Frequently asked questions about floodplain management

Floodplain harvesting is defined in the NSW Floodplain Harvesting Policy (PDF, 410.45 KB) as the collection, extraction or impoundment of water that flows across a floodplain. This includes water from rainfall runoff and overbank flows—when rivers overflow onto the floodplain.

Floodplains are defined in Schedule 2 of the Water Management (General) Regulation 2025. 

Floodplain harvesting does not include:

• water taken under a water access licence that is not a floodplain harvesting access licence
• water taken under a basic landholder right, including a harvestable right
• water taken under an applicable water access licence exemption under the Water Management Act 2000
• used irrigation water.
   

The floodplain harvesting reform aims to protect the environment and water users from the impacts of unconstrained growth in water extraction. In the northern Basin, most of the growth in floodplain harvesting is historical. More than 80% of the growth in on-farm storage volumes since 1994 occurred before 2008.

To address this, the NSW Government introduced the NSW Floodplain Harvesting Policy (PDF, 410.45 KB) in 2013. This policy ensures floodplain harvesting is managed under the Water Management Act 2000, bringing it into the water licensing and measurement framework.

The reforms also aim to:

• improve connectivity between floodplains and surrounding areas through more frequent inundation
• improve cultural outcomes
• improve environmental outcomes (waterbirds, native vegetation, native fish, and water volumes)
• increase flows to downstream communities
• provide clarity for all water users and the regulator regarding compliance with floodplain harvesting rules
• enable compliance through accurate measurement
• deliver near-real-time information via telemetry
• establish a foundation for adaptive water management.

Floodplain harvesting can potentially occur on any floodplain. 

We prioritised implementation of the NSW Floodplain Harvesting Policy in the northern Murray–Darling Basin due to significant growth in floodplain harvesting activities in that region. Implementation of the policy has not yet been extended to the southern Murray–Darling Basin. 

Yes, but only in certain circumstances. A statewide exemption allows water to be taken from a tailwater drain if it collects rainfall run-off from an irrigated field that is part of the land owned or legally occupied by the user. If the land is leased, the exemption applies to the leaseholder. 

However, this exemption does not apply when works on the property are taking overland flow, for example during a floodplain harvesting measurement period. 

Overland flow is defined in section 4A of the Water Management Act 2000:

1. In this Act, overland flow water means water (including floodwater, rainfall run-off and urban stormwater) that is flowing over or lying on the ground as a result of
   1. rain or any other kinds of precipitation, or
   2. rising to the surface from underground,
   3. any other process or action of a kind prescribed by the regulations.
2. Water is flowing over the ground for the purposes of subsection (1) even if it flows over the ground by means of artificial structures such as roads, canals or road gutters.
3. However, subsection (1) does not include –
   1. water that is collected from a roof (including water collected from a roof using a rainwater tank), or
   2. water that is flowing over or lying on the bed of a river, lake or estuary, or water flowing over or lying on the ground in such circumstances as may be prescribed by the regulations.

No. Water sharing plans include a general amendment provision that allows the Minister to change, remove, or add rules related to floodplain harvesting access licences. These changes can be made without triggering compensation.

You can read more about compensation entitlements in sections 87(2) and 87AA(3) of the Water Management Act 2000.

No. Many flood works are built for purposes other than floodplain harvesting. Approval of a structure or work does not automatically grant permission to floodplain harvest. 

To legally undertake floodplain harvesting, a landowner must have a floodplain harvesting access licence. This access licence must also nominate the water supply works used to take water. 
 

The Select Committee on Floodplain Harvesting was established on 23 June 2021 to inquire and report on the NSW Government's management of floodplain harvesting.

You can read more on the Parliament of NSW website.

We’ve published an overview of legal limits, as well as fact sheets and infographics on our website. These resources explain how limits are determined and how they ensure compliance with NSW’s federal water management responsibilities under the Basin Plan.

Yes. Legal limits in both water sharing plans and the Basin Plan are defined as long-term volumes of water that can be taken from a water source under specific development and management conditions. 

In regulated river systems and the Barwon-Darling, these limits are estimated using models and reflect best available information at the time. As new information becomes available, these volumetric estimates can be updated through formal departmental approval processes. 

Over the coming years, the department will update water sharing plans for unregulated rivers to include a volumetric estimate of legal limits. 

The water sharing plans in the northern Basin do not specify a volumetric limit for floodplain harvesting. Instead, they include a development scenario for floodplain harvesting which is a component of the long- term annual extraction limit. 

