Water Management In Australia Research Articles

A property rights schema for cultural flows in the Murray Darling Basin, Australia

ABSTRACT Water management in Australia’s Murray-Darling Basin is undergoing a highly-contested shift from single use management for irrigation, to multiple use management for irrigation and environmental flows. Despite a requirement to ‘take account’ of Indigenous values, multiple use management does not yet include cultural flows – water flows for Aboriginal groups to maintain Indigenous cultural values. Within the economics literature, cultural values are treated as a passive ‘use’ of place for spiritual or cultural activities, with cultural flows framed as flows of water delivered to particular sites for cultural ‘uses’. Aboriginal groups, however, argue for cultural flows to be defined in terms of water entitlements – a property right to water. Property rights have evolved within a specific historic and cultural context, and reflect a Western ontology that is very different to Aboriginal ontologies. This article explores whether a property rights construct might be compatible with Aboriginal ontologies, and whether water entitlements could deliver cultural benefits in ways hoped for by Aboriginal peoples. We find that cultural flows need to extend beyond rights to flows of water to encompass a broader bundle of rights including management and governance rights, if Aboriginal groups are to obtain beneficial cultural outcomes from those flows.

Modern Sustainable Fish Screens: A Study on Developing Effective Communication with Water Users

Background: Recently, there has been a shift in strategic goals relating to water management in Australia, from water development to protecting and restoring environmental assets. Thus, there is a need to develop knowledge that accounts for the new realities of developing an effective communication channel with irrigators. Combining insights from two communication theories: the hierarchy of effects model, AIDA, and the diffusion of innovation (DOI) model, this article explores developing effective communication techniques (e.g., format, style, content, and source) and tools for Australian irrigators regarding adopting new sustainable technology—a modern self-cleaning fish screen. This study investigates irrigators’ communication preferences and innovation processes to understand to sketch foundational strategies for improving communication schemes. Methods: Data were collected through semi-structured in-depth interviews. Twenty-three irrigators in the Murray-Darling Basin, Australia’s primary food bowl, participated in the study. Constructivist grounded theory (CGT) was used to design and analyse the data. Results: The study explored the communications preferences of Australian irrigators and revealed insights into their preferred format, style, content, and source and how information is gathered and evaluated in the decision-making process. The results confirmed that the information must come from trusted sources, be grounded in research, provide hands-on observations/experiences, and focus on benefits for irrigators (i.e., improving irrigation efficiency) to be impactful. Broadly, this study contributes to the discussion of policy formulation, enhancing technology adoption in a broader setting and designing efficient and effective systems for engaging with Australian irrigators. Conclusions: To increase the likelihood of adopting fish screens, it is essential to implement targeted education and information programs and communications in appropriate formats with relevant content.

A Systemic Review of the Cybersecurity Challenges in Australian Water Infrastructure Management

Cybersecurity risks have become obstinate problems for critical water infrastructure management in Australia and worldwide. Water management in Australia involves a vast complex of smart technical control systems interconnected with several networks, making the infrastructure susceptible to cyber-attacks. Therefore, ensuring the use of security mechanisms in the control system modules and communication networks for sensors and actuators is vital. The statistics show that Australia is facing frequent cyber-attacks, most of which are either undetected or overlooked or require immediate response. To address these cyber risks, Australia has changed from a country with negligible recognition of attacks on critical infrastructure to a country with improved capability to manage cyber warfare. However, little attention is paid to reducing the risk of attacks to the critical water infrastructure. This study aims to evaluate Australia’s current cybersecurity attack landscape and the implemented controls for water infrastructure using a systematic literature review (SLR). This study also compares Australia in the context of global developments and proposes future research directions. The synthesis of the evidence from 271 studies in this review indicates the importance of managing security vulnerabilities and threats in SCADA water control systems, including the need to upgrade the contemporary water security architecture to mitigate emerging risks. Moreover, human resource development with a specific focus on security awareness and training for SCADA employees is found to be lacking, which will be essential for alleviating cyber threats to the water infrastructure in Australia.

