Realising capacity: Indigenous involvement in water law and policy reform in south-eastern Australia

Abstract

This article examines policy and legal changes in Australian water reform within the context of the Murray-Darling Basin, focusing on the ramifications of legislative change and the introduction of water planning for Indigenous communities. Although Indigenous interests in water have been recognised in policy making, legal recognition has been slow to follow. In an era of sweeping water policy and legislative reform in the Murray-Darling Basin there exist significant opportunities for greater inclusion of Indigenous cultural values in water resource allocation, entitlement and distribution frameworks and thus an increased capacity for the engagement of Indigenous people, their values and man..