Frequently asked questions

The sharing of available water is undertaken in accordance with the priorities for water sharing set out in the Water Management Act 2000 and the respective statutory water sharing plans for water sources. For the NSW Murray, Lower Darling rivers, and the Border Rivers the department must also consider interstate water sharing agreements. 

While the process for determining water availability and announcing available water determinations (typically referred to as allocations) is relatively straight forward, catchment conditions, climate variability, seasonal circumstances and a number of operational considerations can influence the allocation outcome. Nevertheless, the basic approach is outlined below.

Immediately prior to the commencement of the new water year on 1 July, the department calculates the minimum assured volume of water that will be available for allocation within each water source during the coming year. The calculation considers:

• how much accessible water is held in headwater and any immediate storages; plus
• how much water is expected to flow into the storages over the assessment horizon, using the lowest inflows recorded before the first water sharing plan; minus
• how much water is already allocated for all licences, planned environmental water, and storage reserves, where applicable; minus
• how much water is required to run the river system, such as end of system flows, transmission losses, evaporation and other operational overheads.

The surplus water, after above considerations, is shared according to rules in the relevant water sharing plan. The outcome is published in the water allocation statement and is credited by an Available Water Determination (AWD) order.

Water allocation guides have been prepared for major regulated river valleys in NSW and can be found at: Resource assessment process | Water.
 

As the water year progresses, regular assessments of surface water availability are undertaken. Improvements from inflows to storages following rainfall, as well as less than forecast overheads (such as evaporation and transmission losses), are continually monitored so that any possible increases to water availability can be promptly announced. Allocations can continue to accrue if resources improve, up to the maximum allocation limits or account limits set out in respective water sharing plans.

Combined storage volumes for WaterNSW operated dams as at 24 June 2026 totalled about 8,300 gigalitres, which is around 49% of total active storage capacity. 
At the same time last year, major state-operated dams were approximately 60% full. 

This reflects a 11% decrease in overall storage levels across the state compared to last year, noting conditions vary between valleys, as reflected in the 2026–27 opening water allocations.

The water sources where all entitlements received their maximum permissible allocation for the water year in accordance with the relevant water sharing plan, will not receive any further allocation until next water year (commencing on 1 July 2027 ). However, we will publish water allocation statements periodically for these water sources, to update water users on resource status.

For water sources where entitlements are not at their maximum permissible limit, typically general security entitlements in regulated rivers, allocation statements are generally issued monthly. If additional water becomes available, allocations are increased in line with the relevant water sharing plan rules. New water resources usually become available through additional inflow into the storages over the course of the water year.

For information on the next regulated valley allocation update, please refer to the regulated water allocation statements on the department’s website at: Water allocation statements | Water.
 

Available water determinations for regulated supplementary access and floodplain harvesting licences, as well as unregulated river entitlements, are made based on the amount of water that can be sustainably extracted over the long-term. Allocations to these licences only reduce when the long-term extraction limits are exceeded.

Allocation in these categories determines maximum annual take if conditions permit. Water access is typically dependent on flow conditions before water take can be permitted. The current Section 324 Order only changes the conditions that allow take, not the overall allocation.

The Order was introduced to ensure that critical human and environmental needs in the Lower Darling can continue to be met for the following 12 months. The restrictions only apply when needed to ensure the 12-month critical supply level. 
For more information and the status of restrictions, please refer to the department’s website: Various water sources in the northern Murray–Darling Basin Order (No.1) 2026 | Water.

The Water Sharing Plan for the Upper Namoi and Lower Namoi Regulated River Water Sources specifies how the LTAAEL is calculated, how compliance is assessed and what action is required if there is non-compliance. The compliance assessment relies on a model to represent current conditions; this includes infrastructure, rules and water use behaviour.

The current conditions model used for the 2023–24 water year assumed that floodplain harvesting was still occurring despite not being licensed. This decision was adopted due to lack of legal clarity and uncertainty about water user behaviour. This led to a finding of non-compliance which informed the 1 July 2025 AWD decision. You can find more information on this assessment on our website: Extraction limits | Water.

The 2024–25 assessment, to inform the 1 July 2026 AWD, has assumed that there is no floodplain harvesting occurring. This is because there is no evidence that it is occurring, Namoi water users have not been taking FPH as their understanding of the legal framework has matured and NRAR has published information on their compliance approach. To legally undertake floodplain harvesting, a landowner must have a floodplain harvesting access licence. The NSW Government issued floodplain harvesting licences for the Namoi Unregulated Rivers water sharing plan area on 18 March 2025, however it has not yet issued floodplain harvesting licences for the Upper Namoi and Lower Namoi Regulated River Water Sources.

Rainfall runoff harvesting exempt under the Water Management (General) Regulation 2018 (Clause 39B; Schedule 4 Part 1 Section 17C) is not included in the definition of floodplain harvesting. This exempt harvesting does not require a licence and can still occur in the Namoi.

Licensing of floodplain harvesting in the Upper Namoi and Lower Namoi Regulated River Water Sources is expected to commence in 2026–27. We will revise the compliance assessment after the commencement of these licences.