Licensing floodplain harvesting enables the NSW government to set sustainable limits on this type of water extraction and build flexibility into how and when water is taken from floodplains. Floodplain harvesting is included within the legal limits that apply to each water management area across the Basin. Collectively, these limits cover all allowable water diversions in NSW, and the state must comply with them under federal water management obligations and in accordance with the Basin Plan.

Licensing provides a mechanism to manage floodplain harvesting within these limits. This includes:

• enforcing individual account limits
• setting annual allocations
• requiring accurate measurement and reporting of water take

Water sharing plans also include rules for assessing growth in floodplain harvesting and responding to an exceedance of legal limits. Where floodplain harvesting licences are issued, specific rules have been added to the relevant water sharing plans. These rules allow us to monitor growth in floodplain harvesting and reducing allocations to floodplain harvesting licences if growth causes the legal limit to be exceeded. 

To ensure floodplain harvesting stays within legal limits, entitlements for properties connected to a regulated river* and the Barwon-Darling are determined using modelling. This modelling helps ensure that the total water taken from the system does not exceed the legal limits.

This requires the department to simulate several scenarios with different levels of development. The department follows a 3-step process as outlined in the Guideline for the Implementation of the NSW Floodplain Harvesting Policy (PDF, 542.3 KB):

1. Determine the legal limit 
   A volumetric estimate of the legal limits based on relevant legislation.
2. Assess current water use
   The volume of water currently being harvested is estimated. If this exceeds the legal limit, entitlements are adjusted to bring usage back to within legal limits.
3. Allocate entitlements to properties
   Each eligible property’s share of the total floodplain harvesting take is determined using a 2008/09 development scenario. The number of entitlements for each property is then calculated using the model, along with specific accounting rules.

* Regulated rivers in the 5 northern valleys are those that benefit from flows released from public storages constructed upstream of the Border Rivers, Gwydir, Namoi, and Macquarie floodplains.

Share components will generally be greater than the plan limit component because floodplain harvesting opportunities don’t occur every year. The larger share components are intended to allow for enough access during flood events so that, over the long-term, the average water take aligns with the legal limit. For example, 100 share components may equate to a long-term average of 80 megalitres/year.

This approach is consistent across all water sharing frameworks in the Basin.

The policy offers significant benefits to the environment. By licensing floodplain harvesting and restricting the water taken from floodplains to legal limits, we are returning water to rivers and floodplains. The benefits to downstream users and the environment are detailed in various resources available online. See the summary (PDF, 195.54 KB) and video on predicted environmental outcomes of implementation of the policy. Specific environmental outcomes as a result of implementing the policy are modelled for each valley. These reports are available on the individual licensing pages for each northern Basin valley. 

Water sharing plan rules have also been introduced to ensure that water is available for critical human and environmental needs in times of drought. Accordingly, the following plans contain provisions that prohibit floodplain harvesting unless there is a prescribed volume of water held in Menindee Lakes or specified in-stream targets have been met. 

• Water Sharing Plan for the Barwon Darling Unregulated River Water Source 2026
• Water Sharing Plan for the NSW Border Rivers Regulated River Water Source 2021
• Water Sharing Plan for the Gwydir Regulated River Water Source 2016
• Water Sharing Plan for the Macquarie-Cudgegong Regulated Rivers Water Source 2016
• Water Sharing Plan for the Upper and Lower Namoi Regulated River Water Sources 2016

Monitoring, evaluation, and reporting (MER) is underway to better understand the hydrological and ecological effects of floodplain harvesting, with measurement data providing important new insights. This monitoring is reported within the departments Environmental Outcomes Monitoring and Research Program.

We have analysed modelled daily floodplain harvesting diversions across the NSW Border Rivers, Gwydir and Namoi valleys from the last 30 years and compared these to observed flows at Walgett over the same period. These modelled diversions assume that no licensing framework is in place and there are no other floodplain harvesting restrictions.  Consequently, we consider that there may be a benefit in managing floodplain harvesting after a cease to flow event in the Barwon-Darling to ensure that critical environmental and human needs are met. 

See the Floodplain harvesting and cease-to flow events in the Barwon–Darling fact sheet for more information on this analysis.

No. On average, inflows from the Lower Darling River represent 14% of the total inflows into the Murray River. This means that major changes to inflows from the northern basin have only minor impacts on total Murray River inflows. For example, a 10% reduction in inflows from the Lower Darling would result in only a 1.4% reduction in total inflows to the Murray River.

