Climate Adaptation 2014 Climate change and the Murray-Darling Basin Plan (971)
The Basin Plan 2012, prepared by Murray-Darling Basin Authority (MDBA), sets out arrangements for the sustainable management and use of water in Australia's Murray-Darling river system, in particular for the period 2019 to 2029. With the prospect of changes in climate impacting on Basin water resources, the MDBA included climate change considerations in the Basin Plan's high-level objectives, and by adopting an adaptive management framework and whole-of-basin arrangements that allow flexible responses to new knowledge and information.
One of the key actions arising from the Basin Plan is the recovery of an average of 2,750 GL/year of water from consumptive use for environmental purposes which will help to build the resilience of water dependent ecosystems in the face of a variable and changing climate. The rebalancing of water use in the Basin is complemented by other elements of the Basin Plan, which provide a range of mechanisms to respond to the unfolding realities of climate change and permit responses at multiple timescales.
The mechanisms include strengthened arrangements for water trade that facilitate the movement of water available for irrigation to its most productive use, a water allocation framework that is based on seasonal water availability, and robust arrangements for establishing annual environmental watering priorities.
Adaptation to climate change is also facilitated over longer timescales when the Basin Plan and its various instruments, such as the Environmental Watering Plan and Basin Watering Strategy, are reviewed and amended. These reviews will be informed by the results of monitoring and evaluation, investigations into the impacts of climate change on water resources, and State assessments of water resource plan performance under extreme dry conditions, all of which are prescribed activities in the Basin Plan.
In addition to outlining the policy challenges related to climate change which were confronted when developing the Basin Plan, the presentation will touch on future policy challenges likely to be faced by the MDBA in coming years.
One of the key actions arising from the Basin Plan is the recovery of an average of 2,750 GL/year of water from consumptive use for environmental purposes which will help to build the resilience of water dependent ecosystems in the face of a variable and changing climate. The rebalancing of water use in the Basin is complemented by other elements of the Basin Plan, which provide a range of mechanisms to respond to the unfolding realities of climate change and permit responses at multiple timescales.
The mechanisms include strengthened arrangements for water trade that facilitate the movement of water available for irrigation to its most productive use, a water allocation framework that is based on seasonal water availability, and robust arrangements for establishing annual environmental watering priorities.
Adaptation to climate change is also facilitated over longer timescales when the Basin Plan and its various instruments, such as the Environmental Watering Plan and Basin Watering Strategy, are reviewed and amended. These reviews will be informed by the results of monitoring and evaluation, investigations into the impacts of climate change on water resources, and State assessments of water resource plan performance under extreme dry conditions, all of which are prescribed activities in the Basin Plan.
In addition to outlining the policy challenges related to climate change which were confronted when developing the Basin Plan, the presentation will touch on future policy challenges likely to be faced by the MDBA in coming years.