Annual Operations Plan Peel Valley 2019-20 Acronym Definition AWD Available Water Determination Contents BLR Basic Landholder Rights BoM Bureau of Meteorology CWAP Critical Water Advisory Panel Introduction 2 CWTAG Critical Water Technical The Peel River system 2 Advisory Group Regulated and unregulated system flow trends 3 DPI CDI Department of Primary Rainfall trends 3 Industries - Combined Water users in the valley 4 Drought Indicator DPIE EES Department of Planning, Water availability 6 Industry and Environment Current drought conditions 7 - Environment, Energy & Chaffey Dam storage 7 Science Resource assessment 8 DPI Department of Primary Fisheries Industries - Fisheries Water resource forecast 9 DPIE Department of Planning, Chaffey Dam - past 24 month rainfall 9 Water Industry and Environment - Chaffey Dam - past 24 month inflows/statistical inflows 10 Water Weather forecast - 3 month BoM forecast 10 FSL Full Supply Level Chaffey storage forecast 11 HS High Security IRG Incident Response Guide Annual operations 12 Deliverability 12 ISEPP Infrastructure State Environmental Planning Scenarios 13 Policy Deliverability of ordered water 14 LGA Local Government Areas Critical dates 15 ROSCCo River Operations Stakeholder Consultation Committee Projects 15 D&S Domestic and Stock vTAG Valley Technical Advisory Group Introduction This plan outlines WaterNSW’s response to the drought in the Peel Valley including: • identification of critical dates • our operational response • potential projects to mitigate the impact of the drought on customers and communities within the valley. The NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment’s Extreme Events Policy and Incident Response Guides outline 4 stages of drought. The Peel Regulated River system is assessed to be in stage 4, which is categorised as ‘severe drought/water shortage’. The Peel River system The Peel River flows from its eastern source in the Great Dividing Range, through the Peel Valley in a westerly direction to its confluence with the Namoi River, approximately 40 kilometres downstream of Tamworth. Multiple tributaries enter the Peel River as it travels through the valley including: • Duncans Creek • Moore Creek • Dungowan Creek • Timbumburi Creek • Cockburn River • Tangarratta Creek • Goonoo Goonoo Creek • Attunga Creek. N WALGET WEIR THE CUTTING BA LA A R PI GUNIDGERA A Key TH N REGULATOR RIVEWALGETT CR Major towns E BURREN EK ON MOLLEE MANILLA RIVER BARW JUNCTION WEE WAA Major dams RIVER WEIR NARRABRI Dams BARRABA BA K EEK (not waterNSW) CR E ULES CR SPLIT ROCK RA E MA E DINE GUNIDGERA DAM E NA K CREEK CR River system BOGGABRI MO MANILLA I RIVE Regulated river HENA GUNIDGERA WEIR R BO GUNNEDAH River CO TAMWORTH catchment Namoi CARROLL XS DUNGOWAN River CR catchment Peel WOOLOMIN NAMOI RIVER E CHAFFEY E DAM Regulated weirs K EEPIT NUNDLE K QUIRINDI Unregulated weirs DAM PEEL RIVER WALLAMORE WEIR DUNGOWAN DAM PARADISE WEIR CARROLL COCKBURN RIVER WALLAMORE ANABRANCH DUNGOWAN GOONOO GOONOO CREEK DUNGOWAN CREEK TAMWORTH WATER SUPPLY CHAFFE Y DUNGOWAN OFFTAKE DAM DAM NUNDLE 2 Regulated and unregulated system flow trends Carroll Gap represents the end of the regulated system. Regulated and unregulated flows from the Peel River at Carroll Gap contribute to an average total annual discharge of 252,900 megalitres (ML). This amount fluctuates significantly over time, which illustrates the significant variability in flows between wet and dry years. Variability in flow levels also occur across the valley and between seasons due to summer being the predominate time for rainfall and irrigation use. Flows originating from the Cockburn River catchment contribute to approximately 40% of the average annual discharge measured at Carroll Gap. Other significant contributors include Goonoo Goonoo and Dungowan Creeks, both contributing approximately 10% to the average annual discharge. The Peel River above Chaffey Dam is best described as a minor contributor to discharge at Carroll Gap. Chaffey Dam captures water during times of high flow and releases it when natural Peel River flows are insufficient to meet demands for water. The overall effect of this is to reduce flow variability immediately downstream of the dam. In addition to the Peel River, the Cockburn River, Goonoo Goonoo Creek and Dungowan Creek exhibit perennial flows in most years. All other creeks and streams within the Peel Valley are less permanent in nature. Rainfall trends For the period April 2017 to March 2019, lowest-on-record rainfall was observed over southern inland Queensland and areas of northwestern New South Wales. Over most of this area, rainfall for the period was less than 50% of the 1961–1990 average. Large areas from central to southwestern Queensland, and northcentral and northwestern New South Wales, into northeastern South Australia, have seen rainfall totals between 40% to 60% of this average, implying that