Daly region

The Daly region is highly groundwater dependent, and one of the few perennial river systems in Northern Australia. As such, the rivers of the region are very important for environmental, cultural and recreational reasons. Water in the region is currently abstracted for a variety of agricultural and industrial purposes. With the region identified for potential increased development, it is important that water allocation plans consider all water values of the region.

Water supply in the Daly region is primarily sourced from groundwater aquifers with some sourced directly from rivers. This includes water supply to the region's largest urban centre of Katherine. Copperfield Dam is the only surface water storage in the region that has been quantified in the account. Copperfield Dam is located near the township of Pine Creek and is used for the town's urban water supply. The capacity of the dam is 413 ML, and its storage volume was assumed to be 100% of capacity at the start of the reporting year. The storage volume at the end of the 2013–14 year was reported as 314 ML. There are several other smaller surface water storages in the region, however there is insufficient data to report on these storages.

Total opening net water assets in the Daly region was –68,045 ML for the end of the 2013–14 year, and closing net water assets were –115,839 ML; this reflects the increase in water liabilities throughout the year in response to increased water demand in the region. This opening and closing volumes are reflective of the net groundwater liabilities of the region and represent less than 1% of the total rainfall that falls on the entire region. As the groundwater assets are not able to be quantified accurately, the negative value does not reflect a shortage of water in the region. For more information on the region's water assets refer to Water accounting statements.

The key water account information for the Daly region during the 2013–14 year is presented in the following table. Information on the uncertainty associated with the volumes presented in the table is provided in the relevant sections of the account.

Contextual information

Climate

	2013–14	2012–13	Long–term average
	Rainfall: 1,138 mm	Rainfall: 1,068 mm	Rainfall: 1,033 mm
For more detail on the Daly climate refer to Climate overview.

Water

	Daly River	Katherine River	Lower Daly River
	below average for most of the year, high flows in January and February	below average for most of the year, high flows in January and February	below average for most of the year, moderate flooding in January and February
For more detail on streamflow in the Daly region refer to Water overview.

Water accounting statements

		2013–14	2012–13
	Total water assets (as at 30 June)	314	413
	Total water liabilities (as at 30 June)	116,153	68,458
	Change in net water assets	(47,794)	(807)
	Closing net water assets	(115,839)	(68,045)
For more detail on water assets and water liabilities refer to Water accounting statements.

Notes: supporting information

Surface water storage

		30 June 2013		30 June 2012
	Total capacity	Volume	% of capacity	Volume	% of capacity
	413 ML	314 ML	76%	413 ML	100% (assumed)
For more detail on surface water in the Daly region refer to Surface water.

Water abstractions

	Total water abstracted
	2013–14	2012–13	Recent activity
	Surface water: 7,656 ML	Surface water: 7,537 ML	A large proportion of the reported water use is abstracted agricultural use.
	Groundwater: 24,031 ML	Groundwater: 16,978 ML
For more detail on water abstraction in the Daly region refer to Surface water and Groundwater.

Urban water supply

	Total water supplied
	2013–14	2012–13	Recent activity
	Surface water: 2,024 ML	Surface water: 2,454 ML	All urban water supply is to the towns of Katherine and Pine Creek.
	Groundwater: 509 ML	Groundwater: 740 ML
For more detail on the urban water system in the Daly region refer to Surface water and Groundwater.