Policy Note: Risk and Uncertainty in the Murray–Darling Basin

Water Economics and PolicyOnline Ready No AccessPolicy Nook — Policy Note: Risk and Uncertainty in the Murray–Darling BasinJohn QuigginJohn QuigginSchool of Economics, Faculty of Business, Economics and Law, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Brisbane, QLD 4072, AustraliaE-mail Address: [email protected] Search for more papers by this author https://doi.org/10.1142/S2382624X22710059Cited by:0 PreviousNext AboutSectionsView articleView Full TextPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsRecommend to Library ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditEmail View article References Adamson, D, T Mallawaarachchi and J Quiggin [2009] Declining inflows and more frequent droughts in the Murray Darling Basin: climate change, impact and adaption. Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, 53, 345–366. Crossref, Google Scholar Bell, S and J Quiggin [2008] The metagovernance of markets: The politics of water management in Australia. Environmental Politics, 17, 712–729. Crossref, Google Scholar Blaug, M [1962] Economic Theory in Retrospect. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Google Scholar Borsch, SJ [2004] Environment and population: The collapse of large irrigation systems reconsidered. Comparative Studies in Society and History, 46(3), 451–468. Crossref, Google Scholar Chambers, RG and J Quiggin [2000] Uncertainty, Production, Choice and Agency: The State-Contingent Approach. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Google Scholar Council of Australian Governments (2004). Communique 25. June. http://www.pm.gov.au/News/media_releases/media_Release941.html. Google Scholar Ellsberg, D [1961] Risk, ambiguity and the Savage axioms. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 75, 643–669. Crossref, Google Scholar Grant, S, JJ Kline and J Quiggin [2014] A matter of interpretation?: ambiguous contracts and liquidated damages. Games and Economic Behavior, 85, 180–187. Crossref, Google Scholar Grant, S and J Quiggin [2013a] Bounded awareness, heuristics and the Precautionary Principle. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 93, 17–31. Crossref, Google Scholar Grant, S and J Quiggin [2013b] Inductive reasoning about unawareness. Economic Theory, 54, 717–755. Crossref, Google Scholar Jevons, WS [1871] The Theory of Political Economy. London: Macmillan. Google Scholar Knight, F [1921] Risk, Uncertainty and Profit. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company. Google Scholar Quiggin, J [1992] The pioneer’s curse: selection bias and agricultural land degradation. Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, 5, 241–246. Crossref, Google Scholar Randall, A [1981] Property entitlements and pricing policies for a maturing water economy. Australian Journal of Agricultural Economics, 25, 195–220. Crossref, Google Scholar Rumsfeld, D (2002). Transcript of press briefing. February 12. http://www.defense.gov/transcripts/transcript.aspx?transcriptid=2636. Google Scholar Shepherd, T (2022). ‘They’re coming back’: huge flows set to restore life to parched end of Murray-Darling system. The Guardian, November 14. https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/nov/14/theyre-coming-back-huge-flows-set-to-restore-life-to-parched-end-of-murray-darling-system. Google Scholar Smith, A (1976 [1776]). An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, RH CampbellAS SkinnerWB Todd (eds.), Vol. 1. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. Google Scholar Willis, E, M Pearce, B Jorgensen and J Martin (2015). Water supply and governance options for outback towns in South Australia. Technical Report Series No. 15/7, Goyder Institute for Water Research, Adelaide, SA. Google Scholar FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Recommended Online Ready Metrics History Received 10 January 2023 Accepted 11 January 2023 Published: 9 March 2023 PDF download

Indigenous research methodologies in water management: learning from Australia and New Zealand for application on Kamilaroi country

Indigenous Research Methodologies (IRMs) for considering cultural values of water are a missing component of water and wetlands management in Australia. On this dry, flat and ancient continent Traditional Knowledge has been passed on from generation to generation for millennia. The profound knowledge of surface and groundwater has been critical to ensuring the survival of Indigenous peoples in the driest inhabited continent, through finding, re-finding and protecting water. Indigenous Research Methodologies can provide a basis for the exploration of this knowledge in a way that that is culturally appropriate, and which generates a culturally safe space for Indigenous researchers and communities. The development of IRMs has been and continues to be limited in Australia in the water context, primarily due to the lack of Indigenous water practitioners, with non-Indigenous researchers dominating the sector. The intention of the paper is to shift and decolonise the research paradigm from studying Indigenous peoples through non-Indigenous research methodologies, to partnering in developing methods appropriate to Indigenous knowledge systems. Indigenous Research Methodologies are rooted in Indigenous epistemologies and ontologies and represent a radical departure from more positivist forms of research (Wilson, Can J Native Educ 25:2, 2001). This allows the Indigenous researcher to derive the terms, questions, and priorities of what is being researched, how the community is engaged, and how the research is delivered. This paper provides an overview of Indigenous engagement in water management in Australia and Aotearoa (New Zealand), with reference to case studies. These more general models are used as the basis for developing an IRM appropriate to the Kamilaroi people in the Gwydir Wetlands of northern NSW, Australia.

