schState Water Management Outcomes Plan

# sch State Water Management Outcomes Plan State Water Management Outcomes Plan Chapter 1 Preliminary Chapter 2 Long term water outcomes and 5 year management targets Chapter 3 Explanation of Outcomes and Targets Glossary ABARE: Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics. acid sulfate soils: Soils containing highly acidic soil horizons or layers resulting from the oxidation of soil materials that are rich in sulfides, primarily pyrite. This oxidation produces acidity in excess of the sediments capacity to neutralise the acidity resulting in soils of pH 4 or less. algal bloom: The rapid excessive growth of algae, generally caused by high nutrient levels, high water temperatures, low flow velocities and other favourable conditions. Can result in deoxygenation of the water body when algae die. alluvial: Transported by water flow processes eg alluvial sediments. anabranch: A secondary channel of a river that usually flows only when the river levels are high. ANZECC: Australian and New Zealand Environment and Conservation Council. applicable management program: A program that may be required as a condition of a licence or approval, eg a land and water management plan. aquifer: A geological formation or group of formations capable of receiving, storing and transmitting significant quantities of water. ARMCANZ: Agriculture and Resource Management Council of Australia and New Zealand. available water determination: A determination under Section 59 of the [Water Management Act 2000](/view/html/inforce/current/act-2000-092) in relation to a water management area or water source which sets the amount of water available to the holders of water access licences from time to time depending on the status of the resource/storage, the extraction limit and any adjustments made necessary as a result of previous exceedence of the extraction limit as set out in the water sharing plans and associated implementation programs. benthic: Living in the bottom sediments of rivers and lakes etc. biodiversity: The variety of life forms, the different plants, animals and micro-organisms, the genes they contain and the communities and ecosystems they form. It is usually considered at three levels; genetic diversity, species diversity and ecosystem diversity. biofilms: Bacterial and algal communities living on rocks and logs submerged or partially submerged in rivers. biogeographical regions: Areas defined by broad similarities based on climatic, topographic and geological factors that influence the hydrology, habitat and biological communities. blue green algae: Strictly these are *Cynobacteria* (not algae), being an ancient group of photosynthetic bacteria without a nucleus that produce their own energy from sunlight. Some can assimilate dissolved gaseous nitrogen. A number of species produce toxins. Cells can also cause irritation of the skin and eyes on contact. CAMBA: China Australia Migratory Bird Agreement. capital investment: Physical capital formation such as dams, roads, equipment, irrigation development etc. channel capacity: Flow in the river just before overbank flow commences. The flow volume varies with each river section. COAG: Council of Australian Governments. CSIRO: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation. dissolved oxygen (DO): The concentration of oxygen dissolved in water or effluent, measured in milligrams per litre (mg/L). DLWC: NSW Department of Land and Water Conservation. domestic and stock rights: The rights conferred on a landholder under Section 52 of the [Water Management Act 2000](/view/html/inforce/current/act-2000-092). ecological functioning: A measure of the ecological health of an ecosystem that can be defined as the maintenance of the structural and functional (or biotic) attributes of that system. ecologically sustainable: This is an objective of the COAG Water Reform Policy. This means development and use is to be undertaken in a manner that improves the total quality of life, both now and in the future, and in a way that maintains the ecological processes on which life depends. In relation to NSW, it refers to action which is consistent with the principles of ecological sustainable development as described in Section 6 (2) of the [Protection of the Environment Administration Act 1991](/view/html/inforce/current/act-1991-060). economic efficiency: An action that is efficient in economic rather than physical or chemical terms. Examples of economic efficiency are maximum return per unit of resource used, minimum cost per unit. ecosystem: A term used to describe a specific environment eg lake, to include all the biological, chemical and physical resources and the interrelationships and dependencies that occur between those resources. effluent: Human and animal waste in a liquid form. effluent creek: A creek which takes flow away from the main river but which does not return water to it. environmental flow: A flow regime or volume protected or released to meet specific environmental requirements or triggers and for the general maintenance of ecosystem functions. environmental water rules: Water sharing and operational rules to provide environmental protection or specified ecosystem requirements, established under Section 8 (2) of the [Water Management Act 2000](/view/html/inforce/current/act-2000-092). EPA: NSW Environment Protection Authority. extraction limit: A limit on the amount of water that can be taken from a water source for licensed purposes and includes both the water pumped directly from the water sources as well as those volumes extracted from the water source via irrigation or other channels measured at the offtake point, and therefore includes the transmission losses associated with those extractions. flood—5 year return period: Refers to a flood that has a statistical probability of occurring once in