Irrigation Allocations - November 2008
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Goulburn-Murray Water (G-MW)
G-MW announced increased allocations on the Murray and Goulburn systems on 3 November and 15 November, but allocations remained at 0% on all other systems.
| 3 November |
15 November 2008 |
Change since 31 October 2008 |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Goulburn | 14% | 18% | +7% |
| Murray | 19% | 21% | +5% |
| Broken | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Campaspe | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Loddon | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Bullarook | 0% | 0% | 0% |
The allocations in the northern Victorian water systems are unlikely to improve significantly this season as dry conditions continue. Based on estimates of summer inflows following dry September to November conditions, the improvements to mid February are likely to range between;
- 0% to 7% in the Murray system, and
- 0% to 10% in the Goulburn system.
The prolonged period of poor inflows this season and characteristically limited responses to summer rainfall implies allocations are unlikely in the Broken, Campaspe, Loddon, and Bullarook systems this season.
The next allocation announcement will be made by G-MW on 1 December. The Minister for Water has temporarily qualified rights to water in the Murray, Goulburn, Broken, Campaspe, Loddon and Bullarook systems to make sufficient water available for essential urban and farming needs.
Normal allocation rules will resume on the Goulburn, Murray and Broken systems when allocations on these systems reach 20%. The qualification on the Loddon, Bullarook, and Campaspe systems will remain in place until the allocations on these systems reach 50%.
Normal allocation rules resumed on the Goulburn and Murray systems during November when the allocations were increased above 20%.
Coliban Rural System
On 15 September, Coliban Water announced a 0% allocation on the Coliban Rural System.
Recycled water is available to customers on the Ascot, Axe Creek and Cockatoo Hill channel systems up to 40% of licence volume. Elsewhere in the rural system, a qualification of rights is in place to provide significant commercial operators with emergency supplies up to 30% of licence volume.
Wimmera Mallee Domestic and Stock Supply System
The Grampians storages were at 5.7% of capacity on 30 November.
Supply Systems 1, 2 and 5 – towns and farms are receiving restricted supply from the pipeline.
Supply Systems 3 and 4 - The channel run has supplied towns and some large supply-by-agreement customers adjacent to the major channels (including Charlton feedlot, QAF Meats). GWMWater commenced its domestic carting program to eligible farms on 1 November.
Supply System 6 - Not enough water for a channel run this year. GWMWater is carting domestic water to farms with dams that have emptied or become unusable due to poor water quality.
Irrigation allocations remain at zero.
Southern Rural Water
Macalister Irrigation District (MID)
At the end of November, Lake Glenmaggie, the principal source of water for the MID, was at 91.6% of capacity.
The allocation will remain at 90% until 15 December (end of the official spiling season) for all irrigators within the MID, and for diverters on the Thomson River, Macalister River and Rainbow Creek.
Latrobe System
At the end of November, storage levels in Blue Rock Lake were at 80.6% of capacity. The irrigation share of Blue Rock was 979 ML or 23% of regulated allocation.
SRW licence holders downstream on the Latrobe and Tanjil Rivers could pump up to their licensed volume subject to the availability of unregulated river flows (which normally contribute approximately 70% of entitlements).
Werribee Basin
SRW’s share of the Werribee storages was at 4% of capacity at the end of November.
The seasonal allocation remained at 4% of high reliability water share in November for the Werribee and Bacchus Marsh irrigation districts. SRW has extended the period that this allocation applies until 28 February 2009.
SRW is progressing its Western Irrigation Contingency Plan for the 2008/09 season. Pumping of dead storage in Pykes Creek Reservoir is continuing, and another 2,000 ML of water has been transferred from the SRW drought reserve in the Thomson Reservoir.
Irrigators in the Werribee area continue to rely on the recycling scheme as their principal water source while the river flows are very low. The recycling scheme is now providing up to about 60 ML/day, and approximately 90% of Werribee growers are participating.
Maribyrnong Basin
The storage volume in Rosslynne Reservoir remained low, at 3.2% of capacity at the end of November.
With inflows well below average, SRW diverters face another season of low, possibly zero, allocations.