Catchment Management Authorities (CMAs) have been established across New South Wales to ensure that regional communities have a say in how natural resources are managed in their catchments.

Thirteen CMAs are working with farmers, Landcare and other ‘carer’ groups, Aboriginal communities, local government, industry and state agencies to respond to the key natural resource management (NRM) issues facing their catchments.  The specific functions of CMAs are described in the Catchment Management Authorities Act 2003.

The CMAs are responsible for managing natural resources at the catchment scale. Key roles include preparing Catchment Action Plans (CAPs) and managing incentive programs to implement the plans. The preparation of CAPs involves integrating previous work with the latest information and science and with local knowledge.