The water entitlements issued in irrigation districts managed by Tasmanian Irrigation include irrigation rights and delivery rights.
Please view our Water Entitlement Fact Sheet.
Irrigation rights
Irrigation rights confer entitlements to have an allocation of water made available for delivery during each irrigation season of an irrigation district. The entitlement arising under irrigation rights is defined as a volume and denominated in megalitre (ML) units. The allocations made to irrigation rights for an irrigation season are calculated by multiplying:
- the entitlement held under irrigation rights on the opening day of the season; and
- the allocation percentage notified by Tasmanian Irrigation before the start of the season and any revision made to the allocation percentage during the season.
If revisions are made to the allocation percentage during a season, the resulting allocations will be made on the basis of the entitlement held under irrigation rights on the day the revision is notified. Where the system of delivery rights operates, irrigation rights do not provide secure rights to have water delivered but do so when held in conjunction with delivery rights.
Delivery rights
Delivery rights confer entitlements to a share of the capacity of a scheme to deliver water within a zone during each irrigation season (or a delivery period of each irrigation season) of an irrigation district. The entitlement arising under delivery rights is defined as a flow rate and denominated in megalitre per day (ML/day) units.
Delivery rights provide assurance that capacity is available to deliver water at a set rate, when and to where it is required. Flow rate entitlements give certainty over the timing of supply and introduce a tradable product through which irrigators can plan water deliveries, manage seasonal risks and maximise the benefit of their entitlements.
Trading
The entitlements under irrigation rights and delivery rights are tradable within the district in which they are issued. Because water entitlements are separate from land, a person does not need to own land within a district to receive a transfer of water entitlements.