On The Land
28 July, 2022
Barron water plan out for comment
A REVIEW process for the Water Plan (Barron) 2002 is underway, with a draft plan, draft water management protocol and draft entitlement notice released for community consultation.
The Water Plan covers an area of approximately 5200 km2 comprising the Barron River catchment, the upper reaches of the Walsh and Mitchell rivers, the Atherton Tablelands region, the Mareeba- Dimbulah Water Supply Scheme, and parts of the Walsh and Mitchell River catchments.
The plan outlines proposed changes including:
Recognising Aboriginal peoples and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ objectives and desired outcomes for the management of water
Defining environmental outcomes to better support the Great Barrier Reef
Identifying unallocated water reserves for Indigenous purposes and general purpose use
Redefining water allocation security objectives to maintain water security and provide more flexibility
Enabling environmental flow objectives through better hydrological links to ecosystem needs.
Submissions can be made until 5pm on 19 August 2022, with feedback to be used to finalise the documents which are important for the sustainable management of water resources in the Barron water plan area.
Once finalised, the new plan will replace the existing water plan which will expire in December 2022. Submissions can be made and lodged by going to www.getinvolved.qld.gov.au, emailing your submission to waterplanning.barron@rdmw.qld.gov.au, or sending your submission by post or courier to:
Chief Executive, Water Services Northern Region,
PO Box 156, Mareeba QLD 4880.
To discuss any of the proposals call 1800 697 805.
