Sustainable Ground Water Management
Across Victoria
Total funding:Up to $4.25 million from the Australian Government and $4.25 million from the Victorian Government.
About the project
The proposal aims to support sustainable management of groundwater across Victoria and includes the following components:
- undertaking groundwater resource appraisals and investigations into surface water and groundwater interactions, including the establishment of Water Supply Protection Areas and the development of groundwater management plans
- investigation and assessment of the Latrobe Aquifer in Gippsland, including the impact on Yarram irrigators from falling water levels
- developing a "Groundwater Health Index" to provide a way to track groundwater condition over time
- a snapshot of groundwater quality across the State identifying key sites for targeted ongoing water quality sampling.
Project Outcomes and Benefits
The proposal aims to:
- enable a significant improvement to be made to the health of Victoria's aquifers whilst protecting those that are currently in good condition
- ensure that the groundwater component of the environmental water reserve is managed efficiently and effectively
- enable improvements in water accounting, compliance with licence volumes and water sharing.
The proposal will advance the National Water Initiative objectives of addressing future adjustment issues; recognition of the connectivity between surface and groundwater resources; and statutory provision for environmental and other public benefit outcomes.
Progress
The impact assessment of the Latrobe aquifer, the development of a Groundwater Health Index and the snapshot of groundwater quality have been completed.
Groundwater resource appraisals and Latrobe Aquifer monitoring bore network works are continuing.
Water Smart Australia projects are funded by the Australian Government's Water for the Future initiative.
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