Murray–Darling Basin
2.5 Other groundwater assets

Supporting information

The volumetric value for the line item for the 2011–12 year was 4,013,615 ML for the Murray–Darling Basin (MDB) region. The line item represents sustainable diversion limits that include long-term estimates of volumes for extraction, basic land holder rights or unlicensed stock and domestic rights (where these are not included in the long term extraction estimates in the water resource plan) and for New South Wales the volume of supplementary access licence that was available for use in the 2011–12 year.

Following two tables provide a summary and a breakdown of volumetric details of the line item.  More details about the groundwater asset volumes and other data within the region are available in the Groundwater regional note.


Summary of groundwater recharge from landscape in the Murray–Darling Basin (MDB) region in the 2011–12 year
Groundwater resource plan area State/Territory  Groundwater asset volume1 as at 30 June 2012 (ML)   Groundwater asset volume2 as at 30 June 2011 (ML) 
 Code

Name
GW22 Warrego–Paroo–Nebine Qld – –
GW21 Condamine–Balonne Qld – –
GW20 Moonie Qld – –
GW19 Qld Border Rivers Qld – –
GW18 New South Wales Border Rivers Alluvium NSW 8,804 0
GW17 New England Fractured Rock and Northern Basalts NSW 255,376 0
GW16 Eastern Porous Rock NSW 266,579 0
GW15 Gwydir Alluvium NSW 40,954 42,946
GW14 Namoi Alluvium NSW 319,452 325,561
GW13 New South Wales Great Artesian Basin Shallow NSW 406,599 0
GW12 Macquarie–Castlereagh Alluvium NSW 72,602 72,221
GW11 Lachlan and South Western Fractured Rock NSW 178,575 0
GW07 Darling Alluvium  NSW – –
Sub-total Northern Basin 1,548,941 440,728
GW11 Lachlan and South Western Fractured Rock NSW 903,442 0
GW7 Darling Alluvium  NSW 1,529 0
GW10 Lachlan Alluvium NSW 124,743 126,867
GW9 Murrumbidgee Alluvium NSW 300,478 304,598
GW8 Murray Alluvium NSW 219,453 133,137
GW6 Western Porous Rock NSW 557,233 0
GW2 Goulburn–Murray Vic. 254,372 254,372
GW3 Wimmera–Mallee (groundwater) Vic. 18,477 18,477
GW5 Eastern Mount Lofty Ranges SA 11,426 11,426
GW4 SA Murray SA 73,521 64,621
GW1 ACT (groundwater) ACT – –
Sub-total Southern Basin 2,464,674 913,498
Total for the region 4,013,615 1,354,226

– = Data not available

1–2 Water table, underlying or combined aquifers
 

Details of groundwater recharge from landscape in the MDB region in the 2011–12 year
Groundwater resource plan area

Groundwater sustainable diversion limit area

Groundwater Plan 

 State 

 Groundwater asset volume as at 30 June 2012 (ML) 

 Groundwater asset volume as at 30 June 2011 (ML) 

