together with its associated bedrock, soil, water, gases
and biodiversity.
management zone is an area within
the surface water source in which daily extraction limits may be defined or
where dealing restrictions are approved. Management zones may be designated
where the surface water source to which the plan applies is divided into areas
and total daily extraction limits are defined for each area. They may also be
designated where local dealing restrictions are in place.
mangrove
limit has the same meaning as defined in the ‘DIPNR Survey of tidal limits and mangrove
limits in NSW estuaries 1996 to 2003’ (NSW Dept of
Commerce, Manly Hydraulics Laboratory) 2005.
monitoring bore refers to a bore
constructed for the purpose of measuring water levels and/or taking samples
for water quality analysis.
recharge is the addition of water,
usually by infiltration, to an aquifer.
registered plan for these water
sources means the registered plan called The Hunter
Unregulated and Alluvial Water Sources (WSP003) maintained by the
Department.
Note—
An overview of the registered plan is shown in
Appendix 1. Copies of the registered plan may be inspected at offices of the
Department listed in Appendix 2.
replacement bore, for the purposes
of this Plan, refers to the replacement of an existing water supply work
constructed or used to take water from the alluvial sediments in these water
sources, where the share component for the access licence nominating the water
supply work has not increased and is within the specifications of the water
supply work approval, provided that:
(a)
the replacement water supply work is within 20
metres of the existing water supply work,
(b)
the water supply work approval does not
compromise any other rules for granting water supply works being used to take
water from alluvial sediments in these water sources,
(c)
the water supply work approval will be subject to
the provisions relating to the amendment of an approval under section 107 of
the Act.
runoff
harvesting dam is a privately owned dam that captures
surface or rainfall runoff.
Note—
The taking of water from a runoff harvesting dam
requires an access licence and a water supply work approval, except to the
extent that the runoff harvesting dam is within an owner or an
occupier’s harvestable rights entitlement under section 53 of the Act,
in which case it will not require an access licence or water supply work
approval.
stream
order is defined by the Strahler stream ordering
method.
Note—
The Strahler stream ordering methods is explained
as follows:
•
Starting at the top of a catchment, any
watercourse that has no other watercourses flowing into it is classed as a 1st
order watercourse,
•
Where two 1st order watercourses join, the
watercourse becomes a 2nd order watercourse,
•
If a 2nd order watercourse is joined by a 1st
order watercourse - it remains a 2nd order watercourse,
•
When two or more 2nd order watercourses join they
form a 3rd order watercourse, and
•
A 3rd order watercourse does not become a 4th
order watercourse until it is joined by another 3rd order watercourse and so
on.
Note—
The Strahler stream ordering method is described
in the order made under section 5 of the Water Act
1912 published in the NSW Government Gazette no 37 on 24
March 2006 page 1500, or as may be amended or updated from time to time by
further order.
supplementary study Development of Access Rules for
the Lower Williams River is a requirement of Hunter Water
Corporation’s current water licence. The study aims to determine
appropriate entitlement and access rules to manage the taking of water from
Seaham Weir Pool by Hunter Water Corporation. The outcomes of the study may be
used to inform amendment of this Plan.
tidal
limit has the same meaning as defined in the ‘DIPNR Survey of tidal limits and mangrove
limits in NSW estuaries 1996 to 2003’ (NSW Dept of
Commerce, Manly Hydraulics Laboratory) 2005.
tidal
pool is defined, for the purposes of this Plan, as the area
of water between the upper mangrove limit and the lower tidal limits.
Note—
Mangrove limit and tidal limit are defined in the
‘DIPNR Survey of tidal
limits and mangrove limits in NSW estuaries 1996 to
2003’ (NSW Dept of Commerce, Manly Hydraulics
Laboratory).
is described in clause 59 of
this Plan.
visible
flow is the continuous downstream movement of water that is
perceptible to the eye.
water
year means a year commencing 1 July.
Williams
River Accreditation Scheme means the ‘Water Use
Accreditation Scheme’ operated by the NSW Department of Primary
Industries and assessed as adequate by the
Department.
Schedule 2Licences with access to very
low flows
Schedule 2 currently lists Water
Act 1912 licences from which access licences will be
derived upon commencement of the Water Sharing Plan.