Some stakeholders have quoted that the Lower Darling system contributes 39% of flows to South Australia. This statistic assumes that Lower Darling inflows are always used first to meet the South Australian entitlement flows, but this is not the way the NSW Murray system is managed in practice.  Information on baseline diversion limit conditions suggests the Lower Darling system would have contributed 14% of the total inflows to the Murray River over the climatic period from 1895 to 2009.

A 2021 report outlining the downstream benefits from returning floodplain harvesting to legal limits found the reform would result in undetectable improvements in Murray River allocations. This is because the reductions are not significant in the context of the Murray River inflows, and because a large amount of these additional flood flows will support natural processes and stay within the northern basin.

We are working to improve understanding of how much water returns to rivers from foregone diversions on the floodplain. This will contribute to improved understanding of contributions to the Murray River system.

For more details, please refer to:

• Darling River flow contributions to the NSW River Murray (PDF, 157.49 KB)
• Impact of lower inflows on state shares under the Murray-Darling Basin Agreement (PDF, 2104.43 KB)
• Modelled downstream effects of licensing floodplain harvesting (PDF, 5300.99 KB)
• Water as it travels downstream (PDF, 1084.87 KB)

Analysis shows floodplain harvesting in the northern basin has very little impact on flows in the southern basin, especially as much of these flows are consumed by natural processes and stay within the northern Basin. 
Modelling shows that even completely removing floodplain harvesting from the northern Basin would increase flows in the Murray River by less than 1 per cent on average. 

As an example, only 13% of the observed flood flows passing through St George in Queensland during the 2020 first flush event made it through the intersecting streams to join the Darling River at Bourke, despite all forms of take in NSW being restricted and water use in Queensland accounting for only 28% of this change.
 

We have prepared detailed reports describing our approach to building updated hydrological models, including information about the objectives, development process, data sources, results, and level of accuracy of modelling for each valley. Accounting for floodplain harvesting relies on water balance calculations at 3 different spatial scales: farm, river reach, and whole valley. 

An overview of this process is presented in Chapter 2 of the model build reports, with Chapters 4–7 going into more detail on components and processes. For more information, please refer to the model build reports for the Border Rivers, Gwydir, Namoi and Macquarie valleys.

The models use multiple lines of evidence to understand water flows, irrigation usage and water infrastructure in each valley. This includes user surveys, on-ground inspections, river flow and metered diversions, remote sensing, flood studies and hydraulic models. 

Details on modelling results and how models are developed for each valley are available below:

• Building the river system model for the Macquarie Valley regulated river system
• Building the river system model for the Gwydir Valley regulated river system
• Building the river system model for the Barwon-Darling Valley unregulated river system
• Building the river system model for the Border Rivers Valley regulated river system
• Building the river system model for the Namoi regulated river system 
   

All models have uncertainty. One of the key sources of uncertainty is the lack of metering information for floodplain harvesting that can form an important line of evidence for model calibration. 

A key outcome of the licensing process will be improved floodplain harvesting metering and measurement, which will allow the department to refine the modelling over time with any improvements reconciled through the annual water allocation process.

The department also validated the data used in the models and modelling results on a property-by-property basis. We provided each eligible landholder with data for their property, eligible works, and farm infrastructure, and they were given28 days to make a submission. 

The Healthy Floodplains Review Committee carefully reviewed all submissions and made recommendations according to the terms of reference (PDF, 203.34 KB). 

The committee was made up of representatives from the NSW Farmers Association, NSW Irrigators’ Council, the Nature Conservation Council and an independent chair. 

For more information, see the Guideline for the Implementation of the NSW Floodplain Harvesting Policy (PDF, 542.3 KB).

Yes. The department engaged independent expert reviewers who are recognised nationally and internationally as experts in their respective fields. The expert reviewers are Tony Weber and Greg Claydon. See information about the reviewers. 

The independent peer reviews focus on providing transparent technical information, giving stakeholders confidence that the NSW Floodplain Harvesting Policy has been implemented with technical rigour and sound supporting processes.

In 2018, the department, with the Murray– Darling Basin Authority (MDBA), commissioned an independent peer review of implementation of the NSW Floodplain Harvesting Policy in northern NSW. The report is available here: Independent review of NSW Floodplain Harvesting Policy implementation (PDF, 300.15 KB). The fact sheet is available here: An independent review into floodplain harvesting fact sheet (PDF, 113.5 KB).

