Water in mining

Legislation: Rights in Water and Irrigation Act 1914 (WA) (RiWI Act)
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Overview

The Department of Water and Environmental Regulation (DWER) is Western Australia’s government agency responsible for ensuring the state’s water resources are planned, managed and developed to meet community requirements, now and in the future.

Through the proclamation of certain groundwater and surface water areas, the department manages the state’s water resources by:

  • defining the volume of water available for licensing purposes from a particular resource
  • issuing licences and permits under the Rights in Water and Irrigation Act 1914 (RiWI Act) for various activities, such as the taking and use of water. 

You can find an overview of DWER’s water licensing process on the DWER one-stop-shop website.

Timeline 

DWER has a target timeframe for licence processing of 90 calendar days from the time the applicant registers in Water Online and pays any fees.

All targets are subject to sufficient information being supplied on lodgement to assess the application.

You can check the progress of your application by viewing DWER Water Online.

Before you apply

How do you know if you need a licence to take water?

You must have a licence to:

Types of licences and permits

DWER issues several types of water licences and permits.

5C licence  (to take)

A 5C licence allows the licence holder to ‘take’ water from a watercourse, wetland or underground source.

26D licence (to construct / alter)

A 26D licence allows the licence holder to construct or alter wells. This may include exploratory, monitoring or production bores.

A 26D licence authorises the take of groundwater for hydro investigation and sampling purposes only. You need a 5C licence to take water for any other purpose. DWER gives no guarantee that it would issue 5C licence with an associated 26D licence.

Bed and banks permit

When granted, a permit authorises you to interfere with or obstruct the beds and banks of a watercourse or wetland.

Exemptions

Some activities do not require a licence or permit.  Exemptions include:

  • Monitoring well
  • Short term dewatering
  • Bed and banks permit

A bed and bank permit is not required when works occur on mining tenure, and does not involve the diversion or take of water. 

Still unsure? Please contact your regional DWER office, call 1800 508 885 or email licence.enquiry@water.wa.gov.au to confirm your licensing requirements.

Stages of application

So you have determined that you need a licence under the RiWI Act. What comes next?

You can find an overview of DWER’s water licensing process on the DWER one-stop-shop website.

Scoping

You should do some research so that you know

  • water availability in your proposal’s area (use DWER’s online Water Register to identify the relevant water resource area and determine if water is available for your activity)
  • your proposal’s estimated water use
  • your proposal’s impacts to the natural environment, in particular sensitive ecosystems.

If no issues arise at this point, you may continue to submit an application. 
 

Prepare

What to consider before applying for a Water application
  1. Register to apply via Water Online. For help, see DWER’s quick reference guide: Registering for Water Online.
     
  2. Determine the fees you must pay for your application.
     
  3. Find out on this link if you need to supply the following finished documents (where relevant):
  • proof of legal access to the land (for all licences and permits)
  • proposed bore construction designs (for a licence to construct/alter a well)
  • design plans when altering stream beds or banks (for a beds and banks permit)
  • reports on water resource investigations (for a licence to take water)
  • hydrogeological or hydrological monitoring reports (for a licence to take water)
  • operating strategies (for a licence to take water)

If you need to supply any of the above documents, DWER will guide you on how to prepare them and give you a timeframe for submission.

The department may return your application if the additional information it requests is incomplete or late.

Relevant Documents

See the following guidance policies for more information:

Lodge and validate

How to lodge an application for validation.

You can lodge your application online via DWER Water Online.

DWER generally assesses applications in the order it receives them (first-in first-served). The department’s decision on your application to take water may depend on the outcome of applications it receives before yours, as these may affect the volume of water available.

Water licensing fees

As a mining industry applicant, you must pay fees for the assessment of:

  • new licences to take water
  • renewals for existing licences to take water
  • amendments of licences to take water
  • licences to construct or alter wells
  • permits for beds and banks.

Fees fall into three price categories from $172 to $8929. The fees were introduced in November 2018.

The assessment process begins after the department validates an application.

Relevant Documents

See Water licensing fees: frequently asked questions for more information.

Planning for approvals

Parallel processing can help reduce a proposal’s overall approval timeline. DMIRS and DWER are committed to parallel processing of environmental applications where multiple approvals are required.

Assessment

How your application is assessed.

DWER can assess applications to construct/alter a well, to take water and to interfere with beds and banks at the same time. However, assessing an application to take water may take longer, depending on the complexity of your application. You should know that the granting of a 26D licence to construct/alter a well does not guarantee the granting of a 5C licence to take water.

DWER assesses these matters in accordance with Schedule 1, Division 2, clause 7(2) of the Rights in Water and Irrigation Act 1914.

Complex applications

If your application is complex or seeks a large volume of water, DWER may ask you to:

Relevant Documents

The department will request this further information within a certain timeframe. See Operational Policy 5.11: Timely submission of required further information.

Advertising

The department may require you to advertise your application.

The department decision takes into account any submissions from advertisements received during the assessment process

Other agency requirements

DWER must meet its obligations under other legislation such as the Environmental Protection Act 1986 and Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.

Water in mining guideline

DWER has developed a Water in Mining guideline to help the mining industry meet its regulatory requirements under the RiWI Act, relevant policies and water allocation plans. The guideline provides policy principles relevant to the mining industry and detailed information about each stage of the process.

DWER recognises that mine proponents may require approval from several government agencies. To reduce duplication, it has aligned the guideline with the approval processes of:

Relevant Documents

The Western Australian water in mining guideline is available online.

Decision

How to manage an active water application.

Grant of a licence/permit

DWER will send an email to the contact given in your Water Online application. If your application is successful, your approved issue letter and a copy of your licence/permit will be attached.

DWER usually issues a licence to take water for a term of 10 years. It issues a licence to construct and/or alter a well or a permit to alter beds and banks for 2 years or a specific term.

Application refusal 

DWER cannot always grant a licence or permit.

DWER will send an email to the contact given in your Water Online application with the reason for refusal.

Post decision

What do you need to be aware of post decision.

Appeals

If you are unsatisfied, you can ask the State Administrative Tribunal to review DWER’s decision.

This may be because the department has:

  • refused your water licence application, or
  • applied terms, conditions or restrictions on your approved licence or permit that you disagree with.

You may have to pay an application fee. For more information, contact the State Administrative Tribunal.

Amendments

If you wish to amend your licence in any way, you must apply to amend it rather than apply to renew it. To find out how to amend a licence, see the water licensing frequently asked questions.

If you have questions about amending your licence, contact DWER’s online business support unit on 1800 508 885.

Renewal

If your licence is due for renewal, please apply via Water Online.

You must apply to renew a licence to take water before the licence expiry date. It may not be possible to reinstate an expired licence. DWER recommends you send your renewal application 60 to 90 days before it expires to enable continuity of your licence.

Non-renewable licences

DWER issues licences to construct or alter wells and beds and banks permits for a period long enough to complete the proposed work, and these do not need to be renewed.

Expired licence

If your licence has expired and you intend to access water, you must apply for a new licence (see How to apply for a licence or permit), or you may be liable to prosecution for unlicensed water use.

Note: If your water resource area has reached its allocation limit and your licence has expired, DWER may not grant a new licence to take water and trading or leasing water via an agreement may be your only option. See FAQ Transfers, trades and agreements.

Mining environmental approvals