Water Management

A 30-year water licence in the Northern Territory is believed to be one of the largest ever awarded in Australia, and traditional owners are hoping to overturn it.

A company has revealed plans to mine sand in the Northern Territory. It is also exploring for silica sand, which it says could be sold to Asian countries for solar panel production.

Recycled water, currently running out to sea, could be the key to growing more food in Australia and reducing reliance on imported and canned food. 

Faced with declining water conditions and devastating drought, river red gums have suffered along some parts of the Murray River. But watering programs are bringing Country back to life.

Richard Beasley's appointment comes after a federal government-commissioned report found the 450GL of environmental water promised to SA under the Murray-Darling Basin Plan won't be delivered on time.

Months of flood conditions across western NSW has Burrendong Dam threatening to spill into already inundated rivers, as saturated embankments collapse.

Barnaby Joyce continues to back the proposal for a new dam near Tamworth, despite a damning review from Infrastructure Australia.

Farmers say two major gold mines in central western NSW could be too much for their groundwater as they wait to learn the impacts of damage that halted underground operations a month ago.

Drought has consumed much of Queensland for the past decade or more, but little is known of who decides which regions are officially drought declared and able to access financial help.

One of the world's largest reservoirs — the Great Artesian Basin — springs back to life, bringing potentially new species with it.

A narrow section of the Murray River has seen its water flow capacity reduced by thousands of megalitres since the 1980s due to a build-up of sand. The Murray Darling Basin Authority are working on a solution, but none will come easily. 

For nearly 40 years, committees made up of anonymous members have helped decide who officially stays in and out of drought across Queensland. Graziers say the system isn't working.

Barbeques with friends and "the great Australian outdoor lifestyle" are off the table in Shepparton as repulsive odours continue to linger.

Residents of an inland city have been shocked to learn their drinking water has not had fluoride added to it for three-and-a-half years.

The proposed $1.3 billion Dungowan Dam near Tamworth would only produce 27 cents for every dollar invested, according to a summary of the business case obtained by the NSW Greens. Water Minister Kevin Anderson disputes the claim.

In paddocks, corn fields and village streets across Turkey's Konya plain, strange holes are appearing and swallowing up chunks of land in the nation's breadbasket. 

The Hume Dam, which is the main supply storage of the Murray River system, is at 95 per cent storage capacity.

Five years after Katherine residents first heard their drinking water was contaminated with PFAS sites where the foam was used are being dug up, and dirt trucked out of town. Roxanne Fitzgerald reports.

Authorities are warning landholders downstream of the Hume Dam near Albury-Wodonga to prepare for flooding as spring approaches and the Murray system at full allocation for the first time in 20 years.

A timer that turns off the taps for people spending too long in the shower, a drinking device operated by pets, regional STEM students in South Australia are coming up with inventions to reduce water use.

Hundreds of gigalitres that were promised to the Murray-Darling system by 2024 will be impossible to deliver, investigators have found — but the new federal government is doubling down on the promise.

For the first time irrigators in northern NSW valleys will have to measure their flood plain harvesting take, but southern NSW water users say they are still allowed to take more than their fair share. 

The delivery of 450 gigalitres of environmental water for South Australia has been a controversial topic — and irrigators say it is getting in the way of progress. 

The NSW government has met with stakeholders on the Menindee Lakes as part of a listening tour to get a better understanding of water issues, but locals say they need faster action.

A Melbourne project that includes a shopping centre and hundreds of homes is being touted as among the "world's most sustainable", but its revised plan for stormwater could put a dent in its environmental credentials.