Murray–Darling Basin
13.1 Adjustment and forfeiture of surface water allocation

The volumetric value for the line item for the 2012–13 year was 2,007,538 ML. The line item does not include details for urban water systems. They are included in line item 13.2 'Adjustment and forfeiture of surface water allocation – urban water system'.

Adjustment and forfeiture of surface water allocation

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

 

Summary of adjustment and forfeiture of surface water allocation (excluding urban water systems) in the Murray–Darling Basin (MDB) region

Surface water resource plan area		State	Volume (ML) for the 2012–13 year
Code	Name		Non-environmental	Environmental	Total
SW20	Warrego–Paroo–Nebine	Qld	130	0	130
SW19	Condamine–Balonne	Qld	18,615	0	18,615
SW18	Moonie	Qld	n/a	n/a	n/a
SW17	Qld Border Rivers	Qld	28239	9336	37575
SW16	NSW Border Rivers	NSW	3,730	0	3,730
SW12	Barwon–Darling Watercourse	NSW	n/a	n/a	n/a
SW13	NSW Intersecting Streams	NSW	n/a	n/a	n/a
SW15	Gwydir	NSW	7,604	0	7,604
SW14	Namoi	NSW	25,203	0	25,203
SW11	Macquarie–Castlereagh	NSW	16,366	3,340	19,706
Sub-total Northern Basin			99,887	12,676	112,563
SW10	Lachlan	NSW	18,751	184	18,935
SW9	Murrumbidgee NSW	NSW	87,513	76,265	163,778
SW8	NSW Murray and Lower Darling	NSW	47,479	19,577	67,056
SW3	Northern Victoria	Vic.	280,935	279,753	560,688
SW2	Vic. Murray	Vic.	100,806	(137,097)	(36,291)
SW4	Wimmera–Mallee	Vic.	11,845	(43,217)	(31,372)
SW7	Eastern Mount Lofty Ranges	SA	–	–	–
SW5	SA Murray Region	SA	–	–	–
SW6	SA River Murray	SA	62,349	1,089,832	1,152,181
SW1	ACT	ACT	n/a	n/a	n/a
Sub-total Southern Basin			609,678	1,285,297	1,894,975
Total for the region			709,565	1,297,973	2,007,538

– = Data not available

Details of adjustment and forfeiture of surface water allocation (excluding urban water systems) in the Murray–Darling Basin (MDB) region

Water resource plan area	Sustainable diversion limit area		State	Entitlement class	Volume (ML) for the 2012–13 year
	Code	Name			Non-environmental	Environmental	Total
SW20 Warrego–Paroo–Nebine	SS28	Warrego	Qld	supplemented	130	0	130
SW19 Condamine–Balonne	SS26	Condamine–Balonne	Qld	supplemented	18,615	0	18,615
SW17 Qld Border Rivers	SS24	Qld Border Rivers	Qld	supplemented	28,239	9,336	37,575
Sub-total Queensland					46,984	9,336	56,320
SW16 NSW Border Rivers	SS23	NSW Border Rivers	NSW	high security	58	0	58
				general security	3,316	0	3,316
				stock and domestic	356	0	356
				Sub-total	3,730	0	3,730
SW15 Gwydir	SS22	Gwydir	NSW	high security	309	0	309
				General security	5,203	0	5,203
				stock and domestic	2,032	0	2,032
				high security–research	60	0	60
				Sub-total	7,604	0	7,604
SW14 Namoi	SS21	Namoi	NSW	high security	768	0	768
				general security	22,889	0	22,889
				stock and domestic	1,543	0	1,543
				high security–research	3	0	3
				Sub-total	25,203	0	25,203
SW11 Macquarie–Castlereagh	SS20	Macquarie–Castlereagh	NSW	high security	711	0	711
				General security	8,214	3,340	11,554
				stock and domestic	3,814	0	3,814
				high security–research	3,627	0	3,627
				Sub-total	16,366	3,340	19,706
SW10 Lachlan	SS16	Lachlan	NSW	high security	3,575		3,575
				general security	5,315	184	5,499
				stock and domestic	8,862	0	8,862
				conveyance	999	0	999
				Sub-total	18,751	184	18,935
SW9 Murrumbidgee NSW	SS15	Murrumbidgee NSW	NSW	high security	6,153	0	6,153
				general security	47,884	76,265	124,149
				stock and domestic	7,332	0	7,332
				conveyance	24,500	0	24,500
				high security– research	0	0	0
				High security–Aboriginal cultural	1,644	0	1,644
				Sub-total	87,513	76,265	163,778
SW8 NSW Murray and Lower Darling	SS18	Lower Darling	NSW	high security	718	0	718
				general security	815	0	815
				stock and domestic	619	0	619
				Sub-total	2,152	0	2,152
	SS14	NSW Murray	NSW	high security	15,845		15,845
				general security	21,150	19,577	40,727
				stock and domestic	7,512	0	7,512
				conveyance	1	0	1
				High security–research	800	0	800
				high security–Aboriginal cultural	0	0	0
				high security– community and education	19	0	19
				Sub-total	45,327	19,577	64,904
Sub-total New South Wales					206,646	99,366	306,012
SW3 Northern Victoria	SS4	Ovens	Vic.	high reliability water share	15,967	0	15,967
	SS5	Broken	Vic.	combined high and low reliability	5,786	0	5,786
	SS6	Goulburn	Vic.	combined high and low reliability	66,191	269,098	335,289
	SS7	Campaspe	Vic.	combined high and low reliability	115,565	8655	124,220
	SS8	Loddon	Vic.	combined high and low reliability	77,426	2000	79,426
SW2 Vic. Murray	SS2	Vic. Murray	Vic.	combined high and low reliability	100,806	(137097)	(36,291)
SW4 Wimmera–Mallee	SS9	Wimmera–Mallee	Vic.	high reliability water share	11,845	(43217)	(31,372)
Sub-total Victoria					393,586	99,439	493,025
SW7 Eastern Mount Lofty Ranges	SS13	Eastern Mount Lofty Ranges	SA	regulated	–	–	–
				unregulated	–	–	–
				Sub-total	0	0	0
	SS12	Marne Saunders	SA	regulated	–	–	–
				unregulated	–	–	–
				Sub-total	0	0	0
SW5 SA Murray Region	SS10	SA Non-prescribed areas	SA	regulated	–	–	–
				unregulated	–	–	–
				Sub-total	0	0	0
SW6 SA River Murray	SS11	SA Murray	SA	Class 1–stock and domestic	–	–	–
				Class 3–irrigation and holding	–	–	–
				Class 4– recreation	–	–	–
				Class 5–industrial	–	–	–
				Class 7– environment	–	–	–
				Class 8– environmental land management	–	–	–
				combined classes metered	62,349	1,089,832	1,152,181
				combined classes unmetered	–	–	–
				Sub-total	62,349	1,089,832	1,152,181
Sub-total South Australia					62,349	1,089,832	1,152,181
Total for the region					709,565	1,297,973	2,007,538

