Water in northern Australia
Northern Australia has a significant concentration of tropical rivers, floodplains, wetlands, estuaries and catchments, which are coming under increasing pressure for the production of food, fibres and minerals.
Before developing our northern water systems and making irreversible development decisions, we must ensure that we understand both the hydrological and ecological sustainable yields in the area for both surface and groundwater.
We must also identify any water-dependent environmental and Indigenous assets and values that we want to protect.
It is vital that water planning in the area is participatory and recognises that many groups have interests in water.
Good water planning accommodates all of economic, environmental, community and indigenous interests in water, so we should not, for example, dismiss irrigation.
That said, we must manage and use northern water for northern conditions. For example, irrigation techniques may need to be radically different from southern irrigation models.
And finally, northern water should be managed adaptively. Water managers must change what they are doing if monitoring and evaluation suggests that change is required.
National Water Commission support
Raising National Water Standards (RNWS) program investments in the north are improving our understanding and management of the northern rivers, so that development in this region takes place within a strategic, and ecologically, culturally and economically sustainable, framework.
NWS investments are also enhancing the opportunity for Indigenous communities to participate in water planning and management activities in northern Australia.