Corrigendum to: Trajectory river modelling – a decision-support tool to help manage multiple risks associated with planning around variable water resources

The application of river-system models to inform water-resource planning and management is a growing global phenomenon. This requires models to be applied so that they are useful to water decision makers charged with setting targets that provide adequate water flows to sustain landholders and communities. This article examines why and how the innovative application of river-system models can facilitate interactions between water science and water management in Australia's Murray–Darling Basin (the Basin). A trajectory river-modelling method was applied to run multiple short historical climate sequences through a river-system model to provide historical probabilities. These can allow better assessment of the risks and impacts associated with stream flow and water availability. This method allows known historical variability to be presented, and produces relevant results for a 10–15-year water-sharing plan lifetime. The benefits were demonstrated in the Basin's Lachlan Catchment where modelled river-flow results demonstrated the increased variability between shorter 15-year sequences than for a single 114-year run. This approach highlighted the benefits of expressing modelling results as historical probabilities to inform short-term and strategic water-planning efforts.

Australia's water efficiency labelling and standards scheme: summary of an environmental and economic evaluation

Abstract This paper describes the outcomes of an evaluation of Australia's Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards (WELS) scheme. WELS is a national, government-run scheme that mandates water efficiency labelling for indoor water-using fixtures and appliances. The scheme also imposes a minimum standard for some products. The evaluation considered the environmental and economic impacts of improvements in the water efficiency of WELS-labelled products since the scheme's inception in 2006 and forecast for 20 years. The study estimated water, energy, greenhouse gas (GHG) and utility bill savings as well as the costs associated with the scheme. The evaluation showed WELS to be an important component of urban water management in Australia, saving 112 GL in 2017–18, across the country, and 231 GL/year by 2036–37. The largest economic benefits of WELS came from the energy saving from reduced water heating. Over 30 years, these energy savings are also expected to reduce GHG emissions by a cumulative 53.5 Mt. On average, Australians saved $A42 (US$30) per person per year in 2017–18 due to the water efficiency driven by WELS. Overall, the evaluation shows the WELS scheme to be highly beneficial for Australia with significant net benefits to the present and projected into the future.

Institutional impediments to conservation of freshwater dependent ecosystems

When freshwater resources become scarce there is a trade-off between human resource demands and environmental sustainability. The cost of conserving freshwater ecosystems can potentially be reduced by implementing institutional reforms that endow environmental water managers with a permanent water entitlement and the capacity to store, trade and release water. Australia's Murray Darling Basin Plan (MDBP) includes one of the world's most ambitious programs to recover water for the environment, supported by institutional reforms that allow environmental water managers to operate in water markets. One of the anticipated benefits of the Plan is to improve the health of flood-dependent forests, which are among the most endangered ecosystems globally because of river regulation and land clearance. However, periodic flooding to conserve floodplain ecosystems in the MDB creates losses to riparian landowners such as damage to fencing and temporary loss of access to flooded land. To reduce these losses reservoir operators restrict daily water release volumes. Using a model of optimal water management in Australia's southern MDB we estimate that current reservoir operating restrictions will substantially reduce the ecological benefits of investments made to recover water for the environment. The reduction in benefits is largest if floodplain forests decline rapidly without periodic inundation. In the latter circumstances, ecological losses cannot significantly be reduced by allowing environmental water managers to operate in water markets. Our findings demonstrate that the recovery of large volumes of water for environmental purposes and water market reforms are insufficient for conserving flood-dependent ecosystems without coordination and cooperation among multiple stakeholders responsible for water and land management.

Informing Environmental Water Management Decisions: Using Conditional Probability Networks to Address the Information Needs of Planning and Implementation Cycles.

