Methods to accurately assess water allocation impacts of plantations
Project details
| Objective: | To assess the risk of new plantations to water access entitlements by providing daily water yield predictions and to accurately quantify the site-scale impacts of new plantations on stream-flows. |
| Funding: | $920 000 plus applicable GST from the Australian Government towards the CSIRO to develop tools for assessing the risk new plantations pose to water access entitlements. |
| Jurisdiction: | National |
| Commenced: | June 2008 |
| Completed: | June 2010 |
Progress
About the project
The Australian Government is contributing funds to CSIRO to assess the risk of new plantations to water access entitlements by providing daily water yield predictions and to accurately quantify the site-scale impacts of new plantations on stream-flows.
The project will bring forest and water stakeholders together to resolve the technical aspects of quantifying forest water impacts on water access entitlements.
Project benefits
The project will:
- develop technical guidelines and open-access software for any agency to run plantation scenarios through water balance models in a nationally consistent manner, utilising best available knowledge
- provide predictions of plantation water interception for use in water planning over the next two to five years
The project contributes to NWI objectives of transparent and comprehensive water planning that deals with interception, more confidence in water investment through more secure water entitlements, and more complete water accounting.