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Water
Draft strategies and what we heard

Far North Coast Regional Water Strategy

To finalise the Far North Coast Regional Water Strategy, the department sought input on the strategy through two public consultation periods.

Scenic country views of the Mann River near Cangai.

Public consultation 1

The first draft Far North Coast Regional Water Strategy, which considers water supply, reliability and security for a growing population, was on public exhibition from 30 October – 13 December 2020.

The draft strategy was a set of 3 documents:

What we heard

A comprehensive engagement and consultation program accompanied the release of the draft strategy. This included:

  • face-to-face meetings
  • online webinars
  • formal submissions.

More than 70 stakeholders participated in the engagement program and 245 formal submissions were received. Key themes that emerged during this consultation include Aboriginal knowledge and connection to Country, water infrastructure, water security, flooding and flood mitigation, and groundwater.

Submissions

We are sharing collected community and stakeholder submissions for the region along with cultural and general submissions.

General
Other

CSIRO review

To better understand the unique and complex water challenges of the Far North Coast region, the department engaged the CSIRO to provide advice and an independent review of the Far North Coast Regional Water Strategy. The CSIRO completed its review in February 2022. The review and the department’s response to CSIRO’s recommendations were published in June 2022.

CSIRO review documents:

Public consultation 2

After incorporating the feedback from the community and doing further analysis, a second draft Far North Coast Regional Water Strategy was on public exhibition from 1 November to 11 December 2022. The second draft was a set of two documents:

Additional information

What we heard

In the second round of the public exhibition of Far North Coast Regional Water Strategy, 68 stakeholders participated, and we received 176 formal submissions. Feedback ranged from general commentary about water-related issues such as water security and the need to explore water efficiency measures and alternative water supplies — to specific feedback about proposed shortlisted actions.

Submissions

We are sharing collected community and stakeholder submissions for the region along with cultural and general submissions.

Submissions - Consultation 2

Final Far North Coast Regional Water Strategy

Find the Final Far North Coast Regional Water Strategy here