Unregulated water sales information pack Parwan GMU

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1 Unregulated water sales information pack Parwan GMU UPDATE 29 APRIL 2016 Up to 600 ML of groundwater licences from the Parwan Groundwater Management Unit (GMU). Applications are open from 9 am Tuesday 26 th April and close 4 pm Friday 20 th May What is for sale? What is not for sale? Who can take part? The sale The products for sale are section 51 take and use licences to be offered in lots. The licences are available for the Parwan GMU which is the lower tertiary aquifer as defined in the Victoria Aquifer Framework within the boundary shown in Figure 1. Section 67 licences to construct works and operate are not being sold. The operating licences describe the site to be used and the rate at which the volume of the water licence can be taken and used. Buyers without an existing section 67 licence who need a new bore to extract the water will need to apply for one. Buyers who possess a section 67 licence may apply to alter their conditions if required. SRW will not do bore interference assessments on each application for the nominated sites. This will be a requirement of a subsequent section 67 licence application. Eligibility is restricted to those who own or occupy land within the area. (Refer Figure 1) To be eligible you must submit an application (application form appears later in this document) which meets the criteria, and supply the following information: Indicate the volume being sought and a daily pumping rate. Provide a plan for how the water is to be used. This includes an outline of the business proposal or land to be irrigated and timeframe for development. Nominate an approximate bore location. SRW will determine who is eligible to bid at the auction based on the above requirements. Applications are open from 9 am Tuesday 26 th April and close 4 pm Friday 20 th May The auction is scheduled to occur between 10am Monday 6 th and 4pm Friday 10 th June The total volume to be sold is 600 ML. We will sell licence volumes by auction in lots to the highest bidder on SRW s website Waterbid srw.com.au/waterbid. Only eligible buyers will have access to the sale. Lot sizes will be announced prior to the sale. The sale will be formally advertised by Government Gazette a copy of which will be displayed in local papers. A reserve price may be set for this auction after the applications are received. The price is set to recover SRW costs associated with processing that size of application ie Reserve price is highest for the smallest lot size and lowest for the largest lot size. Should the bids for each lot size not reach the reserve price and be passed in, SRW will immediately contact the highest bidder to offer the sale of the lot at the greater of: reserve price, or the highest sale price of the same size lot, Should the bidder choose not to take up the offer, then the lot will be listed for sale at a shelf price set at the greater of the: reserve price, or the highest sale price of the same size lot, Should a sale be made to the highest bidder after the auction is closed, or via the shelf price, other participants shall have access to the information via a news feed on Waterbid

2 After the sale SRW will issue licences to the successful buyers as soon as possible after the sale. Licences will not be issued until full payment. If SRW does not receive full payment by June 30th 2016 the sale will be void and a licence will not be issued. If you are an existing customer, you must pay all outstanding accounts with Southern Rural Water before your licence is issued. Licence term The five year licence term is a condition to encourage productive use of the water. When payment is received a five year licence will be issued to allow you time to construct a bore or develop property if needed. If you do not use the additional entitlement in part or full within this timeframe a one to five year extension to your licence will be approved depending on the circumstances. If you do not use the entitlement after this period you can sell the licence and transfer it but otherwise it will not be renewed and the water placed on hold at the shelf price. If you use the entitlement in part or full within this timeframe at the expiry of the initial five year licence or the extension, a 15 year licence shall be issued which can be renewed for the same period from time to time on expiry. Up to date news can be found on our website at srw.com.au. More information Customer information sessions will be held on Monday 2 May from 3.00pm 5pm and Friday 6 May from 12.00pm 4.30pm, Lerderderg Library, Main Street, Bacchus Marsh. Figure 1 Parwan Groundwater Management Unit

