{"id":"nsw:sl-1980-0157","name":"West Corurgan Board of Management (Water Rights) By-law 1980","slug":"west-corurgan-board-of-management-water-rights-by-law-1980","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"nsw","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"157 of 1980","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":180930,"registerId":"nsw-nsw:sl-1980-0157-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Name of By-law","content":"#### 1 Name of By-law\n\n1 Name of By-law\n\n> This By-law may be cited as the [West Corurgan Board of Management (Water Rights) By-law 1980](/view/html/inforce/current/sl-1980-0157).","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"2","sectionType":"section","heading":"Definitions","content":"#### 2 Definitions\n\n2 Definitions\n\n> In this By-law:\n> \n> Board means the West Corurgan Board of Management.\n> \n> irrigated holding means a holding in respect of which water is supplied by the Board for domestic and stock use and in respect of which the Board has, under the Act, made an allocation of water for irrigation.\n> \n> the Act means the [Private Irrigation Districts and Water (Amendment) Act 1973](/view/pdf/asmade/act-1973-47).","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"3","sectionType":"section","heading":"Application for surrender of water entitlement","content":"#### 3 Application for surrender of water entitlement\n\n3 Application for surrender of water entitlement\n\n> > (1) The owner of an irrigated holding may apply to the Board for approval to surrender the whole or any part of an entitlement to water allocated to that holding for irrigation under the Act or this By-law.\n> \n> > (2) An application under subclause (1) shall:\n> > \n> > > (a) be made in writing,\n> > \n> > > (b) set out the applicant’s reasons for making the application, and\n> > \n> > > (c) specify the quantity of water proposed to be surrendered.","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"4","sectionType":"section","heading":"Determination of application under clause 3","content":"#### 4 Determination of application under clause 3\n\n4 Determination of application under clause 3\n\n> > (1) Where an application is made under clause 3, the Board may:\n> > \n> > > (a) refuse the application,\n> > \n> > > (b) defer the application until the quantity of water to be surrendered pursuant to the application can be allocated to another irrigated holding pursuant to an application under clause 5, or\n> > \n> > > (c) approve the application upon such conditions, if any, as it may consider appropriate.\n> \n> > (2) Without limiting the generality of subclause (1), the Board may:\n> > \n> > > (a) refuse the application if it does not consider that the applicant’s reasons for making the application are sufficient, or\n> > \n> > > (b) approve the application in respect of part only of the quantity of water proposed to be surrendered.\n> \n> > (3) Where the Board approves an application made under clause 3, it shall re-determine the quantity of water allocated for irrigation to the applicant’s holding in accordance with its approval.","sortOrder":3},{"sectionNumber":"5","sectionType":"section","heading":"Application for additional quantity of water","content":"#### 5 Application for additional quantity of water\n\n5 Application for additional quantity of water\n\n> > (1) The owner of an irrigated holding may apply to the Board for the allocation of an additional quantity of water to his holding for irrigation.\n> \n> > (2) An application under subclause (1) shall:\n> > \n> > > (a) be made in writing,\n> > \n> > > (b) set out the applicant’s reasons for making the application,\n> > \n> > > (c) specify the quantity of additional water required, and\n> > \n> > > (d) set out how the applicant proposes to utilise the additional quantity of water.","sortOrder":4},{"sectionNumber":"6","sectionType":"section","heading":"Determination of application under clause 5","content":"#### 6 Determination of application under clause 5\n\n6 Determination of application under clause 5\n\n> > (1) Where an application is made under clause 5, the Board may:\n> > \n> > > (a) refuse the application,\n> > \n> > > (b) defer the application until the additional quantity of water to be allocated pursuant to the application is available from a quantity of water surrendered pursuant to an application made under clause 3, or\n> > \n> > > (c) approve the application upon such conditions, if any, as it may consider appropriate.\n> \n> > (2) Without limiting the generality of subclause (1), the Board may:\n> > \n> > > (a) refuse the application on the ground that it does not consider that the applicant can utilise any additional quantity of water for irrigation on his holding, or\n> > \n> > > (b) approve the application in respect of part only of the additional quantity of water specified in the application.\n> \n> > (3) Where the Board approves an application under clause 5, it shall, upon:\n> > \n> > > (a) payment to the Board by the applicant of a sum of money calculated at the rate determined by the Board for the purpose of re-determinations of the allocation of water for irrigation pursuant to this By-law, and\n> > \n> > > (b) construction by the applicant of such works, if any, as the Board may consider necessary to enable the increased supply of water to be delivered to the applicant’s holding, or payment to the Board by the applicant of the cost to the Board of constructing those works,\n> > \n> > re-determine the quantity of water allocated for irrigation to the applicant’s holding in accordance with its approval.","sortOrder":5},{"sectionNumber":"7","sectionType":"section","heading":"Payment to owners surrendering water entitlement","content":"#### 7 Payment to owners surrendering water entitlement\n\n7 Payment to owners surrendering water entitlement\n\n> > (1) The Board shall, forthwith after receiving any money pursuant to clause 6 (3) (a), pay that money to the owner of the irrigated holding who surrendered the entitlement to the quantity of water for which the money was paid, less a service charge determined by the Board and any amount owed by the owner to the Board.