Legislative Council Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2) 52 2 Parliament of South Australia Legislative Council published Answers to Questions Mount Lofty Ranges Water Allocation Plans MOUNT LOFTY RANGES WATER ALLOCATION PLANS The Hon. J.A. DARLEY Legislative Council MOUNT LOFTY RANGES WATER ALLOCATION PLANS In reply to the Hon. J.A. DARLEY (3 May 2012). The Hon. I.K. HUNTER Legislative Council Minister for Communities and Social Inclusion, Minister for Social Housing, Minister for Disabilities, Minister for Youth, Minister for Volunteers MOUNT LOFTY RANGES WATER ALLOCATION PLANS The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (Minister for Communities and Social Inclusion, Minister for Social Housing, Minister for Disabilities, Minister for Youth, Minister for Volunteers): The Minister for Water and the River Murray has been advised: The Department is committed to ensuring the accuracy of the data that it uses to manage the State's water resources. The Department has spent considerable effort to assess its dam measurement methodologies. The Department uses a number of scientifically validated methods which have been trialled on dams across the Mount Lofty Ranges to estimate the capacity of farm dams. These methods include a simple method based on an assessment of the surface area of the dam and more sophisticated methods which use a range of measurements. Nearly all licensed dams in both the Eastern and Western Mount Lofty Ranges, except for a number of quite small dams (1 ML or less) have been measured twice using both the surface area method and measurements collected from site visits. The Department recognises that any dam measurement is an estimate and has a process in place to resolve any case where a landholder disagrees with an estimate. Should a landholder disagree with the Department's assessment, the Department is prepared to reassess the volume of the dam or alternatively accept an estimate from a bathymetric survey of the dam undertaken by licensed surveyor engaged by the landholder. This surveyed capacity is then adopted by the Department for the purposes of determining the allowable annual extraction from the subject dam. The Department is happy to reassess the dam in question if the Hon. J.A. Darley can supply the location and property details.