The Premier of NSW asked the NRC to provide advice on how natural resource management funding can be allocated between Catchment Management Authorities (CMAs). Terms of Reference for the review were received on 5 March 2008.
The Government sought advice on a process for allocating funding that would maximise the likelihood of achieving improvements in natural resource condition across NSW. The NRC submitted its report to the Premier, Allocating NRM funding between NSW Catchment Management Authorities, on 4 April 2008.
The NRC has recommended a 6 stage process for determining funding allocations. The process aims to maximise likely return on investment by basing allocations on the priorities of investing government(s) and the likely effectiveness of CMAs in delivering results. The process, and the assessments presented in the report can be adaptively managed and improved as better information becomes available.
In developing this advice the NRC held three consultation meetings with the stakeholders specified in the Terms of Reference, and sought submissions on a draft version of the report from those stakeholders. The NRC also obtained peer reviews of the recommendations to ensure they are sound and credible.
The NRC has outlined steps to implement its recommended process and has undertaken an assessment using these steps to illustrate how the process works.
The 6 stage decision making process involves the use of a decision support tool to calculate possible proportional allocations. This is a test version of the tool (version 1.0) and the NRC welcomes any feedback. This version of the tool replicates the weightings, rankings and results presented in the report.
This tool should be considered in the context of the 6-stage process outlined in the report. It is not designed to give a definitive answer – it is part of the overall decision making process and any outputs of the modelling should be evaluated as described in the recommendation report.
The tool has been designed so that it can accept assessments against all of the state-wide targets, and so that it can be adapted to assess against any set of priorities.
If you would like to discuss how the tool and process can be adapted for another purpose, or to send any comments, please contact the NRC or call 8227 4300.