About the project
The coastal sustainable extraction project is building a framework to guide and inform the sustainable management of extraction in NSW coastal unregulated and alluvial and regulated water sharing plan areas.
Historically, long-term average annual extraction limits in coastal water sharing plans have been based on volumes of existing entitlement and estimates of basic landholder rights. This means the current limit of take is the total potential volume of water that can be taken under a licence and basic landholder rights.
The project will help us better understand sustainable extraction in coastal systems by developing a framework that uses best available environmental, cultural, economic and social inputs. This framework will be used across coastal water sharing plan areas to inform what management arrangements (that is, water sharing plan rules) can be used to support sustainable extraction.
The project includes all NSW coastal unregulated and alluvial and regulated water sharing plan areas. Groundwater-only plans are outside the scope of this project. All forms of extractive take will be considered where possible.
Timeline
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January 2022 – December 2023
Phase 1 – literature reviews - Review water management mechanism (PDF, 2752.16 KB) used in other jurisdictions to define limits on surface water extraction
- Review existing environmental water requirements (PDF, 813.67 KB) in coastal NSW.
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January – June 2024
Phase 2 – developed a project road mapProject road map developed that includes key points for planned public consultations and engagement in future project phases.
Determined how plan areas will be scheduled for rollout of the coastal sustainable extraction project.
Identified water sharing plan areas to pilot the framework.
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Now (July – December 2024)
Phase 3 – developing a framework for coastal sustainable extraction
Identify and analyse eco-hydrological assessment methods to support sustainable extraction.
Develop the framework including a preferred eco-hydrological assessment method.
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January – June 2025
Phase 3 (continued) Peer review of the framework and preferred method.
Respond to peer review of the preferred method.
Review the framework and method considering recommendations from the peer review and apply where relevant to the pilot program.
Phase 4 – piloting the framework Develop an implementation plan for piloting the framework in the Richmond and Clyde catchments. This runs concurrently with the end of Phase 3.
Commence the pilot programs. Stakeholders in the Richmond and Clyde plan areas will be consulted as this work progresses to make sure available information and knowledge is considered.
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July – December 2025
Phase 4 – piloting the framework (continued)
The pilot programs in the nominated pilot areas continue.
Phase 4a – independent review of the pilot programs The results of pilot programs will be independently reviewed.
Review the coastal sustainable extraction framework considering the review findings and any recommendations.
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January – December 2026
Phase 5 – implementation program Develop an implementation plan for the rollout of the coastal sustainable extraction framework across coastal NSW water sharing plans.
Background
Water sharing plans are the primary tool to define water-sharing arrangements in NSW; they share water between the environment and water users.
Water sharing plans set a limit on how much water can be extracted. This is called a long-term average annual extraction limit or LTAAEL. In coastal water sharing plans, the LTAAEL has historically been specified as the sum of licence shares, plus an estimate for basic landholder rights, at the time the water sharing plan was made.
In 2022, the coastal sustainable extraction project was initiated to better understand water requirements on the coast and improve how extraction can be managed sustainably to meet the needs of the environment and other users. For water sharing plans replaced post-2022, the department made changes to coastal LTAAELs, applying numerical LTAAELs. We are now doing the work to inform coastal sustainable extractions and how this can be implemented across our coastal water sources.
The project will, as much as possible, consider all forms of water take including:
- licensed water take
- basic landholder rights
- water taken out of a river or connected aquifer
- water intercepted in dams
- other diversion works.
Groundwater-only water sharing plans are outside the scope of this project. There is already a process for setting LTAAELs for coastal groundwater sources (PDF, 1673.86 KB) based on an assessment of sustainable yield from rainfall recharge.
Where appropriate, work undertaken as part of the coastal harvestable rights catchment-based assessments will be used to inform this project. If the project identifies water sources where sustainable levels of extraction are higher than current entitlement, then the department will consider options to best manage water access in these areas.
Prioritising this work to determine sustainable extraction in coastal catchments will provide an improved holistic understanding of water availability in coastal regions and guide how to improve the sustainable management of water access on the coast.
In recent reviews of coastal water sharing plans, the NSW Natural Resources Commission has recommended the review of coastal LTAAELs and the development of numerical, sustainable extraction limits. These ‘sustainable LTAAELs’ have also been recommended in coastal regional water strategies.
Public consultation
Consultation on key elements that inform and shape the project will be undertaken. More information on these key elements and timing for consultation will be provided as the project develops.
A range of criteria were considered to rank the plan areas and to guide the order in which coastal sustainable extraction will be implemented. The project will be piloted in two plan areas.