Water Rights - Non Urban

[Citroënbender]

A friend was asking me about this the other day, I have no idea on the “lay of the land”. With respect to non-urban areas:

If you discover a previously unknown groundwater source on your own property (eg, an aquifer), do you have anything beyond riparian rights; can you pipe it to another or sell/lease the right to do this?

Similarly, if you have a mining lease and find new groundwater, does your lease confer any rights to this asset?

All the information I could find, related to trading or transfer of entitlements in known water assets - obviously a busy market at present.

[roKWiz]

I know of a farmer up in Stanley (7km from Beechworth) reselling his found spring water on, to a bottling plant in Melbourne.
I recall all the Beechworth townies are up in arms saying he is selling their water but most of Beechworth's water is supplied from the other direction and further up a different mountain. From memory I think he was after selling rights, something to do with Coke/Amital

The farmer I do work for out at Bungeet, wastes at his guess, 50 000 litres a day running from a spring at the back of his property.
He recently converted an ex milk tanker to supply water to other farms in his area who aren't quite so lucky to have a running spring.

Most farms around Springhurst make good use of the natural running springs that surround the town and supplying others without water on their farms.

Legality ???..... no one really cares as they all need it.

[Citroënbender]

Wish I was so lucky! Good that wastage is being noticed and quantified. Yes, it’s a larger quantity type of potential situation.

[roKWiz]

Fills that 40ft tanker in no time, problem is some others around Bungeet don't care for spring water. Tastes beaut, I fill a few water tanks when I'm working there.

Property on the Beechworth-Wang Rd has a self filling 130year old well that has never gone dry according to the generation family living there.