A new online application is set to make it easier for Australian engineers to access information about the status of water planning across the country.
Launched recently by the National Water Commission, the new search tool allows web users to easily understand significant water issues in given regions and how different regions are performing in terms of water planning and management.
Using the tool, for any given region, an engineer could find out about:
- significant water systems in the region
- major issues affecting water management and significant pressures on the region’s water systems
- who is responsible for water management planning in the region
- what water management plans are in place for the region (or are under consideration)
- how the region’s water planning performance compares with other regions (against twelve criteria).
The search tool also allows users to select and compare and contrast the performance of up to four different regions side by side.
As an example, say you wanted to find out about the West Gippsland region in Victoria. Using the new application, you would learn that the region is performing well in terms of planning for climate change and extreme inflows or recharge but has room for improvement in terms of accountability in water management arrangements and addressing groundwater/surface water connectivity. However, comparing West Gippsland’s performance with nearby regions, you would find that whilst its water planning performance is on par in most areas, the region lags behind East Gippsland in the matter of sustainable extraction and addressing overuse since existing planning instruments in West Gippsland do not provide for management of overuse attributed to oil and gas extractions.
If, on the other hand, you simply wanted to gain a broader understanding of water planning in a specific region, the search tool also provides more basic information. This includes specific information about significant regional water issues, plans applicable to the region and organisations responsible for regional water planning and implementation along with regional maps outlining rivers and reservoirs.
All information found via the search tool is based on results from the National Water Planning Assessment Card 2011, which provides a summary of the status of water plans across Australia. The assessment card, which was prepared for the first time last year and will now become published on an annual basis, is a response to a COAG request for independent assessment of water planning across Australia.
The commission says it hopes both the new assessment card and the search tool will help to stimulate informed discussion and better practice in water planning throughout the country.
How well are we doing?
With the release of the new report and search tool, it is now timely to ask how well Australia is doing in water planning.
Overall, the report card found a general improvement across Australia. But it says that further work is needed in a number of areas.
“Encouragingly, we see more evidence in recent plans of better quality assessments with clearer information on how decisions were made on trade-offs between competing uses” says National Water Commission Chair Chloe Munro.
“However, there are still disappointing delays in developing and implementing plans in some areas” she adds, “This is a real concern where failure to act has irreversible consequences”.
Munro says a particular area of concern relates to a lack of systematic monitoring, evaluation and reporting against intended outcomes in many plans. This, she says, makes it difficult to determine whether or not state objectives are being achieved.
‘In particular, there is room for improvement in accounting for all water use within a system, including interception and environmental water arrangements, and for better reporting on compliance and enforcement” she says.
“The full benefits of water planning cannot be achieved without effective monitoring and transparent reporting”.
