Abstraction of groundwater from the Millstream water reserve

Overview

Proposal by the Water Corporation to renew a groundwater licence to continue abstraction from the Millstream aquifer of 6 gigalitres per annum (GL/a). The Water Corporation hold an existing temporary groundwater licence to abstract 3GL/a from the Millstream aquifer until February 2027 (GWL205069), enabling combined abstraction of up to 9GL/a.

The referrer of the proposal contends that this significantly exceeds the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation’s sustainable limit of 6 GL/a, set in 2013.

The referral relates specifically to:

1. the existing temporary groundwater licence to extract 3GL/a (GWL 205069);

and

2. a proposal to renew groundwater licence GWL158011 (previously GWL105696), under section 5C of the Rights in Water and Irrigation (RiWI) Act 1914.

Why your views matter

At this initial stage of the EIA process, comment is simply sought on whether or not the EPA should assess a proposal and, if so, what level of assessment is considered appropriate.

What happens next

Following the seven day public comment period and consideration of any comments received, the EPA will decide whether or not this proposal requires environmental impact assessment and, if so, what level of assessment will be applied.

The EPA's decisions on level of assessment are released each Monday on the EPA's website.