Water Management Act 1999

In this section – casual use of land means lawful use by persons or stock not normally resident on land which adjoins a watercourse or lake from which water is taken and includes camping, recreational use and use by travelling livestock; specified purpose means – a domestic purpose; or irrigation of a household garden; or stock watering; or firefighting; or drilling under section 168 of the Mineral Resources Development Act 1995; tenement to which this section applies means – a riparian tenement; and land that would be a riparian tenement but for the existence of a Crown reserve not exceeding 20 metres in width between it and a watercourse or lake; and land that would be a riparian tenement but for the existence of a Crown reserve exceeding 20 metres in width between it and a watercourse or lake where the Secretary of the responsible department in relation to the Crown Lands Act 1976 has, in writing, permitted the occupier of the land to take water across the reserve.

Subject to this Act – a person who is an occupier of a tenement to which this section applies may take water from a watercourse or lake on, or adjoining, that tenement for a specified purpose; and a person may, in casual use of land, take water from a watercourse or lake on, or adjoining, that land for a specified purpose.

Subsection (2) does not confer any rights over a riparian Crown reserve but the Secretary of the responsible department in relation to the Crown Lands Act 1976 may grant an easement or licence over the reserve for taking water to the land to which a right conferred under this Part attaches.

An owner or occupier of land may take dispersed surface water from the land for any purpose.

An owner or occupier of land may take groundwater from the land for any purpose.

The amount of water which can be taken under subsection (2) or from a well under subsection (4A) and the methods of taking any such water may be prescribed by the regulations.

Nothing in this section is taken to affect any interest in land held by any person or any rights or obligations of an owner or occupier of land which exist otherwise than under this Part.