The government has revised its thinking on previously proposed size thresholds above which proposals for new reservoirs or dams would be considered as Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs) to focus on schemes which output larger volumes of water.
Last year, the government published a consultation seeking views on its proposals to widen the definition of the water resources infrastructure eligible to use the planning process for NSIPs.
Under current policy, there are three types of development that are classified as a water NSIP. These are: construction of new dams or reservoirs where the volume of water to be held back by the dam or stored in the reservoir is expected to exceed ten million cubic metres; the alteration of a dam or reservoir where the additional water held back or stored will exceed ten million cubic metres; and water transfer schemes (which move water from one river basin to another) where the volume of water to be transferred as a result of the development is expected to exceed 100 million cubic metres per year.
Last year’s consultation sought views on whether the current threshold for reservoirs or dams should be kept unchanged, or whether reservoirs or dams that store or hold back less than the current minimum but could supply at least ten million cubic metres per year of water should also be classified as NSIPs.
It also proposed reducing the threshold for water transfer schemes either to 30 million cubic metres of water, or reducing it even further to ten million cubic metres.
In its response to that consultation, published today, the government said that “recognising respondents’ concerns that a threshold of ten million cubic metres held back is too low (capturing smaller schemes that should be determined locally) we propose to increase the volume held back to 30 million cubic metres (30,000 megalitres)”.
But it also also proposed to include schemes with an output figure of 80 megalitres per day – broadly equivalent to 30 million cubic metres per year – in the future definition.
“This definition aims to include reservoirs with large volumes which are likely to be more resilient to longer drought periods and smaller reservoirs with a high daily output, which could be vital in maintaining supplies during short term drought or supply interruption”, the response said.
For water transfers, the government has proposed to reduce the threshold from the current 100 million cubic metres to the larger of the two thresholds included in the consultation; 30 million cubic metres per year.
“This will be articulated as a deployable output of 80 megalitres per day which is broadly equivalent to 30 million cubic metres per year”, the document said.
Last year’s consultation also proposed two new categories of water resources infrastructure that could qualify as NSIPs: desalination plants and effluent reuse facilities.
The government’s response said that it would seek to include desalination plants under the NSIP regime. But it said that the “case to include effluent re-use in the NSIP definition remains weak” and this would not be progressed.
For desalination plants the government is proposing a threshold of 30 million cubic metres per year with a deployable output of 80 megalitres per day.
The government is consulting on the revised thresholds until 26 April.
The consultation document says that responses received “will inform the final amendments to the Planning Act 2008 infrastructure thresholds”.
“We will lay these before parliament later this year. Following this, we will consult on the draft National Policy Statement (NPS)”, it said.
Article originally appeared on PlanningResource
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