Murray-Darling Basin
17.11 Surface water allocation diversion

The volumetric value for the line item for the 2010–11 year was 4,020,807 ML. The line item represents diversion (excluding urban water systems) associated with a number of entitlement classes in the Murray–Darling Basin (MDB) region. For Queensland, this line item includes surface water allocation diversions for both urban and non-urban supplemented entitlements (details are after the following tables). Information on allocation diversions for urban water systems for other jurisdictions is included in line item 17.12 Surface water allocation diversion – urban water system.

The following two tables provide a summary and breakdown information on surface water allocation diversion (excluding urban water systems) within the region. 

 

Summary of surface water allocation diversion (excluding urban water systems) in the MDB region during the 2010–11 year

Surface water resource plan area		State	Volume (ML)
Code	Name
SW19	Warrego – Paroo – Nebine	Qld	856
SW18	Condamine–Balonne	Qld	69,233
SW17	Moonie	Qld	na
SW16	Qld Border Rivers	Qld	40,591
SW15	NSW Border Rivers	NSW	69,144
SW11	Barwon–Darling watercourse	NSW	na
SW12	NSW Intersecting Streams	NSW	na
SW14	Gwydir	NSW	105,625
SW13	Namoi	NSW	66,030
SW10	Macquarie–Castlereagh	NSW	156,152
Sub-total Northern Basin			507,631
SW9	Lachlan	NSW	79,539
SW8	Murrumbidgee NSW	NSW	1,084,248
SW7	NSW Murray and Lower Darling	NSW	613,721
SW3	Northern Victoria	Vic	589,001
SW2	Vic Murray	Vic	562,138
SW4	Wimmera–Mallee	Vic	9,721
SW6	Eastern Mount Lofty Ranges	SA	–
SW5	SA Murray	SA	574,808
SW1	ACT	ACT	na
Sub-total Southern Basin			3,513,176
Total for the region			4,020,807

– = Data not available, na = not applicable

 

Details of surface water allocation diversion (excluding urban water systems) in the MDB region during 2010-11 2010–11

Water resource plan area	Sustainable diversion limit area		State	Entitlement Class	Volume (ML)
	Code	Name
Warrego – Paroo – Nebine	SS28	Warrego	Qld	Supplemented	856
Condamine–Balonne	SS26	Condamine–Balonne	Qld	Supplemented	69,233
Qld Border Rivers	SS24	Qld Border Rivers	Qld	Supplemented	40,591
Sub-total Queensland					110,680
NSW Border Rivers	SS23	NSW Border Rivers	NSW	High security	152
				General security	68,647
				Stock and domestic	345
				Sub-total	69,144
Gwydir	SS22	Gwydir	NSW	High security	7,347
				General security	97,153
				Stock and domestic	1,125
				High security – research	0
				Sub-total	105,625
Namoi	SS21	Namoi	NSW	High security	400
				General security	64,594
				Stock and domestic	836
				High security – research	200
				Sub-total	66,030
Macquarie–Castlereagh	SS20	Macquarie–Castlereagh	NSW	High security	5,348
				General security	149,262
				Stock and domestic	940
				High security – research	602
				Sub-total	156,152
Lachlan	SS16	Lachlan	NSW	High security	31,238
				General security	40,372
				Stock and domestic	3,582
				Conveyance	4,347
				Sub-total	79,539
Murrumbidgee NSW	SS15	Murrumbidgee NSW	NSW	High security	188,269
				General security	698,958
				Stock and domestic	18,955
				Conveyance	177,470
				High security – research	146
				High Security - Aboriginal cultural	450
				Sub-total	1,084,248
NSW Murray and Lower Darling	SS18	Lower Darling	NSW	High security	1,996
				General security	24,782
				Supplementary	0
				Stock and domestic	463
				Sub-total	27,241
	SS14	NSW Murray	NSW	High security	47,221
				General security	209,238
				Supplementary	0
				Stock and domestic	7,785
				Conveyance	322,224
				High security – research	0
				High Security – Aboriginal cultural	0
				High Security – community and education	12
				Sub-total	586,480
Sub-total New South Wales					2,174,459
Northern Victoria	SS4	Ovens	Vic	High reliability water share	834
	SS5	Broken	Vic	Combined high and low reliability	4,350
	SS6	Goulburn	Vic	Combined high and low reliability	552,442
	SS7	Campaspe	Vic	Combined high and low reliabilityty	8,704
	SS8	Loddon	Vic	Combined high and low reliability	22,671
Vic Murray	SS2	Vic Murray	Vic	Combined high and low reliability	562,138
Wimmera–Mallee	SS9	Wimmera–Mallee	Vic	High reliability water share	9,721
Sub-total Victoria					1,160,860
Eastern Mount Lofty Ranges	SS13	Eastern Mount Lofty Ranges	SA	Regulated	–
				unregulated	–
				Sub-total	–
SA Murray	SS11	SA Murray	SA	Class 1  – stock and domestic	8,351
				Class 2 – other urban (country town) water supply	na
				Class 3 – irrigation and holding	564,534
				Class 4 – recreation	0
				Class 5 – industrial	1,923
				Class 6 – Metro-Adelaide water supply scheme	na
				Class 7 –  environment	–
				Class 8 – environmental land management	–
				Combined classes urban	na
				Combined classes metered	na
				Sub-total	574,808
	SS10	South Australian Non-prescribed areas	SA	Regulated	–
				unregulated	–
				Sub-total	–
Eastern Mount Lofty Ranges	SS12	Marne–Saunders	SA	Regulated	–
				unregulated	–
				Sub-total	–
Sub-total South Australia					574,808
Total for the region					4,020,807

