Water Part Two - Quality

There is a lot going on with water planning in our region and last month we provided an update on the Water Resource Planning (water quantity) process.

As part of water quality management, Terrain NRM is currently developing Healthy Waters Management Plans (HWMPs) for the Herbert, Johnstone, Mulgrave and Russell catchments.

The other catchments within the Terrain region already have a Water Quality Improvement Plan (WQIP) and they are basically the same thing but are now prepared under State funding and legislation and so have a different name.

The HWMP process is closely coordinated with the Water Resource Planning process for the Wet Tropics. The intent of this collaboration is to provide greater efficiency for consultation and communication with stakeholders.

Watch out for workshops with catchment groups to be held in October.  This will provide the next opportunity to review information and provide input to the HWMPs.

HWMPs are prepared under the Environment Protection (Water) Policy 2009 and:

• identify environmental values and management goals
• state water quality guidelines and Water Quality Objectives to enhance or protect the environmental values identified by community
• facilitate consistent, equitable and informed decisions about waters
• assist monitoring and reporting on the condition of the region's waters

Terrain's role is all about working with the Catchment Groups and communities to develop these HWMPs. Tasks include:

• Organising, and facilitating, in collaboration with DERM, catchment meetings to provide opportunity for community input into gathering the information on Environmental Values (EVs)

• Conducting the expert panel workshop held in December 2010 to gather information on the areas of High Ecological Value (HEVs) waters

• Engaging  the Australian Centre for Freshwater Research (ACTFR) to provide a review of water quality issues on the Johnstone, Mulgrave, Russell and Herbert catchments (Reports were finalised April 2011). These reports provide the essential foundation for determining current loads and targets once Environmental Values (EVs) have been determined

• Keeping a wide range of stakeholders up to speed with information about the HWMP process

• Engaging ACTFR to collate all existing WQ information across the region. This will help determine priorities for on-ground works and/or WQ monitoring

As part of the HWMP process, consultation with the community, and in collaboration with DERM, workshops were held throughout the region in August to identify environmental values. This information will be collated into tables and then provided back to catchment stakeholders for review and/or further input. Once we have the agreed information on what the waterways are used for, then the water quality objectives that will protect or improve the waterways can be established.

A key requirement of the HWMP process is identifying management actions and preparing an implementation plan. Management actions that will be implemented and lead to improved water quality outcomes have already been identified by Terrain's industry working groups and priority practices exist for the grazing, cane, banana and pawpaw industries. Catchment Groups already have detailed management Plans with identified activities and these will be further reviewed in November within each catchment to ensure we have agreed actions that will deliver on the appropriate goals and actions.

Terrain will be integrating information from the current process with information from the existing WQIPs into a single, whole of Wet Tropics HWMP. The whole of Wet Tropics document will provide an overview and strategic level information. The critical detail of implementation activities will be captured in the catchment management plans. This approach not only then captures the community's existing knowledge and effort but will also meet Government and Policy aspirations and intent as well as being of value to the community by incorporating the catchment plans as the significant implementation activities

Engagement of the community at the catchment level is critical to the process as you are living in the catchment and your knowledge and expertise is vital to ensure having an agreed plan and appropriate management actions occurring.

It is important to understand that these processes do not impose any new requirements; legislation already applies under Queensland or National Water Quality Guidelines. These processes provide an opportunity to ensure that the things our community currently uses our waterways for (e.g spiritual and cultural purposes, drinking water, stockwatering, fishing, swimming) will be protected and must be considered when any future development applications are submitted to DERM.

Watch out for workshops with catchment groups to be held in October providing a further opportunity to review the current information and provide further input.

For further detail on Terrain's role in the process and meeting notes go to the Terrain website: http://www.terrain.org.au/programs/water/water-quality/617-healthy-water-management-plan.html

Or more detail on HWMPs can be found on the DERM website at;

http://www.derm.qld.gov.au/environmental_management/water/environmental_values_environmental_protection_water_policy/pdf/healthy-water-mp-guideline.pdf