Condamine buyback is moving on

❝purchases These bring the total groundwater recovered to 18.65 gigalitres — Paul Morris

THE first tranche of the Australian Government’s Queensland Upper Condamine Alluvium groundwater buyback has recovered almost 16 gigalitres towards the 40.4 gigalitre target, to 31 May.

Head of Water Division at the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources, Paul Morris, said the Condamine Alluvium groundwater buyback is a key component of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.

“The Basin Plan requires groundwater in the Queensland Upper Condamine Alluvium to be managed at a lower, more sustainable level,” Mr Morris said.

“These purchases bring the total groundwater recovered to 18.65 gigalitres (in long term average annual yield terms), or almost half the target for the Queensland Upper Condamine Alluvium.

“Buying these licences and retaining the water in the aquifer is an important step towards longterm sustainability for groundwater irrigators in the region.

“This is the only groundwater recovery required as part of the Basin Plan and it is separate from the 2750 gigalitre surface water recovery target.

The final tranche of the tender process will close on 31 July 2018.

For more detail, see the department website.