The Basin Plan

Susan Madden

Murray–Darling Basin Authority

Three of Australia’s

longest rivers are

within the basin

Darling – 1545 km

Murray – 2530 km

Murrumbidgee – 1485 km

Flow contributions

vary from region to

region

Contributions to flows through Murray Mouth:

• Darling (and tributaries) 17%

• Murray (and tributaries) 83%

1,000,000 square

kilometres, covering

areas of 4 States and

1 Territory

The basin is home to:

40% of Australia’s farms

70% of Australia’s irrigated land

2006 had the lowest inflows in Australia’s recorded history

2010 saw widespread flooding across the Basin

On average there are many more dry years than wet

Seasonal inflows

Inflows vs demand

Two decades of

reform

What’s in the Basin Plan

• Sustainable Diversion Limits (SDLs)

• Water resource planning

• Environmental watering

• Groundwater

• Water trading rules

• Constraints

Basin Plan implementation timeline

2012

Basin Plan

came into effect

2017

Adjustment of

SDL determined

Northern Basin

review

amendments

2017

5-yearly

Report Card

2019

State water

resource plans

aligned to Basin

Plan

2026

First review

of Basin

Plan

What the Basin Plan will achieve

What the Basin Plan will achieve

Economic and social benefits

Environmental water recovery

Sustainable Diversion

Limit Adjustment

Mechanism (SDLAM)

SDL Adjustment proposals

Basin state governments are

working with communities and

stakeholders to develop

projects that achieve equivalent

environmental outcomes with

less water

Consultation process

• We will be holding meetings through September on the SDL

adjustment mechanism and other Basin Plan updates

• The regional meetings will be followed by a formal submission

period in October on the draft adjustment determination

• Following consideration of submissions the MDBA draft

determinations will then go to the Minister on 15 December

2017

Basin Plan

Evaluation

Evaluation timeline

The general approach

Water availability Irrigated area Employment

Community level analysis

Data has been

collected for 45

communities – 30 to

be studied in detail

Understand the

relative importance of

irrigated agriculture

Understand social

and economic

condition

What has been

the progress

with

Basin Plan

implementation

and how

effective has it

been?

Basin Watering Strategy

Annual

Environmental

Watering Priorities

Long Term

Watering Plans

Environment Management

Framework ENV. MGMT

FRAMEWORK

(CH.8 BP)

How has

environmental

water changed

hydrology?

Delivery and use of environmental

water

Changes in the hydrology

(flows & inundation) and provision

of ecological opportunities

HYDROLOGY

How has the

ecology changed

in response to the

hydrological

opportunities

provided?

Native

vegetation Native fish

Waterbirds Ecological

Assets

ECOLOGY

• SDL Adjustment Mechanism

• Social and economic studies feeding into the interim evaluation

• Outcome of the Northern Basin Review and other amendments

• Ongoing Regional Engagement

Current MDBA Priorities for 2017

Questions?