National Water Initiative
The National Water Initiative (NWI) is Australia's enduring blueprint for water reform.
Through it, governments across Australia have agreed on actions to achieve a more cohesive national approach to the way Australia manages, measures, plans for, prices, and trades water.
Overview
The Intergovernmental Agreement on a National Water Initiative was signed at the 25 June 2004 Council of Australian Governments meeting. The Tasmanian Government joined the Agreement in June 2005 and the Western Australia Government joined in April 2006.
The NWI represents a shared commitment by governments to increase the efficiency of Australia's water use, leading to greater certainty for investment and productivity, for rural and urban communities, and for the environment.
National Water Initiative commitments
Under the NWI, governments have made commitments to:
- prepare water plans with provision for the environment
- deal with over-allocated or stressed water systems
- introduce registers of water rights and standards for water accounting
- expand the trade in water
- improve pricing for water storage and delivery
- meet and manage urban water demands.
The overall objective of the National Water Initiative is to achieve a nationally compatible market, regulatory and planning based system of managing surface and groundwater resources for rural and urban use that optimises economic, social and environmental outcomes.
- More about the National Water Initiative objectives
Each state and territory government is required to prepare an NWI implementation plan. To date the Commission has accredited nine implementation plans.
- More about NWI implementation plans
The National Water Initiative agreement includes objectives, outcomes and agreed actions to be undertaken by governments across eight inter-related elements of water management.
- More about the the National Water Initiative's key elements
