Floodplain harvesting is due to be licenced and metered by July 1, 2021, but whether the practice is allowed between now and then has been a topic of endless debates, which have largely split water users between the north and south of the state.
In September a regulation put in place by NSW Water Minister Melinda Pavey - to ensure floodplain harvesting could occur following the 'first flush' event - was disallowed by the NSW Upper House with Shooters, Fishers and Farmers, Labor and the Greens uniting in opposition.
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Mrs Pavey attempted to have the disallowance reverted by tabling a rescission motion, the first seen since the 1990s. However, this was voted down by the Upper House 23 to 16 on Tuesday.
So, what happens now?
Mrs Pavey has said she plans to introduce a similar floodplain harvesting regulation as soon as she is allowed - on January 22.
The delay is due to parliament rules which outline that a similar regulation is not able to be introduced for four months following its disallowance.
"Our plan is that on January 22 we will have a new regulation to give certainty, but between now and then we have uncertainty," Mrs Pavey said.
It's worth noting that between now and then there is also widespread rainfall predicted - offering potential floodplain harvesting opportunities.
Amendment the key to balance?
However, there could be another possibility on the table.
Shooters, Fishers and Farmers party member and Barwon MP Roy Butler has suggested the Minister propose amendments to both the Water Management Act 2000 and the Water Act 1912.
"The drafting (of an amendment) we've given the Minister for (Water Act) 1912 allows her to manually share water," Mr Butler said.
"To use a public interest test for downstream communities and the environment, but also once downstream requirements have been met to allow partial take or some take of water so people can get a crop in, some of them for the first time in four years."
Mr Butler said everyone wanted the same thing - to have all forms of take in the water sharing plans by July 1.
"What we've got to deal with is this transition period at the moment," Mr Butler said.
"I think the key here is balance, that the communities down river get a good drink, that the weir pools are full, that the river has connectivity.
"At the same time it (the amendment) would allow some economic activity go on in parts of the electorate that have not had economic activity for a long time."
Tight time frame a spanner in the works
However, there is a spanner in the works. There is only one more sitting week of parliament left, and with the budget due to be handed down, it's set to be a busy one.
Mr Butler said if the government wanted to move the amendment through they could do so - despite the tight time period.
"I've seen this government move things through both houses in less than 12 hours," Mr Butler said.
Aside from what ends up happening next week, the other question was whether it was legal for irrigators to floodplain harvest without a regulation or an amendment to the Water Act?
Could floodplain harvesters be prosecuted?
Mr Butler said he couldn't see how a prosecution would be made against irrigators practicing floodplain harvesting.
"The regulatory environment we're in at the moment is no different to 2016, the only difference I can see is some of those (FPH) approvals have transitioned from 1912 to 2000," Mr Butler said.
"It wouldn't be procedurally fair to say to someone, 'nothings changed but now what you're doing which was ok, is now not ok.'"
The Natural Resources Access Regulator (NRAR), which enforces water laws in NSW, has also indicated it will not be focused on floodplain harvesting.
However, Mrs Pavey said advice from the Crown Solicitor's Office indicated there was still uncertainty around the legality of the practice.
"It confirmed what we knew and what is becoming clearer from my agency, that it was becoming more uncertain, all we are trying to do is give clarity," she said.
