Water Quality Protection Plan for Darwin Harbour
Darwin Harbour (pdf 0.5Mb) is vital to the lifestyle, character and economy of the Top End region. The Darwin Harbour Regional Plan of Management identified protection of the Harbour water quality as a high priority. While the quality of Harbour waters is generally good, continued growth of the city and rural areas will place it under increasing pressure. Increased monitoring and better informed decision making are therefore required to ensure the social, environmental and economic values of the Harbour are protected and sustained despite the continued development in the Harbour’s catchment and use of its waters.
The National Water Quality Management Strategy is part of the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) Water Reform Framework of which the Northern Territory Government is a signatory. COAG (1994) agreed to support“development of the National Water Quality Management Strategy, through the adoption of a package of market-based and regulatory measures, including the establishment of appropriate water quality monitoring and catchment management policies and community consultation and awareness”. The NWQMS strategy provides nationally agreed policies, processes and guidelines for the effective management of water quality. The primary objective of the NWQMS is to “achieve sustainable use of the nation’s water resources by protecting and enhancing their quality while maintaining economic and social development”
The preparation of the action plans are to be based on a Framework for Marine and Estuarine Water Quality Protection (the Framework) a guidance document which incorporates national policies and guidelines and provides for considerations of local conditions and community needs and aspirations. The Framework’s key principle is the identification and protection of water quality based on that water’s use or value.
Department of Natural Resources, Environment, the Arts and Sport together with the Department of Planning and Infrastructure, the Darwin Harbour Advisory Committee and the Commonwealth Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts have entered into an agreement to develop a management plan called the Water Quality Protection Plan (WQPP) for Darwin Harbour. The project was funded by the Australian Government through its former Coastal Catchment Initiative Program (CCI 2006) with contributions from the participating Northern Territory Agencies.
The aim of the WQPP project is to ensure that the current quality of water resources of Darwin Harbour and its catchment is maintained as opposed to other regions where water quality has been degraded and water quality improvement plans need to be developed. The WQPP has identified key risks to water quality of the waterways of the Darwin Harbour catchment and will provide direction for investment in water quality protection programs. Efforts will focus on improved understanding of the source, role and management of nutrients (phosphorus and nitrogen) in the Harbour.
The project commenced in June 2006 and is scheduled for completion in 2009. A number of sub-projects have been undertaken to gather information which will inform the development of the WQPP:
- the preparation of water quality objectives (pdf 1.7Mb) based on a review of existing Beneficial Use Declarations;
- development of a water quality model based on the existing hydrodynamic model of Darwin Harbour
- monitoring of Harbour water quality and event-based loads in the region’s catchments
- other sub-projects that will continue include:
- establishment of a comprehensive water quality monitoring program for the Harbour; and
- developing and institutionalizing Water Sensitive Urban Design for wet-dry tropical cities.
