How water is managed in the Logan Basin water plan area now

As part of developing the draft Logan Basin water plan (PDF, 1.3MB), we have a chance to improve how we manage water in the water plan area.

The current Logan Basin water plan sets the rules for allocation and use of water in watercourses, lakes, and springs (surface water). It does not actively manage overland flow water and groundwater, except in specific areas like Tamborine Mountain where a moratorium is in place.

Users have access to water through water entitlements (e.g. water allocations or water licences) or under statutory authorisations through the Water Act 2000 (e.g. stock or domestic, low-risk, or prescribed activities).

Surface water licences in the current Logan Basin water plan include:

  • total volume of 10,138ML of licences restricted by volume (9,136ML of this is for urban supply)
  • total area of 4,521 hectares (ha) of licences restricted by area
  • and
  • 27 additional licences with other restrictions.

Surface water

When water is taken directly from naturally flowing watercourses, lakes, or springs, it is called unsupplemented water take. People in the Logan Basin water plan area currently take unsupplemented water through water licences.

There are 222 unsupplemented water allocations in the Burnett Creek, Christmas Creek, Logan River, and Running Creek water management areas (WMAs), with a total combined nominal volume of 17,102.2ML.

Up to 4,521ha of land can be irrigated under area-based water licences in the plan area. Both volumetric and area-based licences are used to take unsupplemented surface water in parts of the plan area.

The Logan River Water Supply Scheme (WSS), supported by major dams such as Wyaralong Dam and Maroon Dam, supplies supplemented water for urban and agricultural uses. Within the scheme, water allocations allow for a total of 60,410.5ML per annum to be taken. Water allocation trading is available in the Logan River WSS and specific WMAs under the current plan.

This type of water access is authorised in Queensland under the Water Act 2000.

Overland flow

Overland flow is water that runs across the land after rainfall, either before it enters a watercourse, after it leaves a watercourse as floodwater, or after it rises to the surface naturally from underground. It does not include water collected from roofs for rainwater tanks.

Overland flow water is not currently managed under the Logan Basin water plan. However, trends in overland flow development are monitored to ensure they do not adversely impact water availability or environmental outcomes.

Groundwater

Groundwater (also called underground water) is the water beneath the earth’s surface that occurs in pore spaces and fractures of rock formations called aquifers.

Groundwater is not currently managed in the Logan Basin water plan area, and an entitlement to take groundwater for any purpose is not required. A moratorium on the construction of new bores to take groundwater for commercial uses is in effect in the Tamborine Mountain and Springbrook areas. This is to limit growth in groundwater use while more information about the resource is gathered.

Queensland University of Technology (QUT) investigations have found that aquifers beneath Tamborine Mountain and Springbrook rely heavily on rainfall for recharge. This means the resource is limited, highly sensitive to changing weather patterns, and unreliable for long-term urban water supply.

Several groundwater-dependent ecosystems have also been identified in Springbrook and Tamborine Mountain areas. Understanding their groundwater dependency and the relative impact from extraction is also important for sustainable management of the resource.

We will continue working towards better understanding groundwater-surface water relationships and protecting groundwater-dependent ecosystems. This will assist in balancing groundwater use for community, agricultural, and cultural, and environmental needs.

Read more about how we are proposing to manage underground water in the draft Logan Basin water plan.

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