– = Data not available

Adjustment and forfeiture volumes provided in this line item include environmental water adjustment and forfeiture volumes.

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 2013 Account only distinguishes between 'supplemented' and 'unsupplemented' entitlements. Both urban and non-urban supplemented entitlements are included within the 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 the two purposes. Therefore, this line item includes adjustment and forfeiture volumes for both urban and non-urban supplemented entitlements.

For continuous accounting systems in Condamine–Balonne and Border Rivers, it was not possible to calculate the adjustment and forfeiture volumes due to lack of information.

 New South Wales

Usually unused allocation balances are forfeited for entitlement classes: stock and domestic, community and education, and research and Aboriginal culture. In some cases, the allocation may be overdrawn and the balance is shown in line item 5.1 'Surface water allocation remaining'.

In the Murrumbidgee water resource plan (WRP) area, irrigators may 'borrow' water from the Snowy Scheme. This borrow is made under a contractual agreement between the irrigator and the Snowy Scheme. The volume contracted is then credited by New South Wales Office of Water (NOW) to the individual account of the irrigator, allowing the irrigator to order water from the water assets administered by NOW. In parallel, the Snowy Scheme transfers the physical water into Blowering Reservoir in the Murrumbidgee WRP area. When the irrigator is able in subsequent years to repay the debt, they notify NOW, which debits the account from the volume previously borrowed, thus reducing the allocation announced earlier in the year. Line item 1.5 'Inter-region claim on water' provides details of the inter-region transfers from Snowy Hydro.

Victoria

Victorian allocation adjustment and forfeiture are shown in the source valley, even though the water was taken in a different destination valley. Therefore all entitlements in the Goulburn sustainable diversion limit (SDL) area have their allocation adjustments and forfeiture shown in that area, rather than the destination valleys of the Loddon or the Campaspe.

In Victoria, once an allocation has been made, regardless of its class, it goes into a single allocation account. Therefore, adjustment and forfeiture volumes are not specified as high reliability water share or a low reliability water share and are reported as combined high and low reliability water share.

 South Australia

No carry-over was permitted for South Australian Murray at the end of the 2012–13 year. In this line item for South Australia, adjustment and forfeiture volumes include the classes 3, 4, 7, and 9 as a 'combined class'. Carry-over is not allowed for classes 1, 5, and 8, with all unused water within these classes is forfeited.

 

(1) New South Wales Office of Water: water accounting section; and (2) Murray–Darling Basin Authority: WAM data received from Queensland (5 February 2014), South Australia (17 March 2014), and Victoria (14 February 2014), and stored in the HYDRO database.

Bureau of Meteorology.

• The New South Wales Office of Water supplied data prepared on a water balance approach. The forfeitures and adjustments have been checked to ensure that the closing balance reconciles.
• Adjustment and forfeiture for Queensland was calculated using WAM data on a water balance approach. The forfeitures and adjustments have been checked to ensure that the closing balance reconciles. Adjustment and forfeiture does not apply in the St George (Condamine–Balonne SDL area), Border Rivers, and Macintyre Brook (Queensland Border Rivers SDL area) water supply schemes which are continuous share schemes
• Adjustment and forfeiture for South Australia was calculated using WAM data on a water balance approach. The forfeitures and adjustments have been checked to ensure that the closing balance reconciles.
• Victorian adjustment and forfeiture was calculated applying a water balance approach to WAM data..

• Uncertainty reported by New South Wales Office of Water accounts for possible errors in the quantification of diversion and in the data handling processes.
• 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 supplied data are either measured, modelled or estimated. The uncertainty value for the New South Wales data provided in this line item is +/– 10%. The uncertainty estimate was not quantified for all other adjustment and forfeiture volumes reported in this line item.

Prior period errors and availability of updated information resulted in the restatement of the 2011–12 year volume. The respective volumes associated with the change are detailed in the following table.

 

Restatement of comparative year information made for the line item 13.1 Adjustment and forfeiture of surface water allocation

Segment	2013 Account volume for the 2011–12 year (ML)	2012 Account volume for the 2011–12 year (ML)	Difference due to prior period errors and availability of updated information (ML)
Northern Basin	163,023	165,143	(2,120)
Southern Basin	2,052,327	2,010,884	41,443
Whole region	2,215,350	2,176,027	39,323

Values reported in the 2012 Account were updated due to the following reasons:

• Values for several entitlement classes were updated for the New South Wales and Victorian SDL areas.  These updates were based on reconciling accounting/licensing anomalies and errors in entitlement holder licence accounts.