Please join us online on Wednesday 3 March at 12pm (AEDT) for what is sure to be a fascinating discussion on basin scale management. We have arranged for two great presentations that will lead into a discussion on how we can use learning from these projects in managing catchments and, specifically, those that cross multiple borders.

1. River Management in the European Union through the Water Framework Directive (WFD) – Lessons for Australia

Kym Whiteoak (Canopy Economics & Policy)

The WFD is the primary piece of EU legislation concerned with groundwater and surface water condition, with the overarching legislative target that all water bodies will be in ‘good’ status (essentially swimmable) by 2027. A recent evaluation of the legislation found that it had largely failed in its ambition, but nevertheless achieved significant outcomes in water management in Europe. The structure, process and ambition of the WFD may have important lessons for river management in Australia, including for cross-border catchment management. Having recently returned from two years working in Europe on the Evaluation of the WFD for the European Commission, Kym Whiteoak will provide an overview of the legislation and process for review and improvement, reflecting on comparisons with Australian river management.

Kym Whiteoak is an environmental and water economist with over 15 years’ experience in consulting in Australia and Europe. Kym set up Canopy after returning to Australia from two years living and working in the Netherlands, where he worked on projects for the European Commission on topics including water management, green infrastructure and biodiversity management.

2. ‘BasinGuide: A Guide to River Basin Planning’ – Bringing Australia’s experience to assist cross-border water management in the Indo-Pacific

David Winfield, Tony Weber, Simon Tilleard, David Harriss, Dr Melita Grant

BasinGuide is intended to assist government and non-government practitioners undertaking river basin planning and management in the Asia / Indo-Pacific region. BasinGuide draws on Australian experience in the Murray-Darling Basin and elsewhere, as well as experience of Australian practitioners working internationally. The publication provides a vehicle to share Australia’s experience and contribute to addressing water challenges internationally. It also provides a useful summary for Australian practitioners, stakeholders and early career water managers of the Australian experiences, lessons learnt and key principles and stages for non-urban water resources planning and management. BasinGuide describes river basin planning in seven stages, which will be described in the presentation. The publication provides guidance on initiating river basin planning, governance, inclusive community engagement and involvement, water sharing and allocation, strategic planning, resolving water disputes, improving water quality, implementation, monitoring and evaluation, and adapting for climate change. The full BasinGuide can be found here https://bit.ly/350w7IN and a short version can be found here https://waterpartnership.org.au/our-offering/river-basin-planning/.

David Winfield is a water resources professional, with 20 years’ experience in leading and providing expert advice on strategy, policy, governance, planning, evaluation, audit and regulation in NSW and the Murray-Darling Basin. Tony Weber is one of Australia’s leading practitioners in catchment modelling and water quality, and has led independent advice and review of hydrological modelling and Floodplain Harvesting in the Murray-Darling Basin, as well as expert advice on Great Barrier Reef catchment protection and restoration. Simon Tilleard is an international water resources management specialist who works at multiple scales, including basin and national policy advice, and leads Alluvium’s international practice. All 3 are co-authors of BasinGuide, along with David Harriss (Access Water management), and Dr Melita Grant (Institute of Sustainable Futures, University of Technology Sydney (ISF UTS)).