A plan for delivering water from the Goulburn Inter-Valley Trade (IVT) account to the Murray in 2022-23 has been released to support implementation of the long-term operating and trade rules introduced on 1 July 2022.

Download PDF Goulburn Operating Plan for 2022-23 (598 Kb)

The Goulburn Operating Plan for 2022-23 has been developed by the Murray-Darling Basin Authority and Victorian river operators, and the Department of Environment, Land Water and Planning.

The plan outlines the principles and responsibilities for decision making for the delivery of water from the Goulburn Inter-Valley Trade (IVT) Account to the Murray system in 2022-23. The plan considers seasonal conditions and recognises the sustainable operating limits for summer and autumn set out in the Operating Rules for the lower Goulburn River. The operating plan also includes an operating outlook for the planned delivery of water from the Goulburn IVT account under possible climate and inflow scenarios in 2022-23.

The volume of water delivered from the IVT account will vary depending on seasonal factors including the volume of net trade from the Goulburn to the Murray system, water use in the Murray, the extent of unregulated flows in the Murray and Goulburn and levels in downstream storages. This year’s operating plan is an ‘in principle’ agreement between Victoria and the Murray-Darling Basin Authority, while a long-term plan is developed following the recent decision on long-term Goulburn to Murray trade and operating rules. You can read more about the Goulburn to Murray trade review and the Victorian Minister for Water’s decision on long-term rules here.

The new trade and operating rules ensure water can only be traded from the Goulburn to the Murray system up to what can sustainably be delivered. To achieve this, a key change from the previous rule is that delivery of water from the Goulburn IVT account no longer opens up new trade opportunity. This means that river operators have the flexibility to manage delivery of water from the Goulburn IVT account in a way that makes the best use of Victoria’s resources, without restricting trade opportunity.

You can find out more about accessing Goulburn to Murray trade opportunity here.