Code

Name
GW18 New South Wales Border Rivers Alluvium GS32 and GS33 NSW Border Rivers Alluvium and NSW Border Rivers Tributary Alluvium Water Sharing Plan for the NSW Border Rivers Unregulated and Alluvial Water Sources 2012 NSW 8,804 – 
GW17 New England Fractured Rock and Northern Basalts GS18 Inverell Basalt Water Sharing Plan for the NSW Murray– Darling Basin Fractured Rock Groundwater Sources 2011 NSW 25,807 – 
GS22 Liverpool Ranges Basalt Water Sharing Plan for the NSW Murray– Darling Basin Fractured Rock Groundwater Sources 2011 NSW 19,075 – 
GS37  New England Fold Belt Water Sharing Plan for the NSW Murray– Darling Basin Fractured Rock Groundwater Sources 2011 NSW 204,784 – 
GS49 Warrumbungle Basalt Water Sharing Plan for the NSW Murray– Darling Basin Fractured Rock Groundwater Sources 2011 NSW 5,710 – 
GW16 Eastern Porous Rock GS17 Gunnedah–Oxley Basin MDB  Water Sharing Plan for the NSW Murray– Darling Basin Porous Rock Groundwater Sources 2011 NSW 205,671 – 
GS41 Sydney Basin MDB Water Sharing Plan for the NSW Murray– Darling Basin Porous Rock Groundwater Sources 2011 NSW 60,908 – 
GW15 Gwydir Alluvium GS24 Lower Gwydir Alluvium Water Sharing Plan for the Lower Gwydir Groundwater Source 2003 NSW 40,954 42,946
GW14 Namoi Alluvium GS29 Lower Namoi Alluvium Water Sharing Plan for Upper and Lower Namoi Groundwater Sources 2003 NSW 97,654 99,741
GS40 Peel Valley Alluvium Water Sharing Plan for Peel Valley Regulated, Unregulated, Alluvium and Fractured Rock NSW 80,562 80,562
GS47 Upper Namoi Alluvium Water Sharing Plan for Upper and Lower Namoi Groundwater Sources 2003 NSW 141,236 145,258
GW13 New South Wales Great Artesian Basin Shallow GS34 to GS 36 NSW Great Artesian Basin Surat Shallow, Warrego Shallow and Central Shallow Water Sharing Plan for the NSW Great Artesian Basin Shallow Groundwater Sources 2011 NSW 406,599 – 
GW12 Macquarie–Castlereagh Alluvium GS14 Castlereagh Alluvium Water Sharing Plan for the Castlereagh (below Binnaway) Unregulated and Alluvial Water Sources 2011 NSW 621 – 
GS26 Lower Macquarie Alluvium Water Sharing Plan for Lower Macquarie Groundwater Sources 2003 NSW 71,981 72,221
GW11 Lachlan and South Western Fractured Rock GS19 Kanmantoo Fold Belt Water Sharing Plan for the NSW Murray– Darling Basin Fractured Rock Groundwater Sources 2011 NSW 178,575 – 
GS10 Adelaide Fold Belt Water Sharing Plan for the NSW Murray– Darling Basin Fractured Rock Groundwater Sources 2011 NSW 30,292 – 
GS 20 Lachlan Fold Belt Water Sharing Plan for the NSW Murray– Darling Basin Fractured Rock Groundwater Sources 2011 NSW 847,413 – 
GS39 Orange Basalt Water Sharing Plan for the NSW Murray– Darling Basin Fractured Rock Groundwater Sources 2011 NSW 16,208 – 
GS51 Young Granite Water Sharing Plan for the NSW Murray– Darling Basin Fractured Rock Groundwater Sources 2011 NSW 9,529 – 
GW7 Darling Alluvium  GS23 Lower Darling Alluvium Water Sharing Plan for the Lower Murray–Darling Unregulated and Alluvial Water Sources 2011 NSW 1,529 – 
GW10 Lachlan Alluvium GS25 Lower Lachlan Alluvium Water Sharing Plan for Lower Lachlan Groundwater Source 2003 NSW 124,743 126,867
GW9 Murrumbidgee Alluvium GS28 Lower Murrumbidgee Alluvium (deep; Calivil formation and Renmark Group) Water Sharing Plan for Lower Murrumbidgee Groundwater Source 2003 NSW 287,478 291,598
Lower Murrumbidgee Alluvium (shallow; Shepparton formation) Water Sharing Plan for Lower Murrumbidgee Groundwater Source 2003 NSW 13,000 13,000
GW8 Murray Alluvium GS27 Lower Murray Alluvium (deep: Renmark Group and Calivil formation, and shallow: Shepparton formation) Water Sharing Plan for Lower Murray Groundwater Source NSW 205,344 133,137
GS46 Upper Murray Alluvium Water Sharing Plan for Murray Unregulated and Alluvial NSW 14,109 – 
GW6 Western Porous Rock GS50 Western Porous Rock Water Sharing Plan for the NSW Murray– Darling Basin Porous Rock Groundwater Sources 2011 NSW 557,233 – 
Sub-total New South Wales 3,655,819 1,005,330
GW2 Goulburn–Murray GS08 Goulburn–Murray (Shepparton Irrigation Region, sedimentary plain, highlands and deep) Alexandra groundwater management area (GMA)
 Vic. 1,969 1,969
Barnawatha GMA Vic. 2,154 2,154
Katunga water supply protection area (WSPA)
 Vic. 61,172 61,172
Kinglake GMA Vic. 2,551 2,551
Loddon Highlands WSPA Vic. 21,955 21,955
Lower Campaspe Valley WSPA Vic. 57,231 57,231
Lower Ovens GMA Vic. 29,018 29,018
Mid Goulburn GMA Vic. 15,312 15,312
Mid Loddon GMA Vic. 37,906 37,906
Mullindolingong GMA Vic. 7,084 7,084
Shepparton Irrigation Region WSPA Vic. 3,456 3,456
Upper Ovens River WSPA Vic. 4,646 4,646
Unincorporated areas Vic. 9,918 9,918
GW3 Wimmera–Mallee (groundwater) GS09 Wimmera–Mallee (sedimentary plain, highlands and deep) Balrootan GMA Vic. 30 30
Goroke GMA Vic. 2,202 2,202
Kaniva WSPA and TCSA GMA Vic. 1,248 1,248
Little Desert GMA Vic. 1,102 1,102
Murrayville WSPA Vic. 11,217 11,217
Nhill GMA Vic. 1,202 1,202
Telopea Downs WSPA
Vic. 56 56
Unincorporated areas Vic. 1,420 1,420
 Sub-total Victoria 272,849 272,849
GW5 Eastern Mount Lofty Ranges GS01 Angas Bremer (Quaternary sediments and Murray Group limestone) Angas–Bremer prescribed wells area (PWA)
 SA 6,500 6,500
GS04 Marne Saunders (Murray Group limestone and Renmark Group) Marne Saunders prescribed water resources area (PWRA)
 SA 4,926 4,926
GW4 SA Murray GS03 Mallee (Pliocene Sands, Murray Group limestone and Renmark Group) Noora PWA SA 5,138 5,138
GS03 Mallee (Pliocene Sands, Murray Group limestone and Renmark Group) Mallee PWA Water Allocation Plan 2000 SA 62,400 53,500
GS05 Peake–Roby–Sherlock (unconfined and confined) Peake, Roby and Sherlock PWA SA 5,983 5,983
Sub-total South Australia 84,947 76,047
Total 4,013,615 1,354,226
– = Data not available

