Murray-Darling Basin. Australia

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1 Murray-Darling Basin Australia Brian Haisman May 2005 River Basin Management Workshop 1

2 The Murray-Darling Basin Queensland % BRISBANE South Australia N % % ADELAIDE MORGAN % MILDURA Darling Murray % CANBERRA % SYDNEY New South Wales Kilometres May 2005 River Basin Management Workshop 2 % MELBOURNE Victoria

3 Some Murray-Darling Basin Facts 1,060,000 sq km (area = France + Spain) Population 1.9 mill (density < 2 per sq km) 40% of Australian agriculture Irrigation ha (70% Aust total) Limited, highly variable runoff Dams volume = 3 x annual water usage Covers part of 4 States May 2005 River Basin Management Workshop 3

4 Principal Basin Water Resource Problems Extraction volumes too high for sustainable river health (95% of extractions are for irrigation) Declining water quality, vegetation, fish Extensive dryland salinity predicted to soon adversely affect rivers Irrigation-induced salinity (lower Murray) Large investments required to transfer water use from irrigation to environment May 2005 River Basin Management Workshop 4

5 Process of Institutional Creation Australia is federation of sovereign States - under Constitution, WRM is a State matter Basin water mgmt institutions : 1. National (federal) government source of capital funding grants 2. River Murray Commission: reported equally to federal & state gov ts manage inter-state water treaty build & operate River Murray structures to store & deliver agreed State bulk water shares May 2005 River Basin Management Workshop 5

6 Process of Institutional Creation (2) Basin institutions : 3. Specific water agency in each State: centralised to State capitals water resource assessment build & operate dams & irrigation schemes allocate and administer water rights 4. Local government bodies urban flood management local town water supply and sewerage May 2005 River Basin Management Workshop 6

7 Initiation and Drivers of Reform post Obvious need for integrated catchment management (initiated by State governments) Public participation to become real Water no longer to be managed in isolation from other natural resources 2. Public administration develops into more business-like public sector management including a push for decentralisation May 2005 River Basin Management Workshop 7

8 Initiation and Drivers of Reform (2) 3. National micro-economic reforms (initiated by national gov t Competition Policy ) Included some key reforms for water: Full cost recovery (consumption-based pricing) Tradable water rights separated from land; formal environmental allocations Separation of regulators & service providers Greater local-level WRM responsibility May 2005 River Basin Management Workshop 8

9 Current Institutions and their Activities National government: Coordinates agreed national water policy State governments: State-owned corporations manage major urban water supply and rural dams Integrated natural resources agency: highly decentralised decision-making manages allocations & water rights coordinates and oversights new Catchment Management Authorities May 2005 River Basin Management Workshop 9

10 Current Institutions and their Activities Murray-Darling Basin Commission Incorporates previous River Murray Commission (R Murray bulk water supply) Ministerial Council and Community Advisory Committee added Primary Tasks (apart from operating R Murray) Develop ICM policies Conduct Investigations and Education Coordinate programs & funding for on-theground works implemented by States & CMAs May 2005 River Basin Management Workshop 10

11 Current Institutions and their Activities Local government bodies urban flood management (linked to CMAs) town water supply & sewerage corporatised Irrigation schemes now privatised Catchment management authorities: manage sub-basins of Murray-Darling Basin community-based funded by State and national governments protect & enhance land & water resources through regional catchment strategies May 2005 River Basin Management Workshop 11

12 Sub-basins managed by CMAs Average subbasin area: 62,500 sq km May 2005 River Basin Management Workshop 12

13 Performance Devolvement of authority Localised to sub-basins and regions Central offices limited to policy Stakeholder participation Consultation + citizen rights of objection CMAs run by Board with community majority Financial self-sufficiency Irrigation schemes fully self-funded Urban water utilities pay dividends to States May 2005 River Basin Management Workshop 13

14 Performance Issues Technical quality of water management mostly not affected by decentralisation Economic efficiency driven by direct user involvement and public scrutiny of pricing; plus removing all barriers to water rights transfer markets Limited capabilities of local organisations not suited to landscape-scale ICM projects Massive public funding required to move water from consumption to river health uses May 2005 River Basin Management Workshop 14

15 Institutional Reforms are Continuing Australia still experimenting with best way to achieve integrated natural resource mgmt CMAs keen to acquire land taxing powers this sets up conflict with local government Debate about 3-tier federalism has restarted (National/ State/ Local gov ts) Limitations of river basins as mgmt units - especially as integrated management expands May 2005 River Basin Management Workshop 15

16 Thank You May 2005 River Basin Management Workshop 16

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