Background
Our current path of water reform was triggered when the institutional arrangements for managing the state's water resources were modernised in 2005. The Department of Water was created based on the recommendations of the Independent Irrigation Review Committee and the review of the Western Australian water industry arrangements.
We have been active in developing a comprehensive group of planning documents and initiating and undertaking other activities to pursue the state reform agenda, including the formulation of new legislation. Further to the achievements of the state in water reform, Western Australia signed the Intergovernmental Agreement on a National Water Initiative (NWI) in 2006.
In addition, Western Australia's implementation plan for the National Water Initiative which was released in April 2007, is an effective guiding document for the implementation of water reform initiatives. It contains transparent objectives which are clearly aligned with the intended outcomes of the NWI. This document has also been useful in broadly communicating the goals of the NWI to internal and external stakeholders.
We are currently reviewing our implementation plan, with the first stage completed through the publication Western Australia's achievements in implementing the National Water Initiative. This was submitted to the Australian Government in November 2008. The second stage is the writing of a water reform implementation plan to set the water reform agenda for another five years.
Please contact the Department of Water if you require further information on waterreform@water.wa.gov.au