New South Wales Consolidated Regulations

WATER SHARING PLAN FOR THE LOWER MACQUARIE GROUNDWATER SOURCES 2003 - REG 38

38 Water quality management

(1) The beneficial uses of these groundwater sources, based on beneficial use classes identified in the Australian and New Zealand Environment and Conservation Council Water Quality Guidelines 2001 , and the National Health and Medical Research Council Raw Water for Drinking Purposes Guidelines 1996 , are:

(a) raw water for drinking purposes, and

(b) agricultural water,

Note: It is not recommended that the water from this groundwater source be consumed without prior treatment. Land use activities may have polluted the groundwater in some areas.

(2) Water quality decline will be deemed unacceptable if extraction is likely to cause water quality to decline to a lower beneficial use class.

(3) The Minister may declare that, in order to protect water quality within this groundwater source, local access rules are to apply in a defined area known as a local impact area.

(4) A baseline of electrical conductivity (hereafter "EC"), against which changes in the salinity of groundwater will be measured, will be set in year 6 of this Plan based on the results of a salinity monitoring program undertaken by the Minister.

(5) The EC limits adopted by this Plan for the beneficial use categories are as follows:

(a) 800 EC for Raw Water for Drinking Supplies Class, and

(b) 1,500 EC for Agricultural Water Class.

Note: These are the limits specified in Guidelines for Groundwater Protection in Australia, Australian and New Zealand Environment and Conservation Council and Agriculture and Resource Management Council of Australia and New Zealand, (1995, as adopted by the NSW Government Groundwater Quality Protection Policy 1997 ).

(6) If, for groundwater of less than or equal to 800 EC, as established by the salinity baseline set by subclause (4), there is an increase in salinity of more than 20% of the difference between the salinity baseline set by subclause (4) and the beneficial use class limits established in subclause (5) (a), then:

(a) the Minister may declare a local impact area,

(b) access licence holders within the local impact area will need to demonstrate to the Minister that continual extraction, or a proposed new extraction regime, will not have an unacceptable impact on the groundwater quality of the aquifer, and

(c) until such time that this justification to continue to extract has been assessed and approved by the Minister:

(i) extraction from water supply works nominated by an access licence within the local impact area will be restricted to such an extent and for such time as required to halt that salinity increase, or

(ii) access licence holders may be issued with a directive to cease to pump.

(7) If, for groundwater of greater than 800 EC and less than or equal to 1,500 EC, as established by the salinity baseline set by subclause (4), there is an increase in salinity of more than 20% of the difference between the salinity baseline set by subclause (4) and the beneficial use class limit established in subclause (5) (b), then:

(a) the Minister may declare a local impact area,

(b) access licence holders within the local impact area will need to demonstrate to the Minister that continual extraction, or a proposed new extraction regime, will not have an unacceptable impact on the groundwater quality of the aquifer, and

(c) until such time that this justification to continue to extract has been assessed and approved by the Minister:

(i) extraction from water supply works nominated by an access licence within the local impact area shall be restricted to such an extent and for such time as required to halt that salinity increase, or

(ii) access licence holders may be issued with a directive to cease to pump.

(8) If there is an increase in salinity from extraction that results in the current beneficial use class salinity limit being exceeded, then subclauses (7) (a) and 7 (c) shall apply.