NSW's anti-corruption commission has declined to investigate the management at Toorale National Park following concerns over unaccounted water use.

Barwon MP Roy Butler requested a probe around July from the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC).  

However, Mr Butler's office confirmed this week that the Commission declined the request in September, citing insufficient evidence of corrupt conduct.

The Commission said that the matter had more to do with procedural inconsistences, policy disputes and administrative decisions than dishonesty or deliberate wrongdoing.

Mr Butler said that the decision risked public trust in water governance.

“These decisions do nothing to build trust.

"Accountability and transparency in water management are essential, and this precedent undermines both,” Mr Butler said.  

"We cannot have two sets of rules - one for government agencies and another for farmers and river communities - when the Water Management Act makes no such distinction."

The 91,000-hectare national park used to be a sheep and irrigation property. [IMAGE: NSW government]

Toorale sits about 80 kilometres south west of Bourke and was bought by the NSW government for environmental conservation at around 2008.

Under NSW rules, environmental water and irrigation users need to measure and report the volume they take from rivers to ensure they stay within their allowance.

Between 2024-25, water watchdog the Natural Resources Access Regulator (NRAR) led a months-long investigation into Toorale, which is separate to the ICAC request.

They found that while water infrastructure operated in line with approval conditions, the park did not fully account for its water use.

The regulator issued a stop work order at Toorale in August 2025 for the matter to be rectified.

The order lifted in September after the NSW government changed approval conditions to align with the Water Management Act.

"The new conditions mean that all water diverted to the Western Floodplain at Toorale via Boera Dam, is debited against a corresponding water access licence," an NRAR spokesperson said.

"The amended conditions ensure environmental water being diverted from Boera Dam at Toorale is accounted for, providing more clarity and transparency around water management at Toorale National Park.

"NRAR did not take further enforcement action because the investigation did not identify any offences under the Water Management Act."

The Boera Dam was built in 2020 to release water into the Western Floodplain, which sits on the west bank of the Warrego River.

The water licence is held by the Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder, which is charged with using their allowances to protect and restore the Murray-Darling Basin.

A NSW government spokesperson said that the Water Holder does not own or operate the infrastructure.

"The CEWH supports the NSW investigation into appropriate operation of infrastructure by the NSW Department of Climate Change, Energy the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) and the accounting of water at Toorale. Clarity and transparency around water management decisions is critical for all water users," the DCCEEW spokesperson said.

"The CEWH is committed to achieving environmental outcomes for the Barwon-Darling River and on the Toorale Western Floodplain in a manner that is consistent with our licence conditions and legislative obligations."