The resilience of rural and regional communities is key to supporting positive economic, environmental, and social outcomes for Victoria. Sustainable water management is central to their future prosperity.

Over 4 years, $57.80 million is allocated to the ‘water wise and resilient rural communities’ initiative. It will continue our efforts enabling irrigation and agricultural communities to use water wisely, and providing governance and oversight of significant water infrastructure projects in Victoria while protecting and enhancing the environment.

The initiative has 2 interdependent streams:

  • Sustainable Irrigation – delivering a resilient, sustainable water future for irrigation communities while promoting a healthy environment. This stream has a strong history of reducing adverse impacts of irrigation on the environment and third parties, while improving water use efficiency and best practice land management for environmental and productive outcome.
  • Rural water major infrastructure projects oversight and governance – providing line of sight for Government in the delivery of over $650 million of current rural, regional, and peri-urban water infrastructure projects by water corporations in Victoria.

Expenditure to date

  • 2024–25 expenditure: $14.49 million

Annual progress summary

The water wise and resilient rural communities’ initiative includes both the Sustainable Irrigation and Rural Water Projects and Programs streams. Highlights included:

  • by March 2025, DEECA entered into 4-year funding agreements with the CMAs and Agriculture Victoria to support initiatives aimed at enhancing on-farm irrigation water use efficiency, mitigating irrigation offsite impacts, regional monitoring and salinity management. compliance and implementation of Basin Salinity Management 2030 strategy. Catchment management authorities (CMAs) have been progressing planning and implementation of a range of activities aligned to the initiative including:
    • regional implementation of Land and Water Management Plans including the newly endorsed Shepparton Irrigation Region Land and Water Management Plan 2050.
    • delivery of Murray-Valley Drainage Course Declaration (DCD) project with obstruction removal works in progress, and initiation of the Top Creek DCD engagement processes.
    • preparation work for upcoming basin salinity management accountable action reviews (Tragowel Plains, Nyah–South Australia border and Shepparton Irrigation Region Salinity Management Plan). Input into the scoping of the BSM2030 mid-term review through the Basin Salinity Management Advisory Panel.
    • a range of irrigation extension outreach activities by Agriculture Victoria providing broadscale online information on irrigation demand, farm walks and irrigation application efficiency and uniformity assessments and training events. This has continued to be adapted to regional demand to climatic conditions and other varied environmental and market drivers.
    • delivery of regional Irrigation Development Guidelines (IDGs) including the Gippsland, Northern Victorian and Mallee. The Mallee IDG recommended endorsement of 4 IDGs referred to them by Lower Murray Water covering 1,400 hectares of land and proposed irrigation application volumes of 7,700 megalitres (ML) to the water corporation during 2024–25.
  • Federal funding through the Resilient Rivers Water Infrastructure Program (RRWIP) was secured in May 2025 to deliver projects from Planning our Basin Future Together prospectus, including the Broken Reconfiguration Project and 3 Domestic and Stock Feasibility Projects.
  • Federal funding was secured in April 2025 to deliver the Detailed Assessment (feasibility study) for the proposed Sustainable Diversion Limit Adjustment Mechanism (SDLAM) project ‘Restoring Flows to the Mallee Floodplain’. The Basin Officials Committee notified DEECA in June 2025 and Victoria will begin negotiations in early 2025-26 with the Commonwealth to secure implementation funding for the project.
  • the Victorian Basin Communities Interdepartmental Committee was established in August 2024 and has progressed work to enable a whole of government response to the Commonwealth's water purchase program.
  • DEECA provided oversight and governance for more than $650 million of water infrastructure projects across Victoria and in March 2025 executed a variation to the National Water Grid Fund Schedule to the FFA – Infrastructure to add an additional $77.9 million of Federal funding for 11 projects worth a combined value of $180 million. This included $46.6 million towards the $113.2 million Western Port Recycled Water Scheme, $19.3 million towards the $40.6 million towards the Sustainable and Efficient Regions (WISER) initiative which includes five small infrastructure projects.
  • several major projects reached significant milestones, including the practical completion of the $37.9 million Lower Murray Water Sunraysia Water Efficiency Project in October 2024, and the practical completion of both the $62.6 million Macalister Irrigation District Modernisation Phase 2 Project, and the $21.95 million Werribee Irrigation District Modernisation Stages 4&5 Project in November 2024.

Page last updated: 05/11/25