South East Queensland
Water accounting policies

Introduction

The information presented in the South East Queensland region (SEQ) report is based on agreements between the Bureau of Meteorology (Bureau) and:

  • Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Mines (DNRM)
  • Department of Science, Information Technology, Innovation and the Arts (DSITIA)
  • Seqwater
  • Council of the City of Gold Coast
  • Logan City Council
  • Queensland Urban Utilities (QUU)
  • Redland City Council
  • South Burnett Regional Council
  • Toowoomba Regional Council
  • Unitywater.
 

This report has been prepared using an accrual basis of water accounting, with the exception of the physical water flow information. The water attribute being quantified is volume, and the unit of account is megalitres (ML). Where a reported volume is negative, it is shown in brackets.

 

Recognition of water assets and water liabilities

Only water that is held or managed by the State licensing authority or the urban utilities and is part of the entitlement system is defined as a water asset. Provided its volume can be quantified in a way that is complete, neutral, and free from material error, the volume of the water asset or water liability is recognised in the Statement of Water Assets and Water Liabilities.

Water held in storages that has already been abstracted from the entitlement system is deemed not to be part of the region (regardless of the size of the storage or its physical connection to the system). This is because the attendant water right has already been exercised.

 

Recognition of changes in water assets and water liabilities

The increases and decreases to the reported water assets and water liabilities consist of changes that can be quantified in a way that is complete, neutral, and free from material error. These volumes are presented in the Statement of Changes in Water Assets and Water Liabilities and the Statement of Water Flows.

Precipitation and evaporation are recognised only in relation to the surfaces of open storage volumes. They do not represent all precipitation, evaporation and evapotranspiration within the region (notably, these processes occurring from the landscape are not captured).

That portion of runoff that flows into the surface water store (storages and rivers) is quantified and recognised on the Statement of Changes in Water Assets and Water Liabilities. This runoff includes precipitation captured in the catchment, less evaporation and infiltration, and is recorded as Runoff to surface water.

Allocations announced on regulated (supplemented) entitlements have been recognised as increases in water liabilities. Note that the definition of regulated or unregulated entitlements for the purpose of the National Water Account (refer to 'Glossary') may be different to the meaning applied by the jurisdiction. Please refer to the Water rights, entitlements, allocations and trade note for more information on the allocations.

 

Water assets and water liabilities that fail the recognition criteria

The volumes of several water assets and water liabilities identified in the SEQ region were not recognised in the water accounting statements but replaced by dashes (–) as they 'failed the recognition criteria' specified in the Australian Water Accounting Standard 1 (Bureau 2012), because:

  • they could not be quantified in a way that is complete, neutral, and free from material error; and/or
  • they were unlikely to provide a future benefit to the region or the region's stakeholders.

Water assets that failed the recognition criteria include rivers, lakes and wetlands (see Surface water note), groundwater aquifers (see Groundwater note), and the wastewater and recycled water systems (see Urban water system note).

 

Changes to water assets and water liabilities that fail the recognition criteria

Changes to several water assets identified in the SEQ region were not reported in the water accounting statements as they failed the recognition criteria specified in the Australian Water Accounting Standard 1 (Bureau 2012), because:

  • they could not be quantified in a way that is complete, neutral, and free from material error; and/or
  • they were unlikely to provide a future benefit to the region or the region's stakeholders.

Changes to water assets that failed the recognition criteria include the river and floodplain leakage, evaporation and errors (see Surface water note) and evaporation from the urban water system (see Urban water system note).

 

Restatement of comparative information

In accordance with the Australian Water Accounting Standard 1 (Bureau 2012), comparative year volumes must be restated in the statements if there is a prior period error or a change in volume. Comparative year volumes are not required to be restated if there is a change in scope or methodology or subsequent data availability for the quantification of a line item. The following comparative year volume in the water accounting statements was restated from the 2013 Account.

Storage

The line item related to storage presented in the 2013 Account  was corrected for the 2012–13 year by:

  • inclusion of 900 ML to Cressbrook Creek  storage because of a transposition error during information processing
  • exclusion of 2,121 ML from Lake Maroon storage, as reported by Seqwater.

Precipitation on surface water

The line item related to precipitation on surface water presented in the 2013 was corrected for the 2012–13 year by:

  • inclusion of 109 ML due to improved methodology applied in calculating the volumes.

Recycled and advanced water treatment

The line item related to recycled water system and advanced water treatment pipe and reservoir volume presented in the 2013 Account was corrected for the 2012–13 year by:

  • inclusion of 422 ML as reported by the Council of the City of Gold Coast.

Leakage to groundwater

The line item related to leakage from urban water system to groundwater presented in the 2013 Account was corrected for the 2012–13 year by:

  • inclusion of 246 ML as a result of a transposition error during the information processing, as reported by Redland City Council.

Other urban water system decreases

The line item related to other urban water system decreases presented in the 2013 Account was corrected for the 2012–13 year by:

  • inclusion of 22 ML due to transposition error during information processing, as reported by the Council of the City of Gold Coast.

Comparative year information in the water accounting statements for the 2013–14 year and the change from the 2012–13 year are summarised in Table 1 below.

           
Table 1 Changes in the reported volumes from the 2013 Account due to prior period errors

Account

 

Corrected 2012–13 volume (ML)

 

Incorrect volume in 2013 Account (ML)

 

Difference (ML)

Surface water store

Storages

 

2,553,648

 

2,554,869

 

(1,221)

Precipitation on surface water 

260,505

 

260,396

 

109

Urban water system

Recycled water system and advanced water treatment

  422  0  422
Leakage to groundwater 

27,859

 

27,613

 

246

Other urban water system decreases 7,239 7,217  22
Unaccounted-for difference 

(508,497)

 

(509,383)

 

(886)

   

Transactions within the region

Transactions between water assets and water liabilities within the region (e.g., between the surface water store and the groundwater store) are not reported in the water accounting statements because they do not affect the region's total water assets and water liabilities.

This information is reported in the Water resources and systems note, which contains water accounting statements for each water store within the region. These statements represent all transactions that occur for each water store, including internal transactions that were excluded from the consolidated water accounting statements.