nearly one year’s worth of average rainfall has been missed over this two-year period. The recent dry periods have been especially severe during the cooler months of April to September, an important time for agriculture and the replenishment of surface and groundwater storages across southern Australia. Averaged over the Murray-Darling Basin (MDB), the total rainfall over two consecutive April to September periods was the lowest on record, at 217.5 millimetres (mm). This is around 15% below the previous record, which saw 255.7 mm over the 1940–41 April to September period. It was also the only instance of an April to September rainfall total below 125 mm in two consecutive years. Rainfall for the combined two-year 2017 and 2018 April to September period was the lowest on record and very much below average (lowest 10% of all such periods) for large parts of southeastern and southwestern Australia. Around 50% of New South Wales was lowest-on-record for these two periods combined. The winter of 2019 again saw continuing dry conditions, which now means three consecutive winters of below average rainfall. Over the 24-month period, there has been a large decline in water resources in the northern half of the MDB, including over the Namoi and Upper Macquarie catchments. The Namoi has had the second lowest-on-record rainfall for equivalent 24-month periods, with rainfall around 62% of the 1961–1990 average. Rainfall in the Upper Macquarie catchment is around 71% of the average. 3 Water users in the valley Basic Land Holder Rights (BLR) BLR includes water for Domestic and Stock extracted from a water source fronting a landholder’s property, or from any aquifer underlying the land, and for native title rights. (a) 0.82 megalitres per day (ML/day) in the Peel Regulated River water source (b) 1.54 ML/day in the Peel Unregulated River water sources, comprising: (i) 0.04ML/day in the Chaffey Dam water source (ii) 0.39 ML/day in the Goonoo Goonoo Creek water source (iii) 0.22 ML/day in the Upper Peel River tributaries water source (iv) 0.29 ML/day in the Lower Peel River tributaries water source (v) 0.60 ML/day in the Cockburn River water source (c) 0.66 ML/day in the Peel Alluvium water source (d) 11.1 ML/day in the Peel Fractured Rock water source. Domestic and Stock use The share components of Domestic and Stock access licences authorised to take water from these water sources are 1,263 megalitres per year (ML/year), distributed as follows: (a) 169 ML/year in the Peel Regulated River water source (b) 209 ML/year in the Peel Unregulated River water sources, comprising: (i) 15.5 ML/year in the Chaffey Dam water source (ii) 28 ML/year in the Goonoo Goonoo Creek water source (iii) 28.5 ML/year in the Upper Peel River tributaries water source (iv) 64 ML/year in the Lower Peel River tributaries water source (v) 73 ML/year in the Cockburn River water source (c) 266 ML/year in the Peel Alluvium water source (d) 619 ML/year in the Peel Fractured Rock water source. Local water utilities The share components of local water utility access licences authorised to take water from these water sources are 22,630 ML/year, distributed as follows: (a) 16,400 ML/year in the Peel Regulated River water source (b) 5,600 ML/year in the Upper Peel River tributaries water source (c) 530 ML/year in the Peel Alluvium water source (d) 100 ML/year in the Peel Fractured Rock water source (e) 0 ML/year in all other water sources. 4 High security The share components of regulated river (high security) access licences in the Peel Regulated River water source total 804 unit shares. General security The share components of regulated river (general security) licences in the Peel Regulated River water source are 29,635 unit shares. While the general gecurity irrigators hold 29,635 unit shares, the average allocation over the last 10 years in the valley is 58%. Aquifer access licences The share components of aquifer access licences authorised to take water from these water sources include 28,354 unit shares, distributed as follows: (a) 18,379 unit shares in the Peel Alluvium water source (b) 9,975 unit shares in the Peel Fractured Rock water source (c) 0 unit shares in all other water sources. Aquifer (general security) access licences The share components of aquifer (general security) access licences authorised to take water from the Peel Alluvium water source are 32,206 unit shares. Unregulated river access licences The share components of unregulated river access licences authorised to take water from these water sources include 11,898 unit shares, distributed as follows: (a) 384.5 unit shares in the Chaffey Dam water source (b) 1,033.5 unit shares in the Goonoo Goonoo Creek water source (c) 3,638 unit shares in the Upper Peel River tributaries water source (d) 2,477 unit shares in the Lower Peel River tributaries water source (e) 4,365 unit shares in the Cockburn River water source.