Queensland Water Entitlements Explained

June 20, 2023

What is a Water Allocation?

A water allocation is an authority to take water, and an entitlement to a share of the available water resource in a catchment. Water allocations are either supplemented or unsupplemented.

It is a separate asset that is not attached to land, has its own title and can be leased, mortgaged, subdivided, amalgamated and transferred independently to land. You can also obtain the benefit of a water allocation by having it seasonally assigned to you – i.e. where the owner transfers part or all of the water available under the allocation for a period to another person or place. This gives water allocation holders flexibility to move water between properties.

Supplemented water allocations: where water is supplied by a third party from infrastructure owned or operated by that third party (e.g. dams and weirs), are managed by a Resource Operations Licence (“ROL”) Holder (e.g. SunWater).

The holder of the water allocation must have a supply contract with the ROL Holder to receive the water.

Unsupplemented water allocations: where the water supplied is not reliant on any infrastructure to store or distribute it (for example water allocations which authorise the harvest of water from a river), are managed by the Department of Regional Development Manufacturing and Water (RDMW).

Dealing with Water Allocations

If you sell, purchase or lease land on which a water allocation is used, the water allocation will not automatically transfer with the land.  You must make sure the sale contract or lease properly deals with the water allocation.

In order to register any dealings (e.g. transfers, leases and mortgages) of supplemented water allocations, you must obtain a notice from the ROL Holder confirming the existence of the supply contract (W2F152).

A dealing certificate from RDMW is required for any dealings in relation to unsupplemented water allocations.

Dealings with water allocations affected by a DOL have certain requirements that must also be met to be enforceable.

What is a Water Licence?

 A water licence is an authority granted under the Water Act 2000 to take and/or interfere with surface water, overland flow water or underground water. Water licences attach to land and may only be used on the land to which they are attached.

Surface water: you will need a water licence for taking or interfering with water in a watercourse, lake or spring for purposes such as:

1. stock and domestic use on lands that don’t adjoin the water course;
2. irrigation;
3. industrial and commercial use;
4. storing water behind a weir;
5. impounding water behind a storage structure; and/or
6. storing water in excavations that are within a watercourse.

Overland flow water: you may need a water licence to take or interfere which water that runs across the land after rainfall, either before it enters a watercourse, after it leaves a watercourse as floodwater, or after it rises to the surface naturally from underground if the area is identified in a Moratorium Notice or Water Plan as needing a licence.

Underground water: Generally, you will need a water licence to take underground water (e.g. using a well or bore) in groundwater areas established through the Water Regulation 2016 or a Water Plan. This includes groundwater management areas and sub artesian management areas.

Failing to have the required licence or comply with the conditions may result in prosecution so it is important that you ensure that you understand your obligations before taking or interfering with water.

 Dealings with Water Licences

Generally, when you buy or sell a property, the water licence will automatically transfer to the buyer.

However, care needs to be taken where a water licence attaches to multiple lots and not all of those lots are being transferred. If it is intended that the buyer should be the sole holder of the water licence, the licence will need to be amended before the transfer of the land or it will be held jointly by the buyer and seller after the transfer.

A licence held by the owners of different properties will authorise those joint holders to both take water, but neither the licence nor the Water Act 2000 governs the relationship between those parties. It is important that joint water licence holders sign an agreement setting out their rights and obligations in relation to that water and the infrastructure used to take and distribute that water to avoid disputes in the future, particularly with subsequent owners.

Should you have any questions or would like more information, please contact our Agribusiness team.