Water Rights in Queensland – Recent Legislative Changes

Following on from the rural theme in last month’s newsletter, this month’s edition will focus on a recent legislative amendment relating to water rights and its likely impact on primary producers state-wide.

Water resources in Queensland are governed by the Water Act 2000 and administered by the Department of Natural Resources and Mines (“DNRM”) and such resources are managed by the DNRM as two types of entitlements being Water Allocations and Water Licences.

Water Allocations are water entitlements that have been separated from the land and given their own separate title and real property description. Water Allocations are able to be bought and sold independently of land. They can also be leased, subdivided or amalgamated. Water Allocations exist in perpetuity.

Water Licences, by comparison, attach to one or more parcels of real property and cannot be sold or bought independently of the land which they attach to. Water Licences generally relate to the taking of water from an underground source via a bore or the pumping of water from a creek. The Licence will state who the Licensee is (e.g. the owner of the parcel of land); the volume of water that can be drawn under the Licence or the area of land which can be irrigated from the Licence; and where the water infrastructure associated with the Licence is located. Finally, the Licence will state an expiry date.

On the 14 May 2013, the Queensland Parliament passed into law the Land, Water and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2013 (“the Act”). This piece of legislation contains amendments to more than 15 pieces of separate legislation relating to the subjects of land and water. Importantly though, the Act amends the Water Act 2000 and, in particular, its application to Water Licences.

A common problem facing Licensees under the current regulatory regime is the expiry dates of Licences. Many primary producers rely heavily on the access to water provided by the Licence they hold. Without a Water Licence, productive blocks of land can be worthless dustbowls. Another issue is that when a Water Licence does expire, it can be a difficult and near impossible task to have a new licence instated.

The Queensland Government recognised this shortcoming of the Water Act 2000 and has legislated to ensure this problem is solved. The Act provides that there will be a new Section 213A inserted into the Water Act 2000 and, when it comes into force, all Water Licences in Queensland will be given an expiry date of 30 June 2111. There will be a short delay of this new provision coming into force to allow DNRM to modify their current licensing system.

In the meantime, we suggest that if your Water Licence is due for renewal you follow the current regime and renew your licence to ensure you do not fall foul of the new expiry date provision.

If you would like further information on this issue, our experienced team of rural practitioners would be more than happy to answer any enquires you may have, so please do not hesitate to contact our offices.