Water Allocation Carry-Over in the Adelaide Plains
How much water can I carry-over?
When will carry-over water be granted?
Are there any other rules about using/trading carry-over?
What is carry-over?
If a water licence holder has not used all of their water allocation during a financial year, the licence holder may be eligible for a portion of this unused allocation to be added to their water allocation (“carried over”) for use over the next one to two financial years (1 July – 30 June).
How much water can I carry-over?
The total volume of your water allocation, plus water carried over from the last 2 financial years, will be capped at 110% of your water allocation components on your licence in the current financial year.
However, this will be dependent on water having been taken through a water meter for the whole of the financial year, unless the quantity of water taken can be determined on another basis to the satisfaction of the Minister.
When will carry-over water be granted?
From the 2023/24 financial year licence holders in the Adelaide Plains, may be eligible to carry-over unused water from the 2022/23 financial year.
Carry-over cannot be issued until final water meter reading(s) for the volume of water taken during the 2022/23 financial year have been provided to the Department as per the condition of the water licence.
Will carry-over apply to me?
If you have water allocation component(s) on your water licence for the following consumptive pools, you may be eligible for carry-over:
| • Quaternary Consumptive Pool | • Golden Grove Embayment Consumptive Pool |
| • T1 Regional Consumptive Pool | • Noarlunga Embayment Consumptive Pool |
| • T2 Regional Consumptive Pool | • Northern Fractured Rock Consumptive Pool |
| • Lower Tertiary Consumptive Pool | • Southern Fractured Rock Consumptive Pool |
| • Kangaroo Flat Consumptive Pool |
Conversely, carry-over water will not be applicable in the following consumptive pools, as they are allocated above the extraction limit:
• T1 Northern Adelaide Plains Consumptive Pool
• T2 Northern Adelaide Plains Consumptive Pool
Find your location and/or drill hole via the interactive NatureMaps display to determine your consumptive pool within Central Adelaide, Northern Adelaide Plains or Dry Creek Prescribed Wells Areas. Alternatively, you may wish to contact the Water Licensing team on (08) 8463 6876 to confirm the consumptive pool that relates to your water licence.
You may be granted carry-over if the volume of water you used during the year was:
• recorded through a water meter for the whole of that financial year, (unless the quantity can be determined on another basis to the satisfaction of the Minister’s delegate); and
• the final water meter reading(s) for the quantity of water taken during the previous financial year has been provided to the Department as per the condition of the licence, or in the case of licensees of the Northern Adelaide Plains Prescribed Area, the meter was able to be read by DEW staff.
Additionally, carry-over is not applicable to the Managed Aquifer Recharge Consumptive Pool as the volume of water available for allocation is not a fixed volume from one year to the next and is instead dependent on the ‘available balance’.
Are there any other rules about using/trading carry-over?
If you are granted carry-over allocation, this will be deducted from your water account first before calculating whether there is any allocation remaining in your water account, when calculating the carry-over during the next financial year.
Additionally, carry-over allocation cannot be transferred (traded), unless the transfer is in relation to a change in ownership of the licence with respect to which the water allocation was initially issued.
If you have any enquiries regarding carry-over water or your water licence, please contact a Water Licensing Officer on (08) 8463 6876 or via email at dewwaterlicensing@sa.gov.au.
