❓ Question regarding groundwater levels on the Gnangara mound, focusing on private water usage, allocation planning, garden bore usage, and the Perth regional confined aquifer capacity study. The answer provides updates on actions taken and progress made.
AnsweredQoN 1725Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to the latest Department of Water annual compliance report entitled Environmental management of groundwater from the Gnangara and Jandakot Mounds, the Government’s Water for Growth report released in May 2014, and a graph on the department’s website which shows that current superficial groundwater levels on the Gnangara mound are similar to the past five years, with these years being the worst since 1997, and ask: (a) what action is the Government taking to reduce abstraction by private licensed users, who are now collectively the biggest users by volume of water from the superficial aquifer on the mound; (b) can the Minister advise when the Government expects to start consulting publicly on the next phase of Gnangara groundwater allocation planning, which was a 2013 priority for the Department of Water; (c) according to the Department of Water, garden bore users took 30 gigalitres of water annually from the superficial aquifer in 2011–12 and 2012–13, yet the department states that there has been a significant reduction in the volume of water abstracted by garden bores on the mound due to regulations restricting use, can the Minister provide evidence of this reduction; and (d) can the Minister provide an update on the Perth regional confined aquifer capacity study, which the Government has stated will be central to the strategy of moving public water abstraction away from sensitive surface wetland areas and lakes?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
25 November 2014
Responded by
Minister for Agriculture and Food representing the Minister for Water
Response time
42 days
(a) Actions to manage private licensed use include; on-ground compliance inspections, meter audits and water use surveys.
(b) The Department of Water has already begun consulting with key stakeholders about the next Gnangara groundwater allocation plan.
(c) Since the introduction of water use efficiency measures in 2009, it is estimated domestic garden bore use in the Gnangara groundwater system area has reduced by approximately 8 billion litres per year. Australian Bureau of Statistics, Water Corporation data and a survey of a sample of individual bores were used to estimate the amount of water taken by garden bores.
(d) Aerial electromagnetic, gravity and LiDAR surveys have been completed, and the project is now entering the investigative drilling stage.
(b) The Department of Water has already begun consulting with key stakeholders about the next Gnangara groundwater allocation plan.
(c) Since the introduction of water use efficiency measures in 2009, it is estimated domestic garden bore use in the Gnangara groundwater system area has reduced by approximately 8 billion litres per year. Australian Bureau of Statistics, Water Corporation data and a survey of a sample of individual bores were used to estimate the amount of water taken by garden bores.
(d) Aerial electromagnetic, gravity and LiDAR surveys have been completed, and the project is now entering the investigative drilling stage.
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