This review provided 16 key recommendations and 48 other recommendations. These were accepted in full and addressed in the Floodplain Harvesting Action Plan.

The NSW Government released the NSW Floodplain Harvesting Measurement Policy (PDF, 2270.23 KB) in July 2020.

The measurement policy sets out the objectives, methods and intended rules for ensuring that licensed floodplain harvesting in the northern Murray–Darling Basin is measured and accounted for.

The Water Management (General) Regulation 2018 was amended 1 July 2022 to give legal effect to the intent of the measurement policy.

The job of the NSW Government is to regulate water take to ensure a fair share for all, including downstream users and the environment. To do this, we need to have accurate measurement systems for floodplain water extraction.

We consulted with a wide range of stakeholders during the development of the measurement policy, including water users directly affected by the reforms in the northern Basin, First Nations Australians, downstream users and communities, and environmental groups. 

The measurement policy was also informed by technical input from experts in water measurement.

This collaborative approach means stakeholder views have been a key part of the development process, and we have worked to balance competing views and objectives. 

The measurement policy is the first of its kind in Australia.

The measurement policy applies to all storages in the five northern NSW Murray–Darling Basin valleys that are used to take water under a floodplain harvesting access licence. 

The NSW Government amended the Water Management (General) Regulation 2025 (the Regulation) on 1 July 2022 to give legal effect to the intent of the measurement policy.

The Regulation requires water supply works nominated by a floodplain harvesting access licence to have an automated measurement device with near-real time telemetry connected to the NSW Government’s cloud-based platform. 

Measurement devices must be tamper-evident and be installed and certified by a duly qualified person (DQP). These devices support notifications and reporting requirements by automatically reporting water use against water allocations and assist water management by reporting take directly to the user. 

The Water Group has taken the following steps to deliver on the intent of the policy and the Regulation:

• Established, in partnership with Irrigation Australia Limited, a specific training and certification program for installers of floodplain harvesting measurement equipment.
• Established a facility at Manly Hydraulics Laboratory to test devices used to measure floodplain harvesting,
• Published information about suitable floodplain harvesting measurement devices and a process for device manufacturers to have their devices accredited as suitable for use.
• Released technical guidelines for installers of floodplain harvesting measurement equipment.
• Developed ICT systems to allow floodplain harvesting measurement devices to be ordered, configured, and associated with the relevant licensing information.
• Upgraded its telemetry system to receive data from floodplain harvesting measurement devices.
• Supported suppliers and installers by holding regular discussion forums.

The department has established, in partnership with Irrigation Australia Limited, a specific training and certification program for installers of floodplain harvesting measurement equipment – certified storage meter installer and validator.

For more information about becoming a certified storage meter installer and validator, visit the Irrigation Australia Limited website.

Overland flow is defined in the Water Management Act 2000 (the Act) under Clause 4A.  The take of overland flow water requires either:

• an exemption from requiring a work approval and water access licence or
• a relevant work approval and water access licence 

Water access licences that can take overland flow, on a declared floodplain, by works nominated on a water supply work approval, are: 

1. a floodplain harvesting (regulated river) access licence, or
2. a floodplain harvesting (unregulated river) access licence, or
3. an unregulated river access licence if the water taken by the approved works is overland flow water taken from a declared floodplain

Take of overland flow (by approved works) under one of the above listed access licences must comply with the mandatory floodplain harvesting condition, under the Water Management (General) Regulation 2018 (the Regulation) clause 238B.

Both ‘floodplain harvesting’ and ‘unregulated river’ water access licences allow for the take of overland flow, up to the limits of the licence holder’s account balance. The physical act of taking overland flow by both licence types will work in a similar way. 

No. Many existing unregulated river access licences on declared floodplains include overland flow within their entitlement. These licence holders were not eligible to receive a replacement floodplain harvesting access licence and were advised to ensure works that took overland flow were on their current work approval. 

Water users that did not have overland flow included in their existing unregulated river access licence were issued with a replacement floodplain harvesting access licence. See NSW Floodplain Harvesting Policy (PDF, 410.45 KB) for a more detailed explanation. 

In short, holders of an unregulated access licence, with works approved to take overland flow, can take overland flow, and are required to use the floodplain harvesting rules. 

Prior to this change, a pattern approved meter was the only metering option available to an unregulated overland flow water user. This type of equipment wasn’t practical for measurement of overland flow.  

