Basin compliance measures on track, report says.

MDBA chief executive officer Phillip Glyde said it was important to maintain the momentum to build community confidence in compliance measures spelled out in the Compliance Compact.

“In times of drought, the Australian community’s trust in how governments manage and regulate the Murray–Darling Basin’s finite water resources is more important than ever,” Mr Glyde said.

“In the past 12 months governments across the basin have improved their policies and their practices on the ground.

“This is to be applauded, and I would recommend they continue to prioritise the completion of their commitments in 2020 to achieve the transparency and accountability the community expects.

“It is important, for example, that all signatories continue on the path to completing and implementing their new metering policies to ensure that compliant meters are installed by 2025.”

To ensure the authority doesn’t mark its own homework, the Independent Assurance Committee was established in 2018 to provide independent, expert advice on the MDBA’s compliance obligations.

The IAC found four of the MDBA’s 31 actions were not complete.

These include: publishing and maintaining a register of basin state measures to better protect environmental water; developing a system for real time advice on environmental watering; an annual quality assurance report on hydrometric data for the Murray River system; and practice notes on the measurement of floodplain harvesting.

“Work on these actions is under way but requires greater effort to progress and will be given greater priority in 2020,” Mr Glyde said.

He said the Compliance Compact was due to be reviewed in mid-2020, which would be an important opportunity to assess the critical gaps still needing to be filled.

The Murray-Darling Basin Compliance Compact Assurance Report 2019 is available at: www.mdba.gov.au/publications/independent-reports/basincompliance-compact