\n> \n> > (2) Where the Board is, pursuant to subclause (1), required to pay a sum of money to 2 or more owners of irrigated holdings, the Board shall divide that sum of money among those owners in the same proportion as the quantity of water surrendered by each owner bears to the total quantity of water surrendered.","sortOrder":6},{"sectionNumber":"8","sectionType":"section","heading":"Re-determination of water allocation","content":"#### 8 Re-determination of water allocation\n\n8 Re-determination of water allocation\n\n> A re-determination of the quantity of water allocated to a holding pursuant to an application made under clause 3 or 5 has effect on and from a date specified in the instrument by which the re-determination is made.","sortOrder":7}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The text contains no indication that its scope has changed from its original purpose. The by-law confines itself to procedures for surrendering and reallocating irrigation water, application formalities, conditional approvals, payment/distribution mechanics and the effective date of re-determinations (clauses 3–8)."},"complexity_factors":["Short, self-contained instrument limited to a narrow subject matter (clauses 1–2, 3–8)","Broad discretionary powers given to the Board to refuse, defer or approve applications (clauses 4(1), 6(1))","Approvals may be conditional and may allow partial approvals, creating granular outcomes to administer (clauses 4(2)(b), 6(2)(b))","Financial and construction conditions tie private payment and works to entitlement changes (clause 6(3))","Payment flow and deductions: Board must pass received funds to surrendering owners less a service charge and outstanding debts (clause 7(1))","Apportionment rule when multiple owners are paid requires proportional division by surrendered quantities (clause 7(2))","Re-determination effectiveness depends on a date specified in the Board’s instrument, creating a discrete legal effect timing (clause 8)"],"plain_english_summary":"This by-law sets out how owners in the West Corurgan irrigation district can surrender some or all of their irrigation water allocation or apply for more, and how the Board decides those requests. Applicants must apply in writing with reasons and quantities; the Board may refuse, defer or approve and can attach conditions (cl.3–6). Additional water can be conditioned on payment or construction of delivery works (cl.6(3)); money paid for extra allocations is passed to owners who surrendered water, minus a service charge (cl.7)."},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The by-law remains tightly focused on its original purpose of establishing a surrender and reallocation mechanism for irrigation water entitlements. It has not expanded beyond this core function."},"complexity_factors":["Only 3 defined terms in the interpretation section (Board, irrigated holding, the Act)","Straightforward sequential structure: 8 clauses covering application, determination, payment, and effective dates","No nested exceptions or complex conditional logic — each clause has at most 3 subclauses with simple alternatives (refuse/defer/approve)","Limited cross-referencing — only internal references to other clauses (3, 5, 6) and one reference to the parent Act","Clear procedural requirements (written applications, specific content requirements) without technical legal machinery","Single purpose legislation with no ancillary provisions (enforcement, offences, regulations-making powers, etc.)"],"plain_english_summary":"This by-law sets up a **water trading system** for farmers in the West Corurgan irrigation district in New South Wales.\n\n**What it does:**\n- Lets farmers who own \"irrigated holdings\" (properties that receive water from the Board for both household/stock use and irrigation) **give up (surrender) some or all of their irrigation water entitlements** if they no longer need them\n- Lets other farmers **apply for extra water** if they want to expand their irrigation\n- Creates a **matching system** where surrendered water can be reallocated to those who want more\n- Requires **payment** from those receiving extra water, which then goes (minus fees) to those who surrendered their rights\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- **Landowners** in the West Corurgan irrigation district who have water allocations for irrigation\n- The **West Corurgan Board of Management**, which processes applications, sets conditions, determines prices, and manages the transfers\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThis was an early attempt at creating a **market-based mechanism for water allocation** — allowing water to move from those who don't need it to those who do, rather than having fixed allocations that go to waste. It established procedural fairness (written applications, reasons required, Board discretion) and financial compensation for surrendering water rights. This kind of transferable water entitlement system became a template for modern Australian water markets."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The original scope was defined under the Private Irrigation Districts Act 1973. From 1 January 2001, the by-law was re-adopted under the Water Management Act 2000 via a transitional clause (Schedule 9, Part 2, Division 9, clause 44). While the practical rules in the by-law itself appear unchanged, its legal foundation and governing framework shifted significantly with this newer, broader water management legislation."},"complexity_factors":["The actual substantive content of the by-law is not reproduced in the provided text — only metadata and status information is shown, making a full assessment impossible","A minor legal transition occurred in 2001 where the by-law's authorising legislation changed from the Private Irrigation Districts Act 1973 to the Water Management Act 2000, requiring understanding of how transitional provisions work","Narrow and localised in scope — applies to a very specific irrigation district, limiting broader complexity"],"plain_english_summary":"The West Corurgan Board of Management (Water Rights) By-law 1980 is a local NSW rule governing water allocation and management for landholders in the West Corurgan private irrigation district. It applies only to owners and managers of land within that small rural irrigation area.\n\nAlthough made in 1980, the by-law was automatically adopted into the Water Management Act 2000 from 1 January 2001 and therefore remains in force today — so it still controls water rights for affected landholders."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/west-corurgan-board-of-management-water-rights-by-law-1980","history":"/api/acts/west-corurgan-board-of-management-water-rights-by-law-1980/history","analysis":"/api/acts/west-corurgan-board-of-management-water-rights-by-law-1980/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/west-corurgan-board-of-management-water-rights-by-law-1980/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/west-corurgan-board-of-management-water-rights-by-law-1980/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/west-corurgan-board-of-management-water-rights-by-law-1980/documents"}}