New South Wales Consolidated Acts

WATER MANAGEMENT ACT 2000 - SECT 367

367 Evidentiary certificates

(1) A certificate that is issued by the Minister and that states:

(a) that an instrument, a copy of which is set out in or annexed to the certificate, being an instrument purporting:

(i) to be issued, made or given for the purposes of this Act, and

(ii) to have been signed by the person authorised to issue, make or give the instrument, or by another person acting as delegate or on behalf of the person,

was issued, made or given on a specified day, or

(b) that a document, a copy of which is set out in or annexed to the certificate, is a copy of part of, or an extract from, a register or water allocation account kept under this Act, or

(c) that an image, a copy of which is set out in or annexed to the certificate:

(i) is a photograph or other remotely-sensed image of a specified kind, and

(ii) portrays specified land as at a specified date, or

(d) that an amount payable under this Act by a specified person has, or has not, been paid,

is admissible in any legal proceedings and is evidence of the fact or facts so stated.

(2) A certificate that is issued by the Minister and that states that, on a date or during a period specified in the certificate:

(a) a specified person was, or was not, the holder of a specified access licence or approval, or

(b) a specified access licence or approval was, at a specified time, revoked or suspended for a specified period or was revoked or suspended subject to specified conditions, or

(c) a specified condition of an access licence or approval was, at a specified time, imposed or revoked, or

(d) specified land was, or was not, the subject of a specified approval, or

(e) specified land was, or was not, within a specified water management area, or

(f) a specified part of a water source was, or was not, within a specified water management area, or

(g) a specified water management work was, or was not, at a specified location within a specified parcel of land, or

(h) a specified water management work was, or was not, the subject of a specified water management work approval, or

(i) the conditions of a specified access licence or approval were, or were not, as so specified, or

(j) the terms of a specified available water determination were, or were not, as so specified, or

(k) a specified person was, or was not, an authorised officer in relation to a specified provision of this Act, or

(l) a specified person was, or was not, an authorised analyst, or

(m) a specified person was, or was not, a member of staff of the Department, or

(n) a specified delegation under this Act was, or was not, in force, or

(o) a specified access licence or approval was, or was not, in force, or

(p) specified matters were, or were not, recorded in the Access Register or were, or were not, recorded in specified terms, or

(q) the water allocations credited to, or debited or otherwise withdrawn from, the water allocation account for a specified access licence were, or were not, as so specified, or

(r) a specified number of water allocations were, or were not, credited to, or debited or otherwise withdrawn from, the water allocation account for a specified access licence, or

(s) a specified quantity of water was, or was not, ordered in relation to a specified access licence, or

(s1) a specified quantity of water that was taken was, or was not, taken from a specified water source or part of a specified water source, or

(s2) Part 2 or 3 of Chapter 3 of this Act does, or does not, apply to a specified water source or part of a specified water source, or

(t) information required to be furnished to the Minister or an authorised officer pursuant to this Act was, or was not, received, or

(u) an approved river gauge had, or had not, been maintained in accordance with the requirements (if any) prescribed by the regulations, or

(v) the readings on an approved river gauge were, or were not, as so specified,

is admissible in any legal proceedings and is evidence of the fact or facts so stated.

(3) In any legal proceedings, evidence is not required:

(a) as to the accuracy or reliability of an approved river gauge, or

(b) as to the manner in which an approved river gauge was operated,

unless evidence is adduced that the gauge was not accurate, was not reliable or was not properly operated.

(4) For the purposes of this section, a document purporting to be a certificate under this section is, unless the contrary is proved, to be taken to be such a certificate.

(5) In this section, "approved river gauge" means a gauge of a type or design approved by the Minister, by order published in the Gazette, for the purpose of measuring the level or flow of water in a river or lake.

(6) In this section:

(a) a reference to a water management work includes a reference to a corresponding kind of work to which Part 2, 5 or 8 of the Water Act 1912 extends, and

(b) a reference to an approval or access licence includes a reference to an entitlement (within the meaning of clause 2 of Schedule 10) that confers a corresponding authority.