Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2024C00760:front:0:p63
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2024C00760
Segment Type: other
Provision Reference: 
Character Range: 171725–175264

may also do any or all of the following:
            (a) identify:
                (i) particular priority environmental assets or priority ecosystem functions, and their environmental watering requirements, using the methods in Part 5; or
                     Note: See also subsection 8.15(2).
                (ii) multi‑site watering objectives and associated flow regimes, including for the northern connected system and the southern connected system; or
                (iii) end‑of‑system targets for environmental outcomes;
            (b) provide guidance about:
                (i) how Basin annual environmental watering priorities should be integrated with broader natural resource management strategies; or
                (ii) how the Authority will identify synergies in environmental watering activities or resolve conflicting demands for available environmental water in the course of preparing the Basin annual environmental watering priorities;
            (c) make recommendations:
                (i) relating to what constitutes best practice in planning, prioritisation and use of environmental water, including decision‑making and priority‑setting; or
                (ii) about periodic environmental watering schedules;
Note: See also sections 29 to 31 of the Act.
            (d) include any other matter the Authority considers appropriate.

8.15 Preparation of Basin‑wide environmental watering strategy

Consultation requirements
(1) The Authority must prepare the Basin‑wide environmental watering strategy in consultation with:
            (a) Basin States; and
            (b) the Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder.
(2) The identification of particular assets or functions, and their requirements, under subparagraph 8.14(2)(a)(i) must be done in collaboration with:
            (a) relevant land owners or managers and relevant river operators; and
            (b) any holders of held environmental water or managers of planned environmental water that may be called upon to provide water to meet those environmental watering requirements.
(3) If any disagreement arises during the consultation or collaboration referred to in subsection (1) or (2), the view of the Authority prevails.

Matters to which Authority must have regard
(4) When preparing the Basin‑wide environmental watering strategy, the Authority must have regard to each of the following, where these relate to achieving objectives in Part 2:
            (a) any advice prepared by a committee established under section 203 of the Act for the purpose of advising the Authority on issues relating to environmental watering;
            (b) the advice of river operators;
            (c) the water quality and salinity objectives and targets specified in the water quality and salinity management plan in Chapter 9;
            (d) the views of:
                (i) local communities, including bodies established by a Basin State that express community views in relation to environmental watering; and
                (ii) persons materially affected by the management of environmental water;
            (e) Indigenous values and Indigenous uses;
            (f) optimising social, economic and environmental outcomes;
            (g) any other consultation or information the Authority considers relevant.
(5) The Basin‑wide environmental watering strategy must be developed consistently with the principles to be applied in environmental watering (Division 6).

8.16 Publication of Basin‑wide environmental watering strategy
(1) The