Victoria is adopting a new approach to water delivery entitlements in declared systems that will protect existing water users’ rights to have water delivered down rivers and empower water users to manage their own delivery risks.

The new framework is due to come into effect in July 2023. However, the Water Legislation Amendment Bill 2023, which is currently being considered by the Victorian Parliament, proposes to delay its commencement by up to 12 months to provide more time for meaningful consultation with water users affected by last year’s devastating flooding events.

To help water users understand what the new framework will mean for them, four short animations have been created for different types of water users:

• Irrigation district customers
• Private diverter with one pump and one property
• Private diverters sharing a licence to operate a pump (one pump, separate properties)
• Private diverter with multiple pumps (multiple pumps, one property)

More information about the new framework is available here.

More information about increasing delivery risks in the River Murray System and the broader program of work to manage them is available here.