The Government is making changes to freshwater farm plans to create a simpler, cheaper system focused on real risk, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay and Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard say.

"Farmers told us this system was too costly and too complicated for the risk involved on many properties. These changes fix that,”Mr McClay says.

“An Amendment Paper to the Natural Environment Bill, will ensure that where certification is required, it will apply only on the part of the farm where higher risk activity occurs.”

Regulations will now be drafted that deliver on the ACT-National Coalition commitment to improve farm plans, so they are more cost effective and pragmatic for farmers.

“We can now get on with the regulations that will implement the new farm plan system. These regulations will specify the higher risk activities that will trigger the need for a farmer to have their plan certified and audited.” Mr Hoggard says.

Certification and audit will only be required where higher-risk activities are carried out, such as:

Other features of the new Freshwater Farm Plan Regulations are:

“The improved regulations will also allow farmers and industry organisations five years, from when the system is switched on, to develop freshwater farm plans and have them certified, or declared to councils. A re-certification of the plan will only be required every six years, up from the current five-year cycle, with an audit only required once in that six-year cycle.”

This builds on the freshwater farm plan package already announced inAugust2025, including lifting the thresholds for requiring a farm plan up from 20ha to 50ha for pastoral and arable farms, and introducing risk based certification.

“All farms that meet the threshold will still need to prepare and hold a farm plan, and declare it to their council, but they will not need it certified or audited if they fit into the lower risk category.”

“We've also set up a pathway for Industry Organisations to provide certification and audit services to their members when their plans are delivering equivalent outcomes, avoiding duplication. As a farmer I hate having to do a job twice, especially if it involves paperwork”.

"Once the regulations are in place, we'll be helping farmers get their plans sorted so they're ready to go under the new planning system, where they will play a key role.” Mr Hoggard says.

"Taken together, these changes result in a system that is risk-based, focuses on managing those actual water quality risks, avoids unnecessary duplication, and reduces costs," Mr McClay and Mr Hoggard say.