3 Background The water licences being sold are a legally recognised entitlement to water within the Parwan GMU. What conditions are there on these water licences? requirement to take the water from licensed works; standard licence conditions as set out in the Ministerial Policies for Managing Take and Use Licences available from the Victorian Water Register; and Purchasers will be issued a licence with a term of 5 years until renewal. Normal trading rules will apply to all water licences purchased at the sale. The use of this water is subject to conditions on the operating licence (67) which is not issued with this licence. What is the expected price? The market will decide the price. Southern Rural Water is not able to provide an estimate of the expected price. Prospective bidders are encouraged to conduct their own research prior to the sale. All bids for licences will be at cost per ML and each lot will be sold to the highest bidder. Licences will be GST exempt. What water licence fees apply? Annual water licence fees apply to entitlements that cover the cost of administration and compliance. These fees are set annually and are billed in October each year. Buyers will not be charged for the cost of a licence application fee. Who has approved this sale? The sale has been approved by the Southern Rural Water Board under authority from the Minister for Water The water availability was determined in a recent study. Can pumped groundwater be re-injected? It may be feasible to re-inject groundwater. A successful re-injection program can offset the volume of the take and use licence. Re-injection will only be approved if it does not adversely impact on the temperature or chemistry of groundwater extracted by other entitlements holders. Re-injection bores should be at least 500 metres from any extraction bores. Any disposal proposal must apply for a section 67 bore construction licence and a section 76 approval to re-inject. Proponents should consider the need to purchase a volume at the auction to enable these projects to proceed or as a safeguard if the re-injection system fails. Can pumped groundwater be disposed off-site? Disposal of wastewater to treatment plants or ocean outfalls should be negotiated with the relevant water corporation (South East Water or Barwon Water) and agency (Environment Protection Authority). Related documents These fact sheets are on SRW s website and are available on request: Constructing a bore Fees Constructing a bore and using groundwater Fees Disposing matter by means of a bore Fees Taking groundwater and operating works

4 Application Form Privacy Collection Statement: Southern Rural Water (SRW) values and protects the personal and private information we collect from applicants as part of our business activities and responsibilities. Our policy is to collect only the information we need to conduct our business or to provide a service to applicants. Essential personal information such as name, address or telephone numbers is only released with consent or if reasonably required for government related business, such as the processing of council rates or if requested by lawful orders. SRW takes all reasonable steps to ensure that the management of personal information collected and disclosed complies with the Water Act 1989 requirements and privacy principles. 1 Applicant s information All prospective owners of the relevant water licence must sign this section. Name(and position if applicable) Company name Postal address: Contact name If you are an existing customer please complete the information below Phone BEE ML WRK ML 2 Land details Attach a current copy of the Land Title of each parcel where water is to be used. The land title must clearly show volume and folio numbers and land owners details. If an up to date land title is not available, please supply a Notice of Acquisition for each land parcel to be included on the licence. I have attached a copy of land title / Notice of Acquisition for each parcel where water is used and where bores, pumps and dams are located. 3 If you are not the owner of the land If you are not the owner of the land to be shown on the licence you need to put their authorisation in the table provided below. Name of land owner (s) Signature 4 Indicate the volume being sought and a daily pumping rate Annual volume = ML Daily pumping rate = ML/day

5 5 Proposed use of water Complete option below that applies. Commercial or industrial use (please provide details) Irrigation Area to be irrigated (Ha) Type of crop Method of Application e.g. Pivot 6 Irrigation development Please tick the best statement for your application: The application proposes to increase the current licensed volume on the land being irrigated This application proposes to increase the area allowed to be irrigated on my current licence Other (please describe) 7 Nominate an approximate bore location. Use the locality plan or an attachment to indicate layout of bore and business operations 8 Your declaration I/we the undersigned certify that the information provided in this application is true and correct. I/we understand that this information may be referred to other organisations and/or advertised as part of the application and assessment process. Application details may also be released if reasonably required by government business, requested by lawful orders, or in the public interest; particularly in regard to open disclosure of generally collected water entitlements. Name of applicant (s) Signature 9 Submission of application You may or post your application by 4 pm Friday 20 th May 2016 Attention Parwan GMU Groundwater Auction srw@srw.com.au POST: PO Box 153, Maffra 3860

6 10 Locality Plan Please provide: A sketch (or photocopy of a locality plan on a separate A4 sheet) showing the development area including current and proposed buildings, dams, waterways, irrigation systems, planting layout, groundwater bores (existing and proposed), pumps, pipelines, fuel tanks etc. Land parcel details (crown allotment or plan number and parish), and a minimum of two (2) named roads on your plan.