– = no data available, na = not applicable

 

Queensland

In Queensland, the resource operation plans (ROPs) distinguish between high and medium priority of supplemented water allocation. The water audit monitoring (WAM) data, which are the data source for the 2011 Account, only distinguish between supplemented and unsupplemented entitlements. Both urban and non-urban entitlements are included within supplemented entitlement class. Supplemented urban and supplemented non-urban volumes on allocations, diversions and other attributes were received together and not possible to be separated out for two purposes. Therefore, this line item includes surface water allocation diversions for both urban and non-urban supplemented entitlements.     

Victoria

Victorian allocation diversions are shown in the source valley, even though the water was taken in a different destination valley. Therefore all entitlements in the Goulburn region have their diversions shown in the Goulburn sustainable diversion limit (SDL) area, rather than the destination valleys of the Loddon or the Campaspe, or transferred to Melbourne.

 

Calculation of allocation diversions within the region – Victoria

SDL area	WAM volume (ML)	Add volumes transferred to other SDL areas1 (ML)	Add environmental diversions1 (ML)	Deduct unregulated diversion2 (ML)	Total (ML)
Ovens	834	0	0	0	834
Broken	4,350	0	0	0	4,350
Goulburn	477,020	52,347	23,075	0	552,442
Campaspe	8,704	0	0	0	8,704
Loddon	23,295	0	84	708	22,671
Victorian Murray	514,350	0	50,228	2,440	562,138
Wimmera–Mallee	9,721	0	0	0	9,721

¹Volumes for allocation diversion but not included in WAM volume

² Volumes not related to allocation diversion but included in WAM volume

 

Diversion volumes that could not be specified under high reliability water share or a low reliability water share were reported as combined high and low reliability diversions.

South Australia

South Australian volumes include diversions made under environmental entitlements.

 

(1) New South Wales: NSW Office of Water's Water Accounting section, and (2) WAM data received from Queensland (22 December 2011) South Australia (07 February 2012) and Victoria (31 January 2012). WAM data are stored in the Murray–Darling Basin Authority HYDRO database.

Murray–Darling Basin Authority.

Allocation diversion is as calculated by the states.

NSW Office of Water supplied data are prepared on a water balance approach. It implies that the movement of values during the year will balance the opening and closing balances. The forfeitures and adjustments have been checked to ensure that the closing balance reconciles.

