Wimmera-Avoca catchment
Legend
Ramsar site
DIWA site
Holdings
The Australian Government does not currently hold entitlements in the Wimmera-Avoca catchment.
Environmental watering in the catchment in 2011-12
To date, there has been no Commonwealth environmental water used in the Wimmera-Avoca catchment in 2011-12.
Environmental watering in the catchment in previous years
To date, there has been no Commonwealth environmental watering in the Wimmera-Avoca catchment.
Catchment profile
Where is it?
The Wimmera-Avoca catchment is located in western Victoria and covers an area of 44,227 km2. The catchment centres on the Wimmera and Avoca Rivers. Neither river connects with the Murray River. Both rivers terminate in lakes and wetlands and play a critical role in supporting water-dependent species located there.
What makes this place so special?
The Avoca River terminates at the Kerang Wetlands, which are listed as Wetlands of International Importance under the Ramsar Convention. The Avoca River provides flows to the wetlands that in turn, provide habitat for a range of native and migratory species. Many of these species are listed and protected under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity and Conservation Act 1999. The Kerang Wetlands support communities of river red gum, black box and tangled lignum species that provide critical habitat for protected bird species.
The Wimmera River terminates at Lake Hindmarsh, the largest inland freshwater lake in Victoria. Lake Hindmarsh is nationally significant and is listed under the Directory of Important Wetlands of Australia. In wet years, water can overflow from the lake and fill Lake Albacutya, an internationally important wetland listed under the Ramsar Convention.
What does the latest science say about the ecological health of the catchment?
The Murray-Darling Basin Commission Sustainable Rivers Audit (SRA) rates the overall health of river ecosystems in the Murray-Darling Basin. The SRA reports the overall ecosystem health of both the Avoca Valley and Wimmera Valley as very poor.
The CSIRO Sustainable Yields Report produced two reports on current and future water availability relevant to the Wimmera-Avoca catchment. These reports, on the Wimmera region and the Loddon-Avoca regions can be used to obtain an indication of water availability for the Wimmera-Avoca catchment, as it is described above.