Residents call on Minister to reject 3.3 gigalitre Roper River water licence

The NT Department of Environment, Parks and Water Security published a notice announcing their intention to make a water licence extraction decision regarding an application by Australian Ilmenite Resources this week.

The licence would allow the company to pump 3.3 gigalitres, or 3.3 billion litres, of water from the Roper each year for its mine located around 100km east of Mataranka.

Public consultation on the licence will not open until January 21 because of an error that lead to the notice being published a month early, the Katherine Times understands.

Comments will be open until February 21.

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Greg Dickson, a linguist who works in the Aboriginal community of Ngukkur, which is situated on the banks of the Roper, said the water licence application is just one of a number of major works taking place within the catchment.

"It seems like there's no comprehensive plan for what to do with the whole catchment. There's no overarching management," he said.

"There's so much stuff happening - land clearing, mining, cotton, fracking. They all use water and all have an impact on the environment.

"It's kind of death by a thousand cuts for the Roper River at the moment."

He said the communication and consultation from the NT Government around projects which impact communities that rely on the river, like Ngukkur, has been poor.

"People in Ngukkur dont know what's happening upstream'," he said.

"It's the biggest community on the Roper and my impression is they're completely in the dark about these plans and ideas. Well they're not plans and ideas - they're already happening."

Environment Centre NT Co-Director Dr Kirsty Howey said the licence would put too much additional pressure on the Roper, which is deemed "a highly valued resource."

"Dry season flows are completely dependent on those aquifers discharging, we've just seen continued pressure on the Roper catchment," she said.

"It's a controversial license because it's absolutely bloody huge. We're getting calls left right and center about it, to be honest, and people are really worried.

"The Roper is magnificent and it's the river that people in Katherine love."

An NT Government spokesperson said the decision to grant or not grant a water licence was governed by the Water Act and Regulations.

"The Act and the policy settings in place do not allow water to be allocated under a licence if the water is not available; there will be a reduction in flows greater than 20% at any time in any part of the river as a result of consumptive use, unless supported by directly related scientific research; or if there is an impact on water availability for other water users," the spokesperson said.

"The public notification process is important to help inform and advise on these impacts. As is the detailed water assessment using the Daly Roper Model."

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