DEPARTMENT of PRIMARY INDUSTRIES, WATER and ENVIRONMENT ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT GOALS for TASMANIAN SURFACE WATERS HUON VALLEY CATCHMENTS February 2003 Environmental Management Goals Quality Management 1997 and the For Tasmanian Surface Waters: Environmental Management and Huon Valley Catchments Pollution Control Act 1994. Ecosystem refers to physical, chemical and During 2001/2002 Protected biological aspects of the aquatic Environmental Values (PEVs) were set environment. for the Huon Valley catchments. A discussion paper was prepared to This paper has been modified into its facilitate public participation in setting current form to reflect that the process the PEVs. This discussion paper was for setting PEVs for the Huon Valley intended as a basis for community and Catchments is now complete. It was stakeholder participation in the process considered, however, that much of the of developing environmental information included in the discussion management goals for the waterways paper should remain as a record of the that are located within the Huon Valley PEV setting process. Municipal Area, and areas of the Huon River Catchment in the Derwent This discussion paper is divided into Valley, Kingborough and Glenorchy six main sections: Municipal Areas. The paper also covers the part of the Davey River catchment • The first part discusses water which lies within the Huon Valley reform in general. Municipal Area and the Derwent • The second part gives some general Valley Municipal Area. The area of the information relating to the area D’Entrecasteaux Channel within the covered in the discussion paper. Huon Valley Municipal Area is covered in a separate discussion paper. • The third part discusses the State Policy on Water Quality The discussion paper was prepared by Management. the Environment Division and the • The fourth part discusses the Huon Valley Council in consultation Protected Environmental Values for with the Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife the catchment. Service, the Marine Farming Branch, the Derwent Valley Council, the • The fifth section discusses water Kingborough Council, the Glenorchy quality and water quantity values. City Council and the Wellington Park • The sixth part discusses the Management Trust. Words and community water values for the expressions used in the discussion Huon Valley Catchments. paper have, unless the contrary intention appears, the same meaning as defined in the State Policy on Water 1 INTRODUCTION...................................................................................................4 1.1 WHY DO WE NEED WATER REFORM?.....................................................................4 1.2 WHAT ARE THESE REFORMS?................................................................................4 1.3 WHAT DID WE WANT THE PUBLIC TO DO? .............................................................5 1.4 HOW WILL THE PUBLIC INPUT BE USED? ...............................................................5 2 HUON VALLEY CATCHMENTS: OVERVIEW .............................................6 2.1 CATCHMENT DESCRIPTION ...................................................................................6 2.1.1 General Description .....................................................................................6 2.1.2 Climate, Geology and Hydrology .................................................................6 2.1.3 Catchment Water Uses..................................................................................7 2.1.5 Areas of Conservation Significance..............................................................8 2.1.6 The Huon River Estuary .............................................................................10 2.2 CATCHMENT WATER QUALITY ISSUES.................................................................10 3 WATER QUALITY: PROTECTED ENVIRONMENTAL VALUES............14 3.1 SETTING PROTECTED ENVIRONMENTAL VALUES ...............................................14 3.2 PROTECTED ENVIRONMENTAL VALUES CATEGORIES.........................................14 3.3 COMMUNITY INPUT ............................................................................................15 4 WATER QUALITY : PROTECTED ENVIRONMENTAL VALUES FOR THE HUON VALLEY CATCHMENTS....................................................................16 PROTECTED ENVIRONMENTAL VALUES FOR THE HUON VALLEY CATCHMENTS............................................................................................................17 5 WATER QUANTITY VALUES..........................................................................27 5.1 OVERVIEW..........................................................................................................27 5.2 WATER QUANTITY VALUES.................................................................................27 6 COMMUNITY WATER VALUES FOR THE HUON VALLEY CATCHMENTS............................................................................................................29 6.1 OTHER VALUES...................................................................................................31 6.2 ISSUES/ CONCERNS .............................................................................................31 7 SPECIFIC WATER VALUES.............................................................................32 3 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Why do we need water reform? 1.2 What are these reforms? A good supply of fresh, clean water is Two major aspects of the water reforms an essential requirement for human life, are water quality management and water quantity management. a healthy environment and a productive economy. (a) water quality management We need water for drinking, for recreational activities like fishing, The State Policy on Water Quality swimming and boating, to provide the Management 1997 is designed to food we eat and export, to generate maintain or enhance the quality of clean electricity, and to support mining Tasmanian surface waters. Principal and other industries. objectives of the Policy include: We also expect our rivers and lakes to • Move on from reliance on ‘end of look healthy, and provide a healthy pipe’ controls to take into environment for a wide range of aquatic consideration the number of plants and animals. discharges into a given water body, or the sensitivity or current We sometimes take for granted that our condition of the water body. use of water resources is sustainable; that our hard-working water will still be • Ensure that diffuse source and point there in a healthy state to provide the source pollution does not endanger same benefits for future generations. the achievement of water quality Tasmanian rivers range from relatively objectives and that pollutants short, swiftly flowing rivers fed from discharged to waterways are mountain sources to slowly flowing reduced as much as possible by the rivers which may be reduced to a series use of best practice environmental of pools during dry periods. Our management. waterways are not immune from • Facilitate and promote integrated problems, however, and many of our catchment management. river systems are showing signs of stress. • Focusing on overall water quality management strategies by River health, and the health of the identifying those water quality economies that depend upon them, is values and uses which are clearly linked to the way we use the considered worthy of protection. waters; the degree of regulation we The first purpose of this discussion impose; the quantity of water we take paper is to explain how the water out; and the quality of water we return. quality values have been identified and could be used. Local communities have In response to a general recognition a key role in identifying these values in across the community of the importance their areas. of having clean water and appropriate river flows, the Tasmanian Government (b) water quantity management is currently finalising a range of reforms designed to ensure that these values are The introduction of the Water protected for the future of the State. Management Act 1999 to replace the Water Act 1957 provides for: 4 • Major changes to the institutional The catchment stakeholders/publics arrangements for water management; answers to these questions then helped to develop the community water values • The ready transfer of water rights for regional wetlands and waterways. between different users; People had different views on these • Enhanced stakeholder and questions. What was needed to do was community input into water allocation to try to think about the "big" picture, and management; and and how our own objectives may impact on the whole catchment and the • A more transparent and equitable wider community. water allocation system, including formal allocation of flows to maintain Planning to ensure sustainable use of a healthy river environment; these waters and protection of river health requires sound knowledge of • The development of water local water quality and quantity issues. management plans. Therefore the public submissions The second purpose of this discussion providing local knowledge was paper was to canvas your views on what important. is valued in the water resources from a 1.4 How will the public input be water quantity perspective. used? 1.3 What did we want the public to Information from the public on values do? particularly relating to water quality assisted the Board of Environmental Local communities have a valuable Management and Pollution Control and understanding of their regional the councils to finalise the