One important aspect of adaptive management is the clear and transparent documentation of hypotheses, together with the use of predictive models (complete with any assumptions) to test those hypotheses. Documentation of such models can improve the ability to learn from management decisions and supports dialog between stakeholders. A key challenge is how best to represent the existing scientific knowledge to support decision-making. Such challenges are currently emerging in the field of environmental water management in Australia, where managers are required to prioritize the delivery of environmental water on an annual basis, using a transparent and evidence-based decision framework. We argue that the development of models of ecological responses to environmental water use needs to support both the planning and implementation cycles of adaptive management. Here we demonstrate an approach based on the use of Conditional Probability Networks to translate existing ecological knowledge into quantitative models that include temporal dynamics to support adaptive environmental flow management. It equally extends to other applications where knowledge is incomplete, but decisions must still be made.

Speeding the transition towards integrated groundwater and surface water management in Australia

Conjunctive water management involves the combined use of groundwater, surface water and/or additional sources of water to achieve public policy and management goals. Conjunctive water management enables greater water supply security and stability, helps adaptation to climate variation and uncertainty and reduces depletion and degradation of water resources. There are many opportunities to benefit from improved conjunctive water management if institutional and political barriers can be overcome. This article provides the first comprehensive assessments of progress towards conjunctive water management on a continental scale across the Australian States and Territories, and suggests an innovative approach towards overcoming barriers to integration. Conditions for the implementation of conjunctive water management have only been partially met by the Australian States. There has been progress towards integrated groundwater and surface water accounting and planning, but there is still little systematic attempt to plan and manage surface water and groundwater storage and use at a regional scale over time. Current policies effectively subsidise surface water storage and aquifer storage and recovery entitlements are not in place in some jurisdictions. A new paradigm of conjunctive water management is required involving systematic consideration of the beneficial integration of groundwater, surface water and other water sources in water plans and projects. Transition to conjunctive water management can be promoted by networks including change agents, bridging organisations and water management institutions supported by strong leadership from governments.

Autonomy and the intercultural: interpreting the history of Australian Aboriginal water management in the Roper River catchment, Northern Territory

Integrated discussions of the multi‐valency of objects and the use and appropriation of natural resources in colonial contexts are uncommon. By combining previously scattered historical, legal, and ethnographic sources, this article examines Australian Aboriginal dam and weir construction along the Roper River, focusing on the repeated re‐purposing, re‐contextualization and reinterpretation of the structures over time by both Aboriginal and non‐Aboriginal protagonists. Through that process, it contributes to contemporary theoretical debates about intercultural colonial relations and about the relative autonomy of indigenous peoples within colonizing societies. In particular, the article highlights the historical evolution of constraints on local autonomy in colonial contexts and the role of individual agency in constituting and/or reconfiguring intercultural relations. Previously little known, these temporary water regulation structures are now the best historically documented instance of Aboriginal water management in Australia, enabling a diverse array of interpretations and the critical evaluation of key contemporary social‐theoretical concepts.

Trajectory river modelling – a decision-support tool to help manage multiple risks associated with planning around variable water resources

The application of river-system models to inform water-resource planning and management is a growing global phenomenon. This requires models to be applied so that they are useful to water decision makers charged with setting targets that provide adequate water flows to sustain landholders and communities. This article examines why and how the innovative application of river-system models can facilitate interactions between water science and water management in Australia’s Murray–Darling Basin (the Basin). A trajectory river-modelling method was applied to run multiple short historical climate sequences through a river-system model to provide historical probabilities. These can allow better assessment of the risks and impacts associated with stream flow and water availability. This method allows known historical variability to be presented, and produces relevant results for a 10–15-year water-sharing plan lifetime. The benefits were demonstrated in the Basin’s Lachlan Catchment where modelled river-flow results demonstrated the increased variability between shorter 15-year sequences than for a single 114-year run. This approach highlighted the benefits of expressing modelling results as historical probabilities to inform short-term and strategic water-planning efforts.

Economic approaches to water management in Australia

This paper focuses on the use of three economic approaches to water management in Australia that can increase the efficiency of water use and water security, thus providing a fillip to sustainability and economic growth: the establishment of water markets and water pricing; government spending; and the adoption of legislation and economic regulations promoting the development of water markets. Australia is well down the reform path, but needs to complete implementation. Australia's challenge is relevant to many countries struggling with demand and supply water imbalances, and the consequential declining environmental outcomes in rural areas and persistent water shortages in urban areas.