VERY LOW FLOW
LICENCES
SURFACE WATER
20SL007626
20SL029834
20SL046728
20SL060898
20SL012653
20SL030481
20SL046752
20SL060902
20SL013482
20SL033978
20SL047917
20SL060904
20SL014522
20SL034705
20SL047934
20SL060905
20SL014791
20SL035457
20SL047936
20SL060910
20SL015740
20SL037101
20SL047983
20SL060911
20SL016675
20SL037412
20SL048012
20SL060912
20SL018023
20SL037463
20SL048703
20SL060915
20SL019207
20SL037646
20SL048985
20SL060916
20SL019742
20SL037926
20SL048989
20SL060917
20SL019853
20SL037937
20SL050050
20SL060918
20SL020274
20SL038071
20SL050163
20SL060919
20SL021761
20SL040052
20SL050680
20SL060922
20SL022887
20SL040848
20SL051439
20SL060923
20SL022921
20SL042037
20SL060148
20SL060926
20SL023175
20SL044434
20SL060319
20SL060933
20SL024048
20SL044535
20SL060398
20SL060934
20SL024508
20SL044709
20SL060613
20SL060942
20SL024592
20SL045581
20SL060716
20SL060946
20SL028259
20SL045598
20SL060864
20SL060947
20SL028392
20SL045783
20SL060866
20SL060956
20SL029123
20SL046106
20SL060896
20SL060976
20SL029178
20SL046121
20SL060897
20SL060979
20SL061009
20SL061235
20SL061597
20SL061032
20SL061314
20SL061598
20SL061035
20SL061372
20SL061600
20SL061060
20SL061382
20SL061602
20SL061061
20SL061408
20SL061603
20SL061062
20SL061471
20SL061606
20SL061099
20SL061504
20SL061607
20SL061112
20SL061509
20SL061613
20SL061121
20SL061510
20SL061625
20SL061128
20SL061514
20SL061629
20SL061130
20SL061541
20SL061631
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VERY LOW FLOW
LICENCES
GROUNDWATER
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LOCAL WATER UTILITY
LICENCES
Lower Goulburn
20SL060901
Hunter Alluvial
20BL130308
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20BL130313
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Pages
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Dart
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Schedule 3Contamination sources in the
Hunter Unregulated and Alluvial Water Sources
Contamination sources in these water sources
include:
(a)
on site sewage disposal systems or septic
tanks,
(b)
any sites where contamination has been assessed
as presenting a significant risk of harm under Contaminated Land
Management Act 1997,
(c)
any sites with an historical use listed in Table
1 of “Managing Land
Contamination. Planning Guidelines. SEPP 55 – Remediation of
Land”, and
(d)
any relevant sites listed in an agency database
relating to contamination sources.
Schedule 4High Priority Groundwater
Dependent Ecosystems in the Hunter Unregulated and Alluvial Water
Sources
Note—
High priority groundwater dependent ecosystems
are currently under investigation and some of these may be identified during
the term of this Plan. The full list of potential GDEs will be identified on
the DWE GDE Register and as a precautionary approach, will be considered by
staff in the assessment of any works approval within the plan area. If
verified as high priority groundwater dependent ecosystems, the Schedule will
be amended to include further GDEs.
Map ID
GDE name
Latitude
Longitude
Location
Area
Karst ▴
Bandon Grove Limestone Member
6429022
366412
Williams River, Paterson/Allyn Rivers
1,485,584 m2
Karst ▴
Timor Limestone Member
6493402
320195
Isis River
1,2007,467 m2
Karst ▴
Verulam Oolite Member
6432662
370915
Williams River
909,483
Karst ▴
Bandon Grove Limestone Member
6425745
372733
Williams River
512,009
Karst ▴
unnamed
6414711
368630
Paterson/Allyn Rivers
540,599
Karst ▴
unnamed
6403010
384625
Williams River
37,536
Karst ▴
unnamed
6397829
385502
Williams River
356,685
Karst ▴
Timor Limestone Member
6496957
316830
Isis River
185,742
Coastal Wetlands
SEPP 14 Coastal Wetlands 828b
6371437
373944
Newcastle
1,823,967
Coastal Wetlands
SEPP 14 Coastal Wetlands 840
6364136
375350
Newcastle
20,629,627
Coastal Wetlands
SEPP 14 Coastal Wetlands 802c
6386983
381757
Williams River
213,942
Coastal Wetlands
SEPP 14 Coastal Wetlands 841
6363537
371926
Newcastle
161,954
Coastal Wetlands
SEPP 14 Coastal Wetlands 841a
6363977
370637
Newcastle
407,697
Coastal Wetlands
SEPP 14 Coastal Wetlands 804
6377493
383917
Williams River
1,994,618
Coastal Wetlands
SEPP 14 Coastal Wetlands 802d
6387255
380897
Williams River
48,357
Appendix 1Hunter Unregulated and
Alluvial Water Sources and Hunter, Hunter Regulated River Alluvium, Goulburn
and Lake Macquarie Extraction Management Units
Appendix 2Location of registered
plans
Copies of registered plans in relation to this
Plan may be inspected at:
Head Office
Department of Water and Energy
22-33 Bridge St
SYDNEY NSW 2000
Regional Office
Department of Water and Energy
Level 3, 26 Honeysuckle Drive
NEWCASTLE NSW 2300
District Office
Department of Water and Energy
Unit 2A, Alliance St
EAST MAITLAND NSW 2320
Newcastle City Council
282 King Street
NEWCASTLE NSW 2300
Maitland City Council
285-287 High Street
MAITLAND NSW 2230
Lake Macquarie City Council
126-138 Main Road
SPEERS POINT NSW 2284
Upper Hunter Shire Council
130 Liverpool Street
SCONE NSW 2337
Muswellbrook Shire Council
157 Maitland Street
MUSWELLBROOK NSW 2333
Singleton Shire Council
Civic Avenue
SINGLETON NSW 2330
Historical
notes
Table of amending
instruments
Water Sharing
Plan for the Hunter Unregulated and Alluvial Water Sources 2009
(347). GG No 106 of 24.7.2009, p 4439. Date of commencement,
1.8.2009, cl 3.