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Bioregional assessments are independent scientific assessments of the potential cumulative impacts of coal seam gas (CSG) and coal mining developments on water resources and water-dependent assets such as rivers, wetlands and groundwater systems. These regional-scale assessments focus on 13 areas across Queensland, NSW, Victoria and SA where coal resource development is taking place, or could take place.

The assessments rule out areas where impacts on water resources and water-dependent assets are very unlikely (with a less than 5% chance). The zone of potential hydrological change (Box 5) identifies where potential impacts cannot be ruled out. Governments, industry and the community can then focus on areas that are potentially impacted and apply local-scale modelling when making regulatory, water management and planning decisions.

The assessment investigates:

the characteristics of the subregion, including water resources, assets, and coal and CSG resources (Component 1)
how future coal resource development could affect surface water and groundwater quantity (Component 2)
how hydrological changes could impact on water-dependent ecosystems and assets (Component 3 and Component 4).

The assessments consider potential changes in water quantity and some impacts related to salinity but they do not assess a full suite of impacts on water quality.

The assessment of the Galilee subregion, part of the Lake Eyre Basin Bioregional Assessment, is reported in 12 technical products (Box 2), which are summarised in this synthesis.

Box 2 The technical products for the Galilee subregion

Component 1: Contextual information

1.1 Context statement

1.2 Coal and coal seam gas resource assessment

1.3 Description of the water-dependent asset register

1.5 Current water accounts and water quality

1.6 Data register

Component 2: Model-data analysis

2.1-2.2 Observations analysis, statistical analysis and interpolation

2.3 Conceptual modelling

2.5 Water balance assessment

2.6.1 Surface water numerical modelling

2.6.2 Groundwater numerical modelling

2.7 Receptor impact modelling

Component 3 and Component 4: Impact and risk analysis

3-4 Impact and risk analysis

The pages of this synthesis follow this colour guide when describing the assessment outputs. Product 1.4 (receptor register) and product 2.4 (two- and three-dimensional visualisations) were not produced for any bioregional assessment as evolution of the methods rendered them obsolete.

FIND MORE INFORMATION

www.bioregionalassessments.gov.au includes all technical products as well as information about all datasets used or created, most of which can be downloaded from data.gov.au. Additional resources are listed in this synthesis, and include methodologies, maps, models and lists of water-dependent assets, ecosystems and potential hazards. Users can visualise where potential impacts might occur using a map-based interface on the BA Explorer, available at www.bioregionalassessments.gov.au/explorer/GAL.

References, further reading and datasets are listed at the end of this synthesis.

Last updated:

6 December 2018

Product Finalisation date

Numbered headings

ASSESSMENT

PRODUCT DATA