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A new joint program of salt interception schemes totalling $60 million capital works over seven years has been agreed by the partner Governments of the Basin Salinity Management Strategy. These engineering works are required to make early gains against salinity Basin-wide, while land management actions are progressively delivering a benefit, and to provide additional ‘salt disposal entitlements’ for States to offset new irrigation development. States’ participation in the program is guided by a set of principles to ensure equity.
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THE BASIN SALINITY
MANAGEMENT STRATEGY
The Basin Salinity Management Strategy (BSMS) guides communities and Governments in working together to control salinity and protect key natural resource values within their catchments.
It establishes targets for the river salinity of each tributary valley and the Murray-Darling system itself, that reflect the shared responsibility for action both between valley communities and between States.
It provides a stable and accountable framework that, over time, will generate confidence in how we are tracking our joint efforts to manage salinity. Redesigning farming systems is part of the BSMS. |
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Our values: courage; inclusiveness; commitment; respect & honesty; flexibility; practicability and mutual obligation. |
WHY ARE SALT INTERCEPTION SCHEMES NEEDED?
Salt interception works are large scale groundwater pumping and drainage projects that intercept saline water flows and dispose of them, generally by evaporation. The Salinity & Drainage Strategy provided joint works that resulted in a reduction of 80 EC units at Morgan. An EC unit is a measure of salinity concentration. Of the 80 EC units, 30 EC units were provided as salt disposal entitlements (SDEs). These entitlements were to relieve the threat of rising saline groundwater under irrigation areas implemented after 1 January 1988. By doing this the partner Governments agreed to undertake salinity mitigation works to offset the salinity impacts of historical development (‘legacy of history’), estimated at being less than 50 EC units.
To maintain Morgan salinity at 800 EC or less for 95 per cent of the time for the life of the BSMS, the 1999 Basin Salinity Audit found that a further reduction in salinity of about 100 EC at Morgan will have to be found by new engineering works. These works would be over and above proposed land management actions (such as revegetation) within the tributary catchments.
WHAT IS PLANNED?
A new joint program of salt interception schemes, costing an estimated $60 million, will commence in 2001 to deliver at least 46 EC at Morgan, and potentially up to 61 EC, over the first seven years. The partner Governments have agreed that joint salt interception schemes must both be economically and technically feasible. All things being equal, the most economic schemes should proceed first.
New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia are currently investigating a number of schemes to be part of the jointly funded program.
| Schemes currently being considered are: |
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| Salt Interception Scheme |
Estimated EC Credits |
| Pyramid Creek SIS (Victoria) |
5.3 |
| Bookpurnong SIS (South Australia) |
12.0 |
| Lindsay River SIS (Victoria) |
4.0 |
| Barr Creek - Vegetative augmentation (Victoria) |
12.0 |
| Loxton SIS (South Australia) |
10.5 |
| Chowilla SIS (South Australia) |
14.0 |
| Barr Creek Community Reuse (Victoria) |
4.4 |
| Sunraysia Regional SIS Optimisation and Integration (New South Wales) to |
be determined |
| Billabong Creek SIS (New South Wales) |
1.9-3.9 |
CURRENT WORKS PROGRAM
Work is currently progressing on the construction of the Waikerie Phase 2a project. This project is estimated to cost $3.4 million and is conservatively expected to intercept (on average) an additional 23 tonnes of salt everyday.
A $10 million project to intercept groundwater from entering the Pyramid Creek in Northern Victoria is currently under development. It is anticipated that this scheme will stop about 30,000 tonnes of salt each year. Negotiations with a commercial salt harvester are proceeding to improve the financial viability of this project for the Basin partner Governments.
WHO IS INVOLVED?
The Commission will review in the first 12 months of this BSMS, the scale of the program required, and the cost sharing and benefit allocation arrangements. Of the minimum 46 EC reduction in average salinity at Morgan, 31 EC will be allocated to offset the legacy of history, and 15 EC as SDEs. However, it is highly likely that more credits will be needed.
The partner Governments have agreed to the following cost sharing and benefit allocation principles for the new joint works:
- each State will have equal access to a limited number of SDEs but will be accountable for offsetting the effects of future developments;
- partner Governments will have equitable access to the works, first right of refusal and credits generated will be allocated according to contribution to costs;
- the Commonwealth’s credits will be re-allocated to the State entries on the Commission registers, in proportion to the legacy of history affecting each State; and
- each State is to keep its contribution to the Morgan Registers in balance or in surplus.
These principles allocate salinity credits in an equitable manner that acknowledges the historic and geographical differences between the States. Salinity credits arising from the Commonwealth’s contribution will be allocated to resolve State differences. In addition the Commonwealth may allocate credits to the Commission ‘A’ Register to offset actions to provide environmental and social benefits (eg. wetland flushing).
The Council will finalise cost sharing and benefit allocation arrangements for the new joint works program by March 2002, after taking advice from the Commission’s high level inter-jurisdictional working group on salt interception schemes.
The Queensland Government, which will not be participating in the scheme in the early years of the Strategy, has agreed to an audit of salinity impacts downstream of its border after five years with a view to re-assessing its SDE requirements then.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Murray-Darling Basin Commission
Level 5, 15 Moore St Canberra ACT 2601
ph (02) 6279 0100
email:  website:www.mdbc.gov.au | 