❓ A WA parliamentary question regarding groundwater licence compliance in the Perth Hills reveals that the area is not proclaimed under the Rights in Water and Irrigation Act, meaning licences are not required and DWER enforcement is not applicable.
AnsweredQoN 857Legislative Council
Asked
11 November 2025
Member
Portfolio
Aboriginal Affairs; Water; Climate Resilience; South West
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to groundwater licence compliance in the Perth Hills, and I ask: (a) how many water licence holders have been found to be extracting water in excess of their approved entitlement since 2018; (b) how many warning notices and enforcement actions has the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation (DWER) issued for groundwater non-compliance over the same period; and (c) how many prosecutions have been undertaken relating to unauthorised water extraction?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
11 December 2025
Responded by
Leader of the House representing the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs; Water; Climate Resilience; South West
Response time
8 days
(a) The Perth Hills area lies outside of groundwater areas proclaimed under the Rights in Water and Irrigation Act 1914. Licences are not required to take water from non-artesian wells in non-proclaimed areas. No comment can be provided in relation to excess extraction of water where a licence to take groundwater is not required.
(b)As above, warning notices and enforcement actions from DWER are not relevant where there is no requirement to hold a licence to take water.
(c) As above, prosecutions for unauthorised water extraction are not relevant to an area that is non-proclaimed, where landowners are not required to be licenced.
(b)As above, warning notices and enforcement actions from DWER are not relevant where there is no requirement to hold a licence to take water.
(c) As above, prosecutions for unauthorised water extraction are not relevant to an area that is non-proclaimed, where landowners are not required to be licenced.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.