NSW water management regulations up for review

NSW Water Commissioner, David Harriss, today invited submissions on the Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS) and associated draft Water Management (General) Regulation 2011.

In New South Wales, the Water Management Act 2000 (the Act) establishes a framework for sustainable water management in NSW. Section 400 of the Act enables the making of regulations to support implementation. Two current regulations are the Water Management (General) Regulation 2004 and the Water Management (Water Supply Authorities) Regulation 2004. These regulations will be repealed on 1 September 2011.

Three options have been considered:

• Option 1 (the base case) - allow the Water Management (General) Regulation 2004 and Water Management (Water Supply Authorities) Regulation 2004 to lapse (note: the Water Management Act 2000, the Water Act 1912, the water sharing plans and other statutory orders would remain in force).
• Option 2 - reinstate the Water Management (General) Regulation and the Water Management (Water Supply Authorities) Regulation with no change.
• Option 3 - reinstate and amalgamate the Water Management (General) Regulation and the Water Management (Water Supply Authorities) Regulation with amended provisions.

The third option is the preferred course of action for the New South Wales Department of Water.

Water Commissioner Mr Harriss said that because the current regulations were due to expire, a staged repeal process was necessary. This new Regulation is proposed to replace the Water Management (General) Regulation 2004 and the Water Management (Water Supply Authorities) Regulation 2004.

According to Mr Harriss:

It is important that regulations are reviewed from time-to-time to ensure that they remain relevant and do what they were intended to do.  The NSW Office of Water is undertaking the staged repeal of the current regulations and we are inviting all interested members of the community to view the Regulatory Impact Statement and proposed new Regulation and consider its implications.

Mr Harriss said that the new Regulation will remake the existing regulations as a new consolidated regulation; however, there will be some changes.

The three key areas of change involve amendments to the exemptions, removal of an amnesty for pre-1999 unlicensed works and various administrative improvements. Mr Harriss admitted:

The changes are limited, but may affect some water users currently operating under the existing regulations.

Mr Harriss said that the Regulatory Impact Statement outlines the likely impacts of the main matters that will be dealt with in this new Regulation. The proposed new Regulation and the Regulatory Impact Statement are available on the NSW Office of Water website. Written submissions are invited until close of business 20 July 2011 and can be emailed.  Additional information can be obtained by contacting the NSW Office of Water on 1800 353 104.