New foreign water ownership rules

FARMERS are one step closer to knowing which foreign entities have a stake in Australian water supplies after legislation passed through the Federal Senate recently establishing a foreign ownership register for water assets.
The Victorian Farmers Federation welcomed the move which will complement the current land register and require the Australian Tax Office to be told of all foreign ownership of water assets from 1 December next year.
“The VFF has long argued for the establishment of a water register because farmers deserve a better understanding of ownership structures vital to our agricultural production,” VFF President David Jochinke said.
“Water is the backbone of the farming sector – especially our dairy and horticulture irrigation communities – with more than three quarters of Victorian water entitlements held in our northern irrigation districts.
“It makes sense that the ownership register Australia maintains for foreign owned land should be extended to our water assets.”
Until now, the ad hoc Australian Bureau of Statistics Agricultural Land and Water Ownership Survey (ALWOS) provided the only information on foreign investment in water resources.
The VFF expressed concern about the lack of transparency in ownership of both Australian agricultural land and water by foreign interests, but acknowledged the requirement for annual reporting to the ATO would provide much needed clarity around who owns what in the marketplace.
“More than 4,500,000 million litres of water entitlements are held on Victorian water systems,” Mr Jochinke said.
“The water market is becoming more active year on year with once off or ongoing trades between owners, including the environment.”
In the 2015-2016 season 2,737,000 million litres of water was traded within the bounds of Victoria.