Plantations and Water Roundtable Summary
Canberra, 20 April 2005
Introduction
The National Water Initiative (NWI) was agreed to by COAG (except Tasmania and Western Australia) and has resulted in a requirement by State and Territory Governments to develop implementation plans to achieve the objectives of that agreement. The NWI has identified large-scale plantation forestry as a land use change that has the potential to intercept significant volumes of surface and/or groundwater now and in the future. The NWI also states that appropriate planning, management and/or regulatory measures may be needed to protect the integrity of water access entitlement systems and the achievement of environmental objectives. The Plantations and Water Roundtable was held to develop a response by the plantation sector to the NWI.
The Regulatory Framework for managing Water Resources
The Roundtable was opened by Senator, the Hon Ian Macdonald, Minister for Forestry, Fisheries and Conservation. Minister Macdonald emphasised the importance of the plantation forestry sector to the national economy and the role that the plantation forestry sector has in progressing regional Australia’s economic, social and environmental well being.
Minister Macdonald reiterated the Government’s commitment to the NWI as the mechanism to advance the water reform agenda. The Government is committed to ensuring that water is allocated to those land uses that deliver the greatest benefit to the community. He stated that the NWI acknowledges the role that plantations can have on improving water quality and reducing salinity and that the industry has a role in the successful delivery of the NWI through its contribution to research, science and data and providing the definitions that underpin parts of the NWI.
The Hon Gary Nairn MP, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister, provided an overview of the NWI. He noted that it was important to address the problems arising in the over allocated water systems as quickly as possible. It is anticipated that the NWI will achieve an expansion in the permanent trade in water, an increase in levels of investor confidence through secure access to water entitlements, and improvements in the efficiency of water management for both urban and rural.
Mr Ken Matthews, CEO of the National Water Commission, provided an outline of the Commissions role and the key guiding principles for implementing the NWI. These principles include sector neutral treatment of water allocations, and policy deliberations on water allocation to be catchment based and supported by robust science. The opportunity for engagement and involvement by all stakeholders involved in the NWI is also a key principle.
The NWC will administer the National Water Fund (NWF) on behalf of COAG. Two components of the fund have a combined $1.8 billion budget ($1.6b Water Smart Australia Fund, and $0.2b raising national standards programme). The NWC is looking for innovative project proposals under each programme and there is an opportunity for the plantation sector to submit proposals to access these funds.
Importantly, the NWI will be delivered through the State planning processes. However an underlying principle is that water allocations and entitlements should not be separated from general land use planning. As a result, the water planning mechanisms will be the primary agent for implementing the NWI.
Dr Wendy Craik, the CEO of the Murray-Darling Basin Commission (MDBC) outlined the main risk factors for secure water rights, which included plantations. The Commission has a strong interest in integrating plantations into the landscape to balance timber production, carbon sequestration, and salinity benefits, and to minimise the reduction in water yields which can accompany plantation activities.
Plantations and Water – Our Current State of Knowledge
Adam Gerrand detailed the ways in which plantations can be located to minimise their impacts on streamflow, and the need for a multidisciplinary approach to water management. Dr Peter Hairsine demonstrated how science can assist in determining where trees could be located in the landscape to reduce stream salinity. Craig Taylor and Bill Hurditch presented options for water savings and investment (including plantations) to increase the return from water. Dr Richard Benyon spoke about his research that demonstrated how trees over shallow water tables will tap into groundwater reserves (but not over deep water tables) and the region specific nature of his findings.
Results from the Discussion Groups
The afternoon session of the Roundtable consisted of three discussion groups that addressed the key issues for plantation forestry. Discussion group 1 identified the variables to be considered in providing suitable definitions for the key terms in the NWI, including significant interception, large scale plantation forestry, what constitutes land use change and how much rainfall is allowed to be intercepted.
Discussion Group 2 discussed a framework that would give consideration to the economic, social and environmental costs and benefits of all land uses, as the basis for guiding decisions by catchment managers on water entitlements, both now and in the future. The group considered how plantations should be treated in over and under allocated systems, and the development of a better understanding by catchment managers of the environmental benefits that plantations provide.
Discussion Group 3 deliberated on the options for generating water quality and water saving credits. Consideration was given to the options for generating credits, including the means to account for all the costs and benefits associated with plantations, and the mechanisms for delivering a financial return from the environmental services provided by plantations.
Research Needs Identified by the Discussion Groups
Research that will help inform the plantation sector’s response to the NWI was identified. This included the development of methods to assist catchment managers address the competing demands on water in over and under-allocated catchments; comparative studies of the water use efficiency of plantations relative to other agricultural crops, including irrigated and non-irrigated crops; longer term research to transfer data from experimental catchments to large catchments; quantification, at a regional level, of the overall socio-economic impacts of all competing land and water uses; and the impacts of long term climate change on plantation productivity and water yields.
Outcomes from the Plantations and Water Roundtable
A Plantations and Water Working Group (PWWG) was established from participants at the Roundtable. A set of actions were identified as key outcomes of the Roundtable with recommendations for the major tasks to be undertaken in delivering an industry response to the NWI. The Roundtable discussion papers and presentations, and the PWWG actions and membership are available at www.tpa.asn.au/waterroundtable.html.
Minister Macdonald closed the Roundtable with a concluding address in which he congratulated the industry for working together on this important issue and stressed the importance of industry engagement in the NWI.
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