Northern Basin Connectivity Program

About the program

Water flowing across connected catchments supports essential human and ecological needs.  The Barwon-Darling River receives more than 90% of its flows from upstream catchments in northern NSW (Border Rivers, Gwydir, Namoi and Macquarie) and Queensland. This mainly occurs during large flows.

The Northern Basin Connectivity Program is undertaking action to enable water to flow across connected catchments of the northern NSW Murray-Darling Basin and downstream at important times for the following outcomes:

• protect the first flush of water after an extended dry period to protect critical human and environmental needs and support recovery post droughts
• reduce the impact of cease-to-flow periods and improve low-flow connectivity
• support water quality and reduce the risk of algal blooms forming
• support fish migration.

This program builds on the range of connectivity reforms of the NSW Government over recent years including the protection of low flows in the Barwon-Darling, regulating floodplain harvesting, and progressing work on removing unapproved flood works in high priority areas to allow water to flow more easily across the landscape.

Progress update

• The Independent Connectivity Expert Panel was established in August 2023 to review the department’s analyses and provide independent expert advice to the Minister on the potential for these updated flow targets to meet critical human and environmental needs.
• The panel’s interim findings and recommendations report PDF, 2233.29 KB was released in April 2024 and the final Connectivity Expert Panel Report PDF, 5304.84 KB was released in July 2024.
• Over the next 6 months (July – December 2024), the department will review the panel’s final findings and recommendations and consider next steps. This will include detailed hydrologic and economic modelling of all the panel’s proposed changes to fully understand their potential benefits and impacts.

The department will follow the usual processes to make any water sharing plan amendments in response to the panel’s recommendations. This will include public consultation on the proposed amendments.

While the changes to water sharing plan rules to improve connectivity are being finalised, temporary water restrictions may be used to protect the first flows after dry periods to meet critical human and environmental needs. If deemed necessary, these temporary water restrictions would be implemented using Section 324 of the Water Management Act 2000 and may be guided by the critical dry conditions triggers published in the Western Regional water strategy (PDF, 17654.62 KB).