Experiences in an Integrated Assessment of Water Allocation Issues in the Namoi River Catchment, Australia

The Namoi river catchment in northern NSW is an important irrigation region. However water resources in this region are increasingly stressed. Both surface and groundwater supplies are overallocated in many areas of the catchment. Management options to reduce allocations in line with available supply and environmental requirements are expected to have long term social, economic and environmental implications. This paper looks at an integrated assessment model which has been developed to assess long term outcomes of management options for water allocation in the catchment. The development of this tool has been undertaken using an iterative approach with key stakeholders. Feedback on the model and preferred future directions of development arising from discussions with relevant stakeholder groups are discussed. A key aspect of the model framework is that it has been developed to be general enough for reapplication to water allocation issues in other catchments Lessons are drawn from this experience in framework development for the field of integrated assessment.