Owners of a mixed cropping operation near Carrathool overdrew their water accounts by over 2000 megalitres during the drought period between October 2018 and November 2020.

The landholders at fault are being made to pay $200,000 as part of an 'enforceable undertaking'.

They will be paying $80,000 to Hay Shire Council to fund the redevelopment of a small park, as well as paying the National Resources Access regulator $25,000 in investigation costs and $100,000 in legal fees.

They'll also be made to pay for the pay for the 2280ML of overdrawn water, and surrender some licences and simplify others to make management of water accounts easier. They will also carry out three years of weekly manual meter readings under the state water accounting system to ensure they do not make this mistake again.

NRAR's Director Water Regulation West Graeme White said that they were taking the matter very seriously.

"The water was taken from the at-risk Murrumbidgee Deep Groundwater Source and represents enough water to fill more than 900 Olympic swimming pools."

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"When you take more than your allocation you are taking water from the environment, negatively affecting dependent ecosystems and restricting access to water for users who have followed the rules."

He encouraged others to take the warning.

"It's vital you know how much water you have to use ... It's a common misconception that you can purchase water after you've pumped. That's not true, you may be committing an offence if you overdraw your account."

NRAR has been cracking down on water use recently, instituting audits across the Lachlan, Lower Murrumbidgee and Namoi regions to monitor groundwater sources.

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