Licence holders are now required to meter their take using the floodplain harvesting rules, which are more suitable for metering overland flow take and will ultimately provide greater accountability.

No. Only works approved to take overland flow can be measured using a storage meter. Any work approved to take water from a river must comply with the Non-urban metering rules. 

If you are an unregulated river access licence holder on a declared floodplain and have work(s) that take overland flow, these work(s) must be listed on your nominated water supply work approval. 

You will need to apply to WaterNSW to amend your existing work approval and add the work(s) that can take overland flow. These work(s) will require assessment and will be subject to conditions, should they be eligible for approval. 

Contact WaterNSW to make application to amend your approval. See: Water supply works and water use approvals

A flood work is a work that is situated in or in the vicinity of a river, estuary or lake or within a floodplain that effects the flow of water to or from a river, estuary or lake or the distribution or flow of water in times of flood. These works include:

• barrages
• causeways
• embarkments
• associated equipment such as pipes, valves and metering equipment.

The full definition is provided in the Water Management Act 2000 Dictionary.

All flood works require an approval unless an exemption applies. More information on flood works, including exemptions, is available at: Flood work approvals

Yes, all flood works require an approval, unless an exemption applies.

The definition of a flood work is not limited to works within floodplains and a flood work approval is required regardless of the location unless an exemption applies.
The department has developed technical guidelines for the assessment of applications for flood work approvals in areas without an in-force floodplain management plan. 

Yes, as part of the monitoring, evaluation, reporting and improvement plan (MERI) for floodplain management, hydraulic modelling will be used to determine the changes in flow distribution.

The modelling may contain information about flood work approvals and ecological or cultural assets that are sensitive or private, so the models have not be made public. However, we recognise that the public has an interest in flood modelling. Consequently, we are considering how we can make this information available without compromising sensitive and private information.

All flood works must comply with the rules set out in the relevant floodplain management plan, even if flood works were built before the plan commenced. We have carefully considered how flood works impact floodplain flows, including impacts to property and environmental and cultural locations, during the floodplain management plan development process. 

Flood work applications are advertised as part of the assessment process unless an advertising exemption applies. Applications are advertised on the WaterNSW website.

This provides all stakeholders and community members the opportunity to lodge an objection.

In December 2023 the Regulation was amended, changing the way the way that historical groundwater access is taken into account when calculating proposed floodplain harvesting (unregulated river) access licence entitlements. The amendments commenced and were published on 8 December 2023.

Previously, only groundwater usage was accounted for in the calculation. Now, the greater of historic groundwater usage or the entitlement held is accounted for. This more precautionary approach ensures that floodplain harvesting licences reflect historic crop areas that could not be met by other existing licensed entitlements. 

Changes were also made to: 

• clarify that a model must be adopted after a landholder has an opportunity to make a submission on their proposed entitlement and before the determination of their final entitlement
• give landholders another opportunity to make submissions if their proposed entitlement has been reduced
• correct an administrative error in the eligibility criteria for a floodplain harvesting access licence. 

The amendments change the way future floodplain harvesting shares are calculated in unregulated river water sources by fully accounting for existing groundwater licences. This has resulted in smaller proposed floodplain harvesting shares for some water users in the Namoi unregulated river water sources. 

The amendments made on 6 February 2020 provided an exemption from the requirement to hold a water access licence for the purpose of floodplain harvesting. This exemption was subject to the taking of water through an eligible work.

For the purpose of the regulation, an eligible work must be located on a floodplain and be constructed on or before 3 July 2008.

The regulation was disallowed by the Upper House on 22 September 2020.

Key issues raised during the Upper House debate included:

1. potential for the exemption to allow for the continued use of unauthorised works
2. no public consultation on the regulation prior to submitting
3. no sunset clause on the exemption
4. no limit on the amount of water that could be taken under the exemption
5. no requirement for measurement of the volumes taken under the exemption.

These issues were addressed in the development and consultation of the subsequent  floodplain harvesting regulations.

The amendments made to the Water Management (General) Regulation 2018 were informed by extensive consultation. 

Since 2008, there has been ongoing consultation with stakeholders and the wider community regarding the floodplain harvesting reform. Consultation and engagement have spanned all aspects of policy development and planning, with a broad spectrum of community and stakeholders who have an interest in the Murray – Darling Basin.

