NSWIC urges landholders to review new maps of wetlands on private properties released by the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water today, with feedback due in only two weeks by 23 March.
NSWIC CEO Claire Miller said the revised maps were a significant improvement on those released last November that were filled with errors such as irrigation channels and depressions in cropping fields being deemed wetlands warranting additional protection.
“It is encouraging that landholder concerns have been heard loud and clear, with hundreds of erroneous wetlands removed from the revised maps,” said Ms Miller.
“The original mapping was clearly unworkable and the revised maps are far more accurate. However, the Department must still ensure that all affected landholders are notified of the changes and understand any impacts on water use rules.
“Two weeks for feedback is manifestly inadequate to directly consult landholders on current and future impacts from gazetting wetlands in the seven water sharing plans currently under review.
“NSWIC is asking instead for a 12-month period to notify landholders face-to-face and verify wetlands. After this period, landholders will have a clear understanding of obligations and restrictions, after which wetlands can be gazetted and included in water sharing plans.”
NSWIC is also pleased that similarly erroneous wetland maps gazetted in six other water sharing plans gazetted in mid-2024 will also be reviewed, including the unregulated Border Rivers and unregulated NSW Murray. Similar issues were identified then but until now remained unresolved.
“This whole debacle could have been avoided had the Department done its work properly upfront to ground-truth mapping. The Department and landholders have wasted time and resources reviewing these maps and ended up back almost exactly where we originally began.”
NSWIC hopes that future work on water sharing plans can better incorporate the knowledge of water licence holders and landholders interacting with NSW waterways daily.
“It was clear from day one that the original wetlands maps were wildly inaccurate but this was somehow overlooked by the Department,” Ms Miller said.
“Today’s release of revised wetlands maps is a step in the right direction, but many of the remaining wetland were still added to documents such as Floodplain Management Plans without proper consultation with landholders at the time.
“The next big step is allowing 12 months to meet with all landholders with wetlands on the revised maps, to answer their questions.”
People can learn more HERE and register for a webinar from 12.30-1.30pm on Wednesday 12 March 2025.
