Regulator upgrade ensures health of Gunbower Forest
The refurbished Yarran Creek regulator in Gunbower Forest is a shining example of the positive river health outcomes that can be achieved with more efficient use of environmental water, Water Minister Peter Walsh said today.
Mr Walsh officially opened the refurbishment and said the Yarran Creek Regulator highlighted why Victoria is adamant that environmental infrastructure works and measures should be taken into account in the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.
"The Yarran Creek project demonstrates that environmental infrastructure works and measures can deliver significant environmental outcomes, meaning less water needs to be taken from food production," Mr Walsh said.
"Together with two other refurbished regulators, the Yarran Creek regulator will deliver environmental water more efficiently to the lower Gunbower Forest wetlands and will help to better manage natural flood events."
"The regulators will enable targeted delivery of up to 23 gigalitres of water from Gunbower Creek, allowing for up to 2,500 hectares of wetlands and River Red Gum forest to be flooded and also for fish to move between the wetlands and the creek.
"This work, funded through The Living Murray program, is a $1.6 million investment that will benefit the health of the forest for many years to come," Mr Walsh said.
North Central Catchment Management Authority led the project and Goulburn-Murray Water completed the works.
Minister Walsh said the lower Gunbower Forest regulators were part of a larger package of engineering structures planned for the area, with Victoria submitting a further proposal to the Murray-Darling Basin Authority and the Commonwealth.
"The $13.5 million proposal includes infrastructure works that would enable delivery of up to 200 gigalitres of environmental water that would benefit 5,000 hectares of wetlands and floodplains.
"Without such works, in the order of 1,000 gigalitres of water would be needed to deliver the same benefit."
The Living Murray project is a joint initiative funded by New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, the Australian Capital Territory and the Commonwealth, co-ordinated by the Murray-Darling Basin Authority.
