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Source functionality allows environmental flow rules to be implemented at individual points within the system and can be configured to reflect the interconnected, spatially and temporally diverse nature of ecological system requirements and the overall impact of environmental water holders on the rest of the system. This provides an explicitly defined, reliable environmental water management model in Source that can be easily related to the rest of the framework.  The functionality can be used to fully realise a fit for purpose integrated modelling framework for water resources planning and management that enables the representation of planning, use and accounting of environmental water, and that can be used to carry out an analysis of alternative policy scenarios for water allocation and use.  The implementation of tools to configure generalised rules is a better option than individual users configuring large numbers of custom functions (which is another option), for ease of use, management and transparency.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

The majority of environmental flow sharing rules that currently exist in major jurisdictional basin plans can be represented with the core functionality. The remainder will be able to be configured using custom functions. The new functionality will address management of environmental entitlements across a range of sites and for different purposes using the proposed Environmental Flow Manager.

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Table 1. Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder Framework for determining environmental watering actions 2009
 Extreme dryDryMedianWet
Ecological watering objectivesAvoid damage to key environmental assetsEnsure ecological capacity for recoveryMaintain ecological health and resilienceImprove and extend healthy and resilient aquatic ecosystems

Management objectives

  • Avoid critical loss of threatened species
  • Maintain key refuges
  • Avoid irretrievable damage or catastrophic events
  • Support the survival and growth of threatened species and communities including limited small-scale recruitment
  • Maintain diverse habitats
  • Maintain low flow river and floodplain functional processes in sites and reaches of priority assets
  • Enable growth, reproduction and small-scale recruitment for a diverse range of flora and fauna
  • Promote low-lying floodplain-river connectivity
  • Support medium flow river and floodplain functional processes
  • Enable growth, reproduction and large-scale recruitment for a diverse range of flora and fauna
  • Promote higher floodplain-river connectivity
  • Support high flow river and floodplain functional processes
Management actions
  • Water refugia and sites supporting threatened species and communities
  • Undertake emergency watering at specific sites of priority assets
  • Use carryover volumes to maintain critical needs
  • Water refugia and sites supporting threatened species and communities
  • Provide low flow and freshes in sites and reaches of priority assets
  • Use carryover volumes to maintain follow-up watering
  • Prolong flood/high-flow duration at key sites and reaches of priority assets
  • Contribute to the full-range of in-channel flows
  • Use carryover to provide optimal seasonal flow patterns in subsequent years
  • Increase flood/high-flow duration and extent across priority assets
  • Contribute to the full range of flows including over-bank
  • Use carryover to provide optimal seasonal flow patterns in subsequent years
Key goalDamage avoidanceCapacity for recoveryMaintained health and resilienceImproved health and resilience

Environmental flows are represented and managed in Source using two main mechanisms, the Environmental Flow Node (EFN) and the Environmental Flow Manager (EFM).

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