The state’s water regulator is in the dark on the extent of groundwater abstraction and compliance breaches in WA, according to a scathing report.
The state’s water regulator is in the dark on the extent of groundwater abstraction and compliance breaches in Western Australia, according to a scathing report published on Wednesday.
Among findings handed down by auditor general Caroline Spencer about the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation was an overarching theme that the agency’s shortcomings meant water licence holders were unlikely to be deterred from breaching conditions.
The report comes as traditional owners in the Pilbara raise red flags about the impact to country from the huge volumes of groundwater being abstracted by the resources industry.
Ms Spencer found DWER’s on-ground inspections had been cut back 67 per cent since 2021 and that reviews of water licences now focused on history, rather than new and verified information.
The Department argued in response the audit took place “during a transitional period” and said improvements were already underway.
“An increase in enforcement activity under the Rights in Water and Irrigation Act 1914, including the issuing of daily penalty notices, resulted in record fines for water assurance enforcement activities in 2024,” DWER said.
“The Department is also completing a strategic review of water resources in the Pilbara region.
“The review involves extensive compliance monitoring in the region to confirm that water licences are fit for purpose and subject to appropriate condition monitoring.”
Ms Spencer said her office had found shortcomings in the regulators’ efforts in reports dating back to 2003.
Her latest report found only 5 per cent of licence holders had been visited in the three years to mid-2024.
Almost all visits were confined to the Kwinana and Peel region.
The above detail came alongside concerns raised about the Department’s lack of checks and balances on self-reported information provided by licence holders.
“DWER does not effectively verify the self-reported information it relies on to understand compliance,” the report said.
“Between 2021-22 and 2023-24, it received more than 17,000 submissions from licence holders including meter readings and more detailed compliance reports.
“However, DWER does not require supporting evidence for meter readings (for example, photographs) and reported information is rarely verified through an on-ground inspection.”
The Department only had seven compliance officers who spent most of their time on administrative tasks, the report found.
The North West was the only one of six DWER regions found to have developed compliance plans for each of the previous three years.
None of the North West’s plans were found to be adequate.
Some 87 per cent of more than 16,700 potential non-compliance issues raised since 2021 were never assigned to a staff member, the report said.
“Despite increasing demand for water and our drying climate, DWER cannot be confident that licence holders are meeting their licence conditions and that water is being extracted appropriately,” Ms Spencer said.
“This audit shows that DWER is not doing anywhere near enough to adequately protect our water resources, with compliance activities in recent years reactive and ad hoc.”
Formal training was found to be lacking.
The report also noted DWER’s failure to publish water abstraction volumes.
Business News has twice been denied access to this information for the Pilbara in the past year, with DWER claiming commercial sensitivity.
Similar data from previous years has been aired in parliament and used to be published in public government and scientific reports prior to 2017.
The data requested by Business News, released under freedom of information, showed 600 gigalitres of water was taken from monitored Pilbara aquifers in 2023, more than 514GL of which was abstracted by mining.
Ms Spencer said publicizing this information would increase social pressure for licence holders to comply with conditions.
DWER supported two recommendations to improve its compliance activities and strengthen enforcement.
On a recommendation to improve transparency, DWER supported the call with a caveat that “limitations on publishing information may exist”.
A DWER spokesperson said the agency accepted the auditor general's findings.
"In early 2024 the Department recognised its water compliance approach needed improvement and took action to improve its water compliance and enforcement functions," they said.
"We have established a new water assurance division to manage the issues identified, including developing a new water compliance operating framework, and enhanced operational procedures."
More than 12,000 water licences are held across WA which allow extraction of four trillion litres of water per year.