GW13 New South Wales Great Artesian Basin Shallow water resource plan area includes 2,002 ML for Paroo alluvial and Warrego alluvial groundwater sources extracted from the Water Sharing Plan for the Intersecting Streams Unregulated and Alluvial Water Sources 2011.

Volumes provided in the above tables are based on information available at the sources (see 'Data source') at the data collection stage for the 2012 Account. It is likely that any subsequent changes to groundwater information in the water resource planning areas after the data collection stage have not been included in the above tables. In addition, sustainable diversion limit (SDL) areas other than included in the above tables do exist and may be relevant to the line item; however, relevant information was not available for the 2012 Account. For example, SDL areas for which approved groundwater plans are not available (i.e. the annual extraction limit has not been set by a water resource plan) are not included for the line item.

No information on groundwater asset volumes was available for Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory areas within the MDB region.

More information on basic rights within the MDB region is included in line item 18.7 Extraction: other statutory rights.

Quantification approach

Data source

Data were sourced from:
  • NSW Office of Water: water access licence statistics
  • jurisdictional groundwater plans
  • Victorian Permissible Consumptive Volume Groundwater Order 2011
  • Victorian Water Account 2010–11.

Provided by

The Bureau of Meteorology.

Method

The extractable volume of groundwater has been estimated as the sum of the following attributes as stated in the relevant groundwater plan, if there was such plan in place during the 2011–12 year:

  • long-term estimates of volumes for extraction
  • basic land holder rights or unlicensed stock and domestic rights (where these are not included in the long term extraction estimates in the water resource plan)
  • for New South Wales the volume of supplementary access licence that was available for use in the 2011–12 year.

If a plan commenced after 30 June 2012, it was excluded from the account. Where a plan was abolished after 30 June 2011, the value of the plan in effect for the 2011–12 year was included in the 2012 Account.

Basic landowner rights are added to the long-term annual extraction limits for those plans that do not include this extractable volume in the plan extraction limit to get an estimate of what is legally extractable from the aquifers. In addition, for New South Wales the volume of supplementary access licences for the 2011–12 year was included to better reflect the total volume of water that can be extracted from the aquifer for the 2011–12 year.

Assumptions, limitations, caveats and approximations

The basic landowner rights were considered as those at the commencement of the groundwater plan.

Uncertainty information

The uncertainty estimate was not quantified.

Comparative year

The following changes resulted in the restatement of the 2010–11 year volume:

  • prior period error correction
  • scope change.

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

 

Restatement of comparative year information made for the line item 2.5 Other Groundwater Assets
Segment

2012 Account volume at 30 June 2011 (ML)

2011 Account volume at 30 June 2011 (ML)

Difference due to prior period error correction and scope change (ML)
Northern Basin 440,728 440,923 –195
Southern Basin 913,498 886,795 26,703
Whole region 1,354,226 1,327,718 26,508

Details of changes made to 2010–11 information are as follows:
  • Supplementary entitlement volumes have been updated in the 2012 Account for Lower Gwydir, Lower Macquarie and Lower Lachlan alluviums.  As a result, respective decrease of asset volume was 204 ML.
  • For the 2011 Account, information for Little Desert GMA in Victoria was not included due to lack of reliable data. The volume (permissible consumptive volume and basic rights), 1,102 ML, for this area is included in the 2012 Account.
  • For the 2011 Account, basic landholder rights and unlicensed stock and domestic rights were not included for Victoria due to lack of reliable data. Volumes for these rights (25,340 ML excluding Little Desert GMA volume) were extracted from the Victorian Water Account for 2010–11 and included in the 2012 Account.
  • Basic landholder rights and unlicensed stock and domestic rights for the Marne Saunders PWRA in South Australia were not included in the 2011 Account. The respective volume, 270 ML, is included in the 2012 Account.

All above listed changes except asset decrease for Lower Gwydir (193 ML) and Lower Macquarie (2 ML) apply to the Southern Basin.