Water Meters Requirement for Water Meters
Tasmanian Water Metering Initiative
Selection and Installation
Further Information
 The Department is taking action to increase the level of metering of water that is taken and used for commercial purposes under a DPIW licence. These developments recognise the growing need to obtain data through water metering in order to assist in improving management of water resources at the property, regional and Statewide levels.
Benefits to the licence holder of meters include: - better monitoring of on-farm water use and irrigation efficiency:
- better monitoring of pump and irrigation system performance; and
- improved matching of irrigation to crop water requirements.
Metering will also assist the Department to better manage Tasmania's water resources by: - facilitating better water resource management and planning to provide the optimum economic, social and environmental outcomes from water use;
- enabling improved compliance with licence conditions, and restrictions and bans to ensure the protection of both water users' legal entitlements and the environment; and
- reducing the illegal taking of water above allocations.
The Tasmanian Water Management Act 1999, under which water licences are issued, provides that the Minister may require the installation of a meter by any person taking water from a State resource, but until 2003 it had only been required in specific cases. Since 2003, DPIPWE has extended metering more broadly in recognition of its importance for water management and planning.
The move to ensure that all significant licensed water users are metered follows a commitment made when Tasmania became a signatory to the National Water Initiative (NWI) in 2005. The NWI is a comprehensive strategy driven by the Australian Government to improve water management nationwide, and sets out objectives, outcomes and actions and time lines for ongoing water reform. Improving water metering and measuring are among its goals. 
The intention is that all those DPIPWE water licence holders whose allocated take under licence represents a significant proportion of the total water allocated in the relevant catchment will be metered within the next few years.
This program will be undertaken on a catchment basis. The relevant licensees will be informed in writing of the process that will be applied, including a broad indication of the timetable for their catchment. Following a visit from a DPIPWE Officer, the licensee will be advised of the locations at which meters are required and a date by which they will need to be installed. In the case of the issue of new water licences and the transfer of allocations, licence holders may be required to act by installing meters as part of the relevant allocation and transfer procedures. In addition some licensees may be required to install meters in order to address specific management or compliance needs.
By adopting this process it is planned that all significant water taken under a DPIPWE licence for commercial use will be metered within the next few years.
In all cases, it is the responsibility of the licensee to make sure that appropriate meters are purchased and installed. The meter and its installation will have to be compliant with the Department of Primary Industries and Water Meter Standard. It is recommended that this document is read and understood by both the licensee and any third party involved in the installation the meter. To further assist in meter selection and installation, a booklet is available, entitled "Water Meters – A Guide for DPIPWE Licensees" This is a Portable Document Format (PDF) file and requires the use of Adobe Acrobat Reader. The Reader is easy to download and is free of charge.
This is a Portable Document Format (PDF) file and requires the use of Adobe Acrobat Reader. The Reader is easy to download and is free of charge.
It is strongly recommended that the services of a professional service provider are used to ensure that all technical specifications for each meter are met. To verify that all water meters and their installation comply with the Water Meter Standard, an inspection of all meters will be undertaken by Departmental officers. Meters and installations that do not meet the requirements of the Water Meter Standard will need to be modified in order to become compliant, so it is important to ensure that the meters you select and their installations are compliant in the first place.
If you have any questions relating to meter or your water licence, and wish to discuss them with the Department, please contact your Regional Water Management Officer in the first instance.
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