five years on average. The 5 year flood level is generally defined as the contour on the floodplain to which a flood this size will rise. The flood has a 20 percent chance of occurring in any given year. floodplain water harvesting: The extraction or capture of water from overland flow across a floodplain during high flow events, generally into offstream storages for later use. flow frequency: The percentage of time (or days) that a flow equal to or larger than a nominated level will occur for a given historical record of flows (often quoted for a long term eg 100 year record). groundwater: Water that occupies the pores and crevices of rock or soil. habitat: The environment or place where a plant or animal grows or lives (can encompass aspects of climate, water, other organisms and communities). IMEF: Integrated Monitoring of Environmental Flows. investment efficiency: An activity that provides the highest returns to investment, usually measured in the maximum return to capital or percentage rate return per annum. IPART: Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal. irrigation efficiency: A measure, expressed as a percentage, of the volume of water used to meet crop water requirement (ie crop water requirement less effective rainfall) relative to the total volume of water delivered to the farm or farms (normally measured at the river offtake point or bore). JAMBA: Japan Australia Migratory Bird Agreement. long term average annual extraction: The amount of water that can be extracted on average per year based on a long term climatic assessment. macro-invertebrates: Animals without vertebrae (backbones) that can be seen without a microscope, and include mussels, limpets, water snails, worms, leeches, water spiders, water mites, crayfish, shrimps, beetles, bugs, insect larvae and nymphs. MDBMC: Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council. megalitre: A commonly used term to measure large quantities of water, equal to 1,000,000 litres or 1000 cubic metres. NPWS: NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service. overland flow: Water that runs off the land following rainfall, before it enters a watercourse and floodwaters that overflow a watercourse onto a floodplain. protected: Ecological function and condition maintained by limiting the potential for any further harm eg by maintaining water level variability and connectivity, and ensuring wise and compatible land and water management practices. reliability of supply: Probability associated with a water access licence-holder obtaining the volume or some proportion of the volume of water specified in the water entitlement. restored: Returned to good condition, healthy ecological functioning, and biodiversity, generally requires a move towards a more natural, although not necessarily a reinstatement of the complete range of natural characteristics. regulated river: River where flows are supplemented and rescheduled by artificial means eg via a government owned headwater storage and declared by the Minister by an order published in the Gazette to be a regulated river. RFO: River Flow Objective. riparian vegetation: Vegetation growing along the banks of rivers or other waterbodies. riparian zone: The zone along or surrounding a water body where the vegetation and associated ecology are influenced by the passage and storage of water, and conversely the aquatic environment benefits from the proximity of the vegetation (eg from bio-filtering of sediment or pollutants, inputs of detritus, shading etc). salinity: The measure of total soluble (or dissolved) salt ie mineral constituents in water. May be expressed as Total Soluble Salts (TSS) or Total Dissolved Salts (TDS) which are measured by different processes but both define the salt load measured in milligrams per litre (mg/L) or parts per thousand (ppt). Salinity may also be expressed as electrical conductivity, measured by an electrical probe (conductivity meter). salinisation: The process, normally associated with rising water tables, by which land becomes salt affected. stormwater: Rainwater that has run off the ground surface, roads, roofs, paved areas etc and is usually carried away by drains. Sustainable Yield: The limits on potentially extractable water from an aquifer at or below the average recharge level which takes into account “in situ” values and environmental water needs, so that water extraction does not cause lowering of the water table, intrusion of more saline water or environmental damage. SWMOP: State Water Management Outcomes Plan. threatened species: Animal or plant species which are either vulnerable, endangered or presumed extinct. unregulated river: A natural surface water source that is not supplemented by releases from a dam. A river which is not a declared regulated river but which may still be subject to water extractions and include on-river storages for town water supply or industrial purposes. water allocation: A volume of water which is available to a holder of a water access licence from time to time as a result of an available water determination. watertable: The saturated level of the unconfined groundwater. Some wetlands and lakes or base flows in streams may be surface expressions of the water table. water use efficiency: Volume of crop or other product produced (eg harvested dry matter) per unit of water delivered. (for irrigation water use efficiency this is normally expressed as tonnes per megalitre. wetland: Area of seasonal, intermittent or permanent waterlogged soils or inundated land, fresh or saline, eg swamp or lake. weir: A structure (including a dam, lock, regulator, barrage or causeway) across a defined watercourse that will pond water, restrict flow or hinder the movement of fish along natural flow paths, in normal flow conditions (NSW Weirs Policy 1997). WQO: Water Quality Objective. WWF: World Wildlife Fund.