Water Resource (Whitsunday) Plan 2010

This section applies if the chief executive decides the nominal entitlement for an authorisation for continuing to take groundwater using existing works for a purpose other than stock or domestic purposes.

The nominal entitlement must be the estimated volume to take groundwater for the entitlement.

However, if the chief executive is satisfied the volume of groundwater taken during the relevant period (a higher volume) is more than the estimated volume, the chief executive may decide a nominal entitlement that is more than the estimated volume.

In considering whether a higher volume of groundwater was taken during the relevant period, the chief executive must consider each of the following—

the capacity of the existing works to take groundwater as at the plan notification day;

the number of hours the existing works were operated during the relevant period;

for existing works for irrigation purposes—the volume of groundwater estimated by the chief executive to have been taken during the relevant period for irrigating crops grown during the period;

for existing works for a purpose other than irrigation purposes—the volume of groundwater estimated by the chief executive to have been taken during the relevant period for the purpose;

the efficiency of the use of the groundwater mentioned in paragraph (c) or (d);

the availability of groundwater in the aquifer to which the works relate;

the availability of other water sources in the area to which the water entitlement relates;

the density of water bores for taking groundwater in the area to which the water entitlement relates.

Subsection (4) does not limit the matters the chief executive may consider.

In this section—

if the water bore for the works has a design pumping rate only—the design pumping rate for the bore; or

if the works have an equipped rate only—the equipped rate for the works; or

if the works have a design pumping rate and an equipped rate—the lesser of the design pumping rate and the equipped rate; or

the volume of groundwater available in the parts of an aquifer that are under the land to which the works relate, that must not be more than 1ML/ha of the parts of the aquifer.

at which the bore can be pumped without causing the bore’s pump to break suction; and

estimated from an analysis of a pumping test based on the drawdown available in the bore above the pump inlet that would sustain pumping for 70 consecutive days.

the volume worked out by multiplying the capacity of the existing works by the number of hours, that must not be more than 1200 hours, the chief executive decides having regard to—

the efficiency of the use of groundwater using the works during the relevant period; and

the availability of other water sources in the area to which the water entitlement relates;

the volume of groundwater taken using existing works for irrigation purposes during the relevant period, that must not be more than 5ML of water for each hectare irrigated;

the volume of groundwater taken using existing works for a purpose other than irrigation purposes during the relevant period, that must not be more than 10ML;

the volume of groundwater available in an aquifer under the land to which the works relate, that must not be more than 1ML/ha of the aquifer.