Report 8: 2018

Management of Salinity

Audit focus and scope

The audit assessed the management of salinity in the agricultural regions of the South West of WA. This is defined by the area roughly west of a line from Kalbarri to Esperance. The audit focused on 2 lines of inquiry:

  1. Do agencies know the extent and impact of dryland salinity in the South West agricultural regions?
  2. Are efforts to reduce the impacts of dryland salinity in the South West agricultural regions working?

We focused on the management of dryland salinity by DPIRD, DBCA and DWER. In conducting the audit, we:

  • reviewed plans and policies and key documents for managing dryland salinity
  • interviewed staff at DPIRD, DBCA, and DWER
  • visited the South West agricultural area and met with 7 local governments and a number of landholders to discuss dryland salinity, observe different salinity management options and dryland salinity impacts
  • met with key stakeholders and industry groups.

This was a broad scope performance audit, conducted under section 18 of the Auditor General Act 2006 and in accordance with Australian Auditing and Assurance Standards. Performance audits focus primarily on the effective management and operation of agency programs and activities. The approximate cost of tabling this audit was $269,000.

 

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