Identifying unallocated water in the Fitzroy, Boyne River and Calliope River water plan areas
Unallocated water is our term for water that is ‘left over’ in the system and available for future needs. That means it can be released (or allocated) to future projects without affecting water available for current water users, cultural values or the environment.
The existing Fitzroy, Boyne River and Calliope River water plans identify unallocated reserves for different purposes but Indigenous* reserves are not specified in all areas.
Consultation so far shows increasing interest in accessing these Indigenous* unallocated water reserves for agriculture, industrial use, urban water security and First Nations peoples’ opportunities.
* We use Indigenous here because this is how the needs for First Nations peoples are captured and expressed in water plans.
Fitzroy Basin unallocated water
| Type of unallocated water | Total volume (ML) |
|---|---|
| Surface water reserves | |
| Strategic – Indigenous* | 5,000 |
| Strategic – Other | 16,000 |
| Infrastructure | 222,400** |
| General | 32,585 |
| Groundwater reserves | |
| Strategic | 4,950 |
| General | 12,635 |
**76,000ML of the infrastructure reserve was made available for Rookwood Weir.
View the Fitzroy Basin water plan to see the locations of these unallocated water reserves.
Boyne River Basin unallocated water
| Type of unallocated water | Total volume (ML) |
|---|---|
| Infrastructure (Awoonga Dam raising) | 19,000 |
| Strategic | 500 |
| General | 1,338 |
View the Boyne River Basin water plan to see the locations of these unallocated water reserves.
Calliope River Basin unallocated water
| Type of unallocated water | Total volume (ML) |
|---|---|
| Any purpose | 5,500 |
| Town water supply purpose | 500 |
We will work alongside the Central Queensland regional water assessment, to better understand current and potential water demands in the region. This will let us review these reserves and consider the best arrangements for making unallocated water available to support growth.