Environmental water management in Australia: experience from the Murray-Darling Basin

Recent water reform in Australia has focused on seeking to balance the needs of the environment and consumptive users through improved flow regimes. This is in response to declining ecological conditions, exacerbated by drought and the threat of climate change particularly in the Murray-Darling Basin. A programme of environmental flows integrated through multiple governance layers and managed by an independent federal-government entity operating in the water market on behalf of the environment has been established to help rectify the decline. While a challenge for this new entity involves determining when to release, trade or carry over water in storage so as to maximize environmental outcomes, early results point to real environmental gains within a highly regulated and diverse river system.

Integrating aquatic science and policy for improved water management in Australia

Worldwide, science–policy integration across jurisdictional boundaries is emerging as a major challenge to sustainable water management. The Australian national water reforms require statutory provision for environmental outcomes in water plans, informed by the best available science. Assessments of progress towards this goal of scientifically rigorous environmental water provision indicate that, despite a multiplicity of effort in aquatic research and management, the pace of reform has been too slow for adequate protection of aquatic ecosystems. Although there are significant knowledge gaps, these are not the only obstacles to effective application of aquatic science in water plans. Progress on environmental water reform can be enhanced by recognising the cultural differences between science and policy, and by integrating communication and policy development activities from the outset of every applied science research program. Cross-jurisdictional progress in sustainable water management requires a comprehensive water research and policy development strategy using a toolbox of techniques to harness the considerable expertise and knowledge of aquatic scientists, policy makers and water planners in an integrated program to deliver the aquatic science applications called for by the national water reforms.

Filter media for stormwater treatment and recycling: the influence of hydraulic properties of flow on pollutant removal

Improved urban water management in Australia is of national importance. Water resources are stretched and urban runoff is a recognized leading cause of degradation of urban waterways. Stormwater recycling is an option that can contribute to easing these problems. Biofilters are effective structural stormwater pollution control measures with the potential for integration into stormwater treatment and recycling systems. However, premature clogging of biofilters is a major problem, with resulting decreased infiltration capacity (and hence the volume of stormwater the system can detain) and increased detention time. This paper presents preliminary findings with respect to the effect of clogging on pollutant removal efficiency in conventional stormwater filter media. A one-dimensional laboratory rig was used to investigate the impact of clogging on pollutant removal efficiency in a conventional biofiltration filter media (gravel over sand). Both the individual gravel layer and the overall multi-filter were highly efficient at removing suspended solids and particulate-associated pollutants. This removal efficiency was consistent, even as the filters became clogged. Removal of dissolved nutrients was more variable, with little reduction in concentrations overall. Although preliminary, these results challenge the concept that increased detention time improves the treatment performance of stormwater filtration systems.

Quality Criteria in Australian Reclaimed Water Guidelines and Effluent Discharge Licences: How Consistent Are We?

The responsibility for water management in Australia resides with State and Territory governments and a range of documentation has evolved for governing effluent discharge licensing, on the one hand, and reuse guidelines on the other. This system has the potential to impede the introduction of national initiatives and new technologies relevant to water recycling schemes. In this article, we examine this documentation with a view to suggesting how future guideline and licensing processes may be structured to facilitate an increase in water reuse. Differences noted between national. State and Territory guidelines included reclaimed water sources, reuse options, nominated quality criteria, monitoring frequencies, sampling and testing methods and accreditation. Differences between licences and guidelines occurred for monitoring sites, nominated water quality criteria and compliance levels. The standardisation of these criteria where applicable, through collaboration between licensing and guideline authorities, would lead to lower monitoring costs for reuse schemes. The integration of national guidelines for reclaimed water, with those for fresh and marine water, would provide public health and environment protection guidance for water reuse. This could be achieved by including reclaimed water in the fresh and marine water guidelines, and by improved cross-referencing between both documents. Single points of contact for recycling scheme approvals, established through inter-departmental groups in each State or Territory, are also suggested.

Profligacy and scarcity: an analysis of water management in Australia

Without denying the physical relaity of water shortages during the 1982 Australia drought, it is argued that some of the difficulties arise not from climatic factors but from the way the water resource is managed. An attempt is made to explain why metropolitan Australia can continue to make profligate use of water, while rural Australia suffers scarcity. The system of administration is considered and the capacity planning and pricing policies of supply authorities analysed. Finally, a call is made for the introduction of an effective integrated management system.