The Andrews Labor Government is securing Victoria’s future water supply, making sure our precious resources meet the challenges of a drying climate and the demands of a growing population.
Minister for Water Harriet Shing visited Officer Primary School today to launch Central and Gippsland Region Sustainable Water Strategy - outlining a pathway to secure the region’s water future over the next 50 years.
We are preparing now so Victoria's communities, farmers, industries and tourism can have confidence in Victoria’s water security in the future. The Strategy will ensure access to safe drinking water and strengthen the resilience of Melbourne and Geelong’s water grid.
Work to deliver the Strategy will include building on successful programs like the Schools Water Efficiency Program, which has helped 1,328 schools save more than 9.9 billion litres of water and cut down their water bills. This gives schools technology, specialist advice and curriculum materials to teach kids how to manage and monitor water use.
The strategy prioritises future investment into recycled water and stormwater infrastructure, that will be used for non-drinking purposes like industry, agriculture and keeping our sporting fields, parks and gardens green.
This year the Labor Government has already invested over $10 million towards new stormwater harvesting and recycled water projects as part of the Integrated Water Management Grants as well as co-invested in the $72 million Dingley Recycled Scheme that will unlock 1,800 ML of recycled water each year for Melbourne’s southeast.
The strategy also includes arrangements to allocate 16 gigalitres of the 3-4 Bench water entitlement in the Latrobe Valley to deliver outcomes for Traditional Owners, the environment and irrigated agriculture.
The strategy also introduced a new daily water use target for Melbourne, encouraging households to stick to 150 litres of water per person per day.
The Strategy was developed in partnership with Traditional Owners and aims to increase their access to water entitlements without taking from existing entitlement holders.
To view the full strategy, visit water.vic.gov.au/sws.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Water Harriet Shing
“We need to meet the challenges of climate change and increased demand for water to ensure a reliable water supply is always available for our environment and the industries, agriculture, communities and jobs that rely on it.”
“We’ve already begun investment in critical infrastructure for recycled and storm water as well and educating Victorians to develop water saving habits for the future.”
Reviewed 04 September 2022