The Water Act 2000 includes provisions to manage the take of overland flow water. Overland flow water is water that runs across the land after rainfall either before it enters a watercourse, after it leaves a watercourse as floodwater, or after it rises to the surface naturally from underground._x000D_
To ensure adequate environmental flows and long-term security for water users, it is necessary to balance the amount of water taken as overland flow water and the amount left to flow into watercourses. A water resource plan made under the Water Act 2000 establishes the basis for the sustainable management of this type of water._x000D_
Of the water resource plans that have been prepared for Queensland catchments, six include provisions to manage the take of overland flow water. This paper discusses some of the common features of these plans and the management approaches adopted._x000D_
The paper identifies and explains key aspects of the Water Act 2000 framework for managing the take of overland flow water by the mining industry. In particular it explains key concepts of this framework, such as the ability to take overland flow water using existing works, uses of overland flow water that a water resource plan permits, situations where a specific entitlement under the Water Act 2000 is required, and the means for controlling works that take overland flow water. Future initiatives for the regulation and management of overland flow water are then identified and particular challenges for the mining industry associated with using overland flow water highlighted._x000D_
FORMAL CITATION:Carpenter, J and Marler, K, 2006._x000D_
Regulation of overland flow in Queensland - implications for the mining industry, in Proceedings Water in Mining 2006, pp 171-176 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).