WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT
— LEGISLATION
173. Hon AARON STONEHOUSE to the minister representing the
Minister for Water:
I refer to the minister's
response to a question without notice posed by Hon Jacqui Boydell on Tuesday,
12 March on the issue of water resource
management, in which the minister stressed that the government had ''introduced
water licence application fees for only the mining and public water
supply sectors''. I have recently received a number of representations
from concerned stakeholders in the agriculture sector, who believe that the
government intends to introduce similar application fees for their sectors in
due course.
(1) What
stakeholder consultation, if any, has the government undertaken to date with
the agriculture, horticulture and/or viticulture sectors around the concept of
water licence application fees?
(2) Which
specific stakeholders have been consulted and on what date, and which
stakeholders does the government plan to consult with going forward?
(3) When does the government envisage concluding its
consultations and making any additional plans public?
Hon
ALANNAH MacTIERNAN replied:
I thank the
member for the question. The Minister for Water has provided the following
information.
(1) The
Department of Water and Environmental Regulation undertook consultation with a range
of stakeholders between August and November 2018, supported by a discussion
paper published on 10 August 2018 on the department's website.
(2) I table
information that outlines specific stakeholders that were consulted.
[See paper 2469.]
(3) The
Department of Water and Environmental Regulation is still analysing the
submissions and is finalising its consultation summary report. No decision has
been made by the government on water licence fees for any other industry
sector, including heavy industry, agriculture, horticulture, commercial, or
parks and recreation.