The initial decision to comply with Commonwealth Government requirements by 2001 was taken by senior officers of the Queensland Department of Natural Resources, as required by the agreement between Heads of Government in 1996. The Department used a series of planning meetings and inter- and intra-office memoranda to determine the objectives of the reform. The main purpose identified was to provide a framework for the management of water and setting priorities for future water allocation, for reversing, where possible, the degradation of ecosystems and for progressively establishing tradeable water allocations.
To meet these objectives, the State water agency undertook actions such as the development of a new Water Resources Act, Water Resources Plans and developed the government’s role as a water provider through Sunwater, which operates under an "Interim Resource Operations Licence" (including infrastructure and constraints on operation, interim water allocations to be supplied, monitoring and reporting requirements).
Water Resource Plans were developed for each river valley, and they establish the balance between consumptive and non-consumptive needs, set Environmental Flow Objectives, set Water Allocation Security Objectives and establish regulatory control over overland flow water and sub-artesian groundwater in an area.
During the transitional time, water customers operate under "Interim Water Allocations", which replace old licences and agreement orders in council. Final allocations will replace the interim when planning is finalised. Standard supply contracts were to be established by 12/2000. A specific farm component was identified, through Land and Water Management Plans, which aims to provide certainty that water allocated by government will be used in a manner that does not cause degradation of land or water resources and provide individual landholders with an effective farm management plan which demonstrates that irrigation farming practices are sustainable, both on- and off-farm.
The actions for the water reform process were developed in-house by government agency staff and involved a high level of consultation with leading water industry sector players in Queensland. Both high-level consultation (Water Industry Peak Consultation Committee and a Director Generals’ Water Reform Steering Committee) and local level consultation (public meetings, internal meetings and submissions) were used to achieve water reform. This process involved the preparation of policy papers for discussion and enabled a high level of engagement by all levels of stakeholder.
The reform package uses a "whole of river basin" strategic plan approach within which local resource operation plans (local plans) are prepared. These regulate service providers; reform water authorities; include third-part enforcement for offences, compliance notices, increased penalties, and are linked to the Integrated Planning Act (the local planning act of the State of Queensland). The activity described here was initiated in the period 1999-2001, and is ongoing.