The NSW Government published  4 packages of proposed amendments to the Regulation on 23 November 2020 and invited public feedback through a formal submission process. The department accepted submissions from 23 November until 20 December 2020 and we received 236 submissions during this period. In early 2021, consultation outcomes reports (Licence determination and measurement (PDF, 515.21 KB), Tailwater drain exemption (PDF, 310.47 KB), Transitional exemption (PDF, 347.28 KB) ) were published for each of the proposed amendment packages.

Many submissions supported the new rules and focused on the improved clarity, certainty, and transparency they would bring. Those that did not support the proposed changes disagreed with the existing policy or legislative settings. Making changes to these settings was clearly communicated as being outside the scope of the submission process. Another key theme from the consultation was a concern about how floodplain harvesting in the northern Murray– Darling Basin affects downstream systems, which is a key consideration being addressed through consultation on the draft water sharing rules for floodplain harvesting licences. 

After consultation in late 2020, the NSW Government proceeded with 3 out of the 4 packages of amendments. Based on submissions received and the limited period that would apply, the NSW Government did not proceed with amendments that would provide a transitional exemption from the need to hold a licence and works approval.

The 3 packages of amendments were a significant step towards bringing floodplain harvesting into a clear and enforceable regulatory framework, ensuring that floodplain harvesting is within legal limits. They included:
 

1. Licensing determination process: This amendment clearly sets out the eligibility process for a floodplain harvesting access licence, the category of licence and share component. It was consistent with the NSW Floodplain Harvesting Policy (PDF, 410.45 KB) and Guideline for the Implementation of the NSW Floodplain Harvesting Policy (PDF, 516.95 KB). This amendment focused on ensuring the process is consistent for water users in each valley where licences are issued, now and into the future. It gave water users clarity about their eligibility for licenses and the determination process for licence categories and share components.
2. Measurement requirements: All water taken under a floodplain harvesting licence will need to be measured. This amendment clearly sets out the rules for measuring floodplain harvesting and required storages to be fitted with compliant and tamper-proof metering, data logging and telemetry equipment. Equipment must be installed and signed off by a duly qualified person.
3. Tailwater return drain exemption: This amendment provided an exemption from the need for a water supply work approval for the use of tailwater drain, and an exemption from the need for a water access licence for the collection of rainfall runoff in a tailwater drain during periods when it is the only structure collecting rainfall runoff.  It gave NSW water users clarity and certainty about what they need to measure and account for and when.

Amendments were made to the Water Management (General) Regulation 2018 on 17 December 2021 to set out the process for issuing floodplain harvesting licences and the measurement requirements on those licences. The amendments commenced on 14 February 2022 but were subsequently disallowed on 24 February 2022.

The amendments were mostly unchanged from the 3 amending regulations that were adopted on 28 April 2021 and subsequently disallowed by the NSW Legislative Council on 6 May 2021.

Licences for the Border Rivers and Gwydir Valleys that were determined in accordance with the amending regulations in February 2022 are not affected by the disallowance. However, the disallowance delayed measurement requirements for those licences, essential for monitoring and enforcement of licence volumes.

The NSW Government introduced two separate amending regulations to enable the restriction, control and measurement of floodplain harvesting on 1 July 2022. The 1 July amending regulation that enabled licensing was disallowed on 21 September 2022. This meant that floodplain harvesting licences in the Macquarie, Barwon–Darling and Namoi valleys could not be determined and were unable to achieve core elements of the Select Committee Report recommendations for these valleys.

The amending regulation, which enabled measurement, established mandatory measurement conditions required to monitor and enforce licence volumes for the NSW Border Rivers, Gwydir, and other valleys. As the measurement regulation and tailwater return drain were not part of the disallowance, measurement requirements remain in place for floodplain harvesting licences in the Border Rivers and Gwydir Valleys. Measurement requirements for all valleys are now clearly defined in the regulations.

Licences in the Border Rivers and Gwydir valleys were determined in accordance with the amending regulations in February 2022 and are not affected by the disallowance.

Amendments were made to the Water Management (General) Regulation 2018 on 3 February 2023. These amendments set out the process for determining the category and share component of floodplain harvesting access licences. They enable the licensing of this form of water take. The licence determination process in this amendment was largely unchanged from that in the amending regulation that commenced 1 July 2022 but was subsequently disallowed by the NSW Legislative Council on 21 September 2022. 

You can find more information, publications and videos relating to the Healthy Floodplains Project on our Resources and figures page.

More information is available at: Floodplain management plans.