WAM-supplied data are either measured, modelled or estimated.

Uncertainty reported for diversion at the abstraction point accounts for possible errors in the data collection process.

A single metered abstraction point may provide water to a range of users, under various types of entitlements (e.g. stock and domestic class). When this happens, the jurisdiction may split the metered abstraction into several classes of entitlements or types of users, according to priority rules governing the entitlements. This split has an inherent uncertainty that is not considered here.

Estimates of uncertainty of the diversions are indicative accuracy of bulk diversions at the abstraction point on the river only and do not provide an uncertainty of diversion at the diversion point.

Information provided in this line item may have been based on Cap valleys in the HYDRO database, which may not align perfectly with SDL areas.

WAM data uncertainty estimate definitions

Percentage	Accuracy description
5	Metered diversions
10	Estimate based on user meter readings
20	Detailed estimate based on regional surveys
40	Estimate based on user returns

 

The following table outlines the WAM uncertainty percentage for each entitlement class for each jurisdiction.

 

Uncertainty percentages for non-urban allocation diversions in the jurisdictions

Jurisdiction	Entitlement class	Uncertainty (%)
SA	Class 1	40
SA	Class 3, Class 4, Class 5, Class 7, Class 8, Class 9 and Combined class metered	5
SA	Combined classes unmetered	20
NSW	All regulated non-urban	10
ACT	All regulated non-urban	5
Vic	Broken	10
Vic	Goulburn	5
Vic	Campaspe	5
Vic	Loddon	5
Vic	Ovens	18
Vic	Kiewa	15
Vic	Murray	11
Vic	Wimmera–Mallee	28
Qld	Condamine–Balonne	5
Qld	Border Rivers	5
Qld	Warrego	5

 This line item corresponds to line items listed in the following table and reported in the 2010 Account. In the 2011 Account, the following change was made that caused the 2009–10 year value to be restated:

• Presentation and classification of the line items has changed since the 2010 Account; line items have been regrouped.

The changes and their respective values are detailed in the following table.

 

Restatement of comparative year information made for the line item 17.11 Surface water allocation diversion

Description		Northern Basin (ML)	Southern Basin (ML)	Whole region (ML)
Line item names and values reported for the 2009–10 year in the 2010 Account	14.7.1 Allocation diversion of regulated flows – stock and domestic water access entitlement	4,448	38,486	42,934
	14.7.2.5 Allocation diversion of regulated flows – high security, individual holder for stock and domestic	0	20,000	20,000
	14.7.2.7 Allocation diversion of regulated flows – high security, other lumped holders	18,263	316,887	335,150
	14.7.3.6 Allocation diversion of regulated flows – general and low security, other lumped holders	169,577	351,707	521,284
	14.7.9.1 Allocation diversion of regulated flows – bulk irrigator holder	0	433,462	433,462
	14.7.9.2 Allocation diversion of regulated flows – individual irrigator holder	141,311	0	141,311
	14.7.9.7 Allocation diversion of regulated flows – other lumped holders	0	2,287,387	2,287,387
	Total value reported for the 2010 Account	333,599	3,447,929	3,781,528
	Changes in the value reported in the 2010 Account due to regrouping of line items		253	–84,131	–83,878
Value reported for the 2009–10 year in the 2011 Account		333,852	3,363,798	3,697,650

 

Changes in the value reported in the 2010 Account due to regrouping of line items were due to the following reasons:

• The high security entitlement classes within New South Wales for research, industrial, cultural, community and education were reported under urban line items in the 2010 Account.  Diversions associated with these entitlement classes were designated as non-urban and included in this line item for the 2011 Account.   

• In the 2010 Account, Victorian allocation diversion volumes were not separated into urban and non-urban and reported under line item 14.7.9.7 Allocation diversion of regulated flows – other lumped holders. For the 2011 Account, these volumes were restated after separating into urban and non-urban entitlement classes.