Guideline 
        Environmental Protection (Water and Wetland Biodiversity) 
                                                Policy 2019 
                      Deciding aquatic ecosystem indicators and  
                             local water quality guideline values 
                                                March 2022
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
         
        Prepared by: Environmental Policy and Planning Division, Department of Environment and Science 
         
        © State of Queensland, 2022. 
         
        The Department of Environment and Science acknowledges Aboriginal peoples and Torres Strait 
        Islander peoples as the Traditional Owners and custodians of the land. We recognise their connection 
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        obligations under the Human Rights Act 2019. 
         
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        For more information on this licence, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 
         
        Disclaimer 
        This document has been prepared with care, based on the best available information at the time of publication. 
        The department holds no responsibility for any errors or omissions within this document. Any decisions made 
        by other parties based on this document are solely the responsibility of those parties. Information contained in 
        this document is from a number of sources and, as such, does not necessarily represent government or 
        departmental policy. 
         
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        March 2022 
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                Table of Contents 
                1    Introduction .................................................................................................................... 4 
                   1.1    This Guideline ......................................................................................................... 4 
                   1.2    Background............................................................................................................. 4 
                   1.3    Overview of the water quality management process ............................................... 5 
                   1.4    Layout of this document .......................................................................................... 7 
                2    Aquatic Ecosystem Protection: levels of protection & management goals ...................... 9 
                3    Definition of water types and waterbody zones ............................................................ 10 
                4    Definition of indicators .................................................................................................. 13 
                5    Development of local physical and chemical guideline values for aquatic ecosystem 
                protection ............................................................................................................................ 14 
                   5.1    General approaches ............................................................................................. 14 
                     5.1.1     Guideline values for physical-chemical indicators based on ecological effects14 
                     5.1.2     Guideline values for physical-chemical indicators based on reference site data
                               15 
                   5.2    Development of local physical-chemical guidelines for aquatic ecosystem protection 
                   for Queensland waters .................................................................................................... 15 
                     5.2.1     Overview ........................................................................................................ 15 
                     5.2.2     High ecological value (HEV) waters ............................................................... 17 
                     5.2.3     Slightly disturbed (SD) waters ........................................................................ 17 
                     5.2.4     Moderately disturbed (MD) waters ................................................................. 18 
                     5.2.5     Highly Disturbed (HD) waters ......................................................................... 23 
                   5.3    Deriving local water quality guideline values and objectives for Great Barrier Reef 
                   coastal / marine waters .................................................................................................... 24 
                     5.3.1     Plume line derivation ...................................................................................... 25 
                     5.3.2     Marine waters seaward of the plume line ....................................................... 25 
                     5.3.3     Marine waters landward of the plume line ...................................................... 25 
                     5.3.4     Comparison of test site data with EPP Water WQOs (or water quality guideline 
                     values)  26 
                   5.4    Derivation of groundwater quality guideline values................................................ 26 
                Appendix 1: Deriving flow stratified guideline values ........................................................... 31 
                Appendix 2: Toxicant guidelines .......................................................................................... 37 
                Appendix 3: Guideline values for freshwater salinity and major component ions ................. 38 
                Appendix 4: Salinity in coastal and estuary waters .............................................................. 40 
                Appendix 5: pH guideline values ......................................................................................... 42 
                 
                 
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          1  Introduction 
          1.1  This Guideline 
          This document informs the development of water quality guideline values to enhance or 
          protect the ‘aquatic ecosystem’ environmental value, for Queensland waters, in accordance 
          with the provisions of the Environmental Protection (Water and Wetland Biodiversity) Policy 
          2019 (EPP (Water and Wetland Biodiversity)). These guideline values are the scientific basis 
          of water quality objectives (WQOs) which protect or enhance the stated environmental 
          values (EVs) of waters and are included in Schedule 1 of the EPP (Water and Wetland 
          Biodiversity). Although WQOs are based on guideline values in some cases the objectives 
          may be amended from the scientifically derived guideline values due to economic and/or 
          social considerations. This document is focussed on development of guideline values but 
          includes limited consideration of the subsequent process of deriving water quality objectives. 
          This document outlines protocols for comparing test site water quality against relevant water 
          quality objectives recognised under the EPP (Water and Wetland Biodiversity), including for 
          example, as input to regional report cards. 
          Guideline values developed using the methods of this document aim to protect and maintain 
          the condition of minimally impacted waters and seek to improve those which are moderately 
          or highly disturbed. These methods are designed for developing guideline values as input to 
          WQOs to be scheduled under the EPP (Water and Wetland Biodiversity) and may not be 
          suitable for application in determining Environmental Authority (EA) release limits or in 
          environmental impact assessment of Environmentally Relevant Activities. For the purposes 
          of deriving EA limits, refer to relevant guideline documents available on the department 
          website.  
          Prior to determining the need for local WQOs, readers should firstly review whether local 
          environmental values and water quality objectives have been, or are being, established by 
          the department under the EPP (Water and Wetland Biodiversity) for their waters. Refer to 
          the department website for information: 
          https://environment.des.qld.gov.au/water/policy/index.html. 
          The scope of this document is limited to guideline values for physical and chemical 
          indicators for aquatic ecosystem protection, excluding anthropogenic toxicants. However, 
          guideline values for metals may be derived using this document where natural background 
          levels exceed ANZG 2018 default guideline values (DGVs, previously termed ‘trigger 
          values’). The application of the ANZG 2018 toxicant DGVs in Queensland is summarised in 
          Appendix 2.  
          Guideline values for human use environmental values (e.g. drinking water, recreation, 
          suitability for stock watering, crop irrigation etc.) are generally sourced from relevant state or 
          national guideline documents. 
           
          1.2  Background 
          The purpose of the EPP (Water and Wetland Biodiversity) is to achieve the objective of the 
          Environmental Protection Act 1994 in relation to Queensland waters— that is, to protect 
          Queensland’s water environment whilst allowing for development that is ecologically 
          sustainable. 
          Section 5 of the EPP (Water and Wetland Biodiversity) states the purpose of the EPP (Water 
          and Wetland Biodiversity) is achieved by— 
          4