Commercial irrigators in Darwin who require a water licence will have a further six months to apply, after the Northern Territory Government extended the deadline, amid concerns the new rules were causing confusion.
Northern Territory Minister for Environment and Natural Resources, Lauren Moss, said the new due date of June 30, 2017 would give residents watering an area exceeding half a hectare an opportunity to understand their water use and how the new licensing arrangement could impact them.
“We have heard the concerns raised by rural residents at public meetings and have decided to extend the application process to give residents more time to understand their water usage and whether the new licensing will impact them or not,” Ms Moss said.
The licence arrangements are an attempt to better manage water in the Northern Territory.
“These changes are about measuring and understanding water use in the Darwin rural area, not charging for water,” Ms Moss said.
The changes aim to increase the knowledge of who is using water from the areas bores and how much is being used.
“There is approximately 5000 production bores in the Darwin rural region with only 12 water extraction licences in place. This is a significant knowledge gap impacting on the ability to effectively manage and plan water resources in the area,” Ms Moss said.
Ms Moss said while residential irrigators watering over the specified area would have to apply for a licence, the initiative was mainly focused on commercial irrigators and the majority of residential users wouldn’t be affected by the change.
“The changes are largely aimed at commercial users and the department and NT Farmers Association continues to work closely with them to ensure they understand the new requirements and are accurately assessing their water needs so it can be captured under a licence arrangement,” Ms Moss said.
Find Irrigation Related Companies In The Pump Industry Capability Guide
-
Aus researchers create first pump for liquid metals
Researchers at RMIT University have developed the world’s first liquid metal enabled pump, a revolutionary new micro-scale device with...
-
Tender: water mains and pipeline construction
City West Water (VIC) is seeking tenders for the construction of the following works in the Tarneit area: Approximately...
-
Milestone achievement for Drouin Wastewater Treatment Plant build
Plant equipment has arrived on site ready for installation for the construction of Gippsland Water’s state-of-the-art wastewater treatment plant...
-
Tender: WTP interface isolation facility
Expressions of interest are currently sought for the design and installation of a facility to allow RO CIP HP-LP...
-
Groundwater scheme moves forward
Water Corporation has reached a milestone in Australia’s first full-scale Groundwater Replenishment Scheme. Water Corporation has completed a pipe...
-
Record gas flow rates achieved at Reid’s Dome Project
State Gas Limited has announced an “exponential” increase in gas flow rates at its Nyanda-4 well at the Reid’s...
-
Gloucester gas gets government go ahead
AGL has received Federal government approval to progress with Gloucester Coal Seam Gas Project. The Commonwealth Department of Sustainability,...
-
Custom Fluidpower acquires Dynamic Hydraulics
Custom Fluidpower, the largest independently owned hydraulic solutions provider in Australia, has acquired Gladstone based Dynamic Hydraulics Pty Ltd....
