Terry Hogan describes how the issue of water management stirred public debate when he headed the Natural Resources Department. He notes that water storage infrastructure and water availability have perennially been policy problems for the Queensland government.

Ken Smith describes his work in large departments and how they confront significant disasters such as drought. He describes the creation of water supply systems that were non-rain dependent. He also notes some of the contingency plans that were put into place in case it did not rain.