Water Management Act 2000

For the purposes of this Act, the following priorities are to be observed in relation to access licences—

local water utility access licences, major utility access licences and domestic and stock access licences have priority over all other access licences,

regulated river (high security) access licences have priority over all other access licences (other than those referred to in paragraph (a)),

access licences (other than those referred to in paragraphs (a), (b) and (d)) have priority between themselves as prescribed by the regulations,

supplementary water access licences have priority below all other licences.

If one access licence (the higher priority licence) has priority over another access licence (the lower priority licence), then if the water allocations under them have to be diminished, the water allocations of the higher priority licence are to be diminished at a lesser rate than the water allocations of the lower priority licence.

In relation to the water management area or water source to which it applies, a management plan may provide for different rules of priority to those established by subsection (1).

If a management plan so provides for different rules of priority, those different rules are taken to have been established by this section.