The Shepparton Irrigation Area (SIA) covers 98,000 hectares in Northern Victoria, with 51,000 hectares of the area irrigated. The Area is bounded by the East Goulburn Main Channel to the east, the Goulburn River to the west, and the Broken and Nine Mile Creeks to the north. 

Water supply for the SIA comes from the Goulburn Weir where it is diverted into the East Goulburn Main Channel. The supply system comprises over 700 km of distribution channels, 40 km of pipeline and 2,560 irrigation outlets servicing approximately 850 irrigation customers. The SIA was first established in the early 1900s and consequently, much of the infrastructure is based on old technology, and is reaching the end of its productive life.

Shepparton Irrigation Area Modernisation Project

The SIA Modernisation Project, completed in August 2010, included a range of infrastructure works to improve the delivery efficiency of irrigation water supply and generate annual water savings of about 50 billion litres.  The project included:

• construction of gravity pipelines
• automation of channels
• replacement of outlet meters to improve accuracy
• reconfiguration and rationalisation of existing infrastructure.

More information on the project is available from the Goulburn-Murray Water website.