Controlled activity approvals

Approval required for waterfront activities

Controlled activities are actions carried out on waterfront land, as defined in the Water Management Act 2000. You must obtain an approval from the department to carry out activities on waterfront land unless you have an exemption. This helps protect the health of our waterways.

Waterfront land is defined as the bed of any river, lake or estuary, and the land on each side within 40 metres of the river bank, lake shore or estuary’s mean high water mark.

Controlled activities are:

• erecting a building
• carrying out works
• removing material from waterfront land, such as plants or rocks
• depositing material on waterfront land, such as gravel or fill
• any activity which affects the quantity or flow of water in a water source.

Examples include:

• modifications to a watercourse, such as erosion control works and channel realignment
• construction of bed control measures
• construction of watercourse crossings such as bridges, causeways and bed level crossings, and ancillary works, such as roads
• construction of stormwater outlets and spillways
• construction of boat ramps and sea walls
• laying pipes and cables
• sand and gravel extraction.

Most controlled activities also need development approval from your local council. If this is the case, you will need to lodge what is known as an Integrated Development Assessment System Development Application (IDAS DA).