| One third of Stage 1 water savings will be for the environment, some of which will be stored in Lake Eildon. This water will be released into stressed rivers and streams when required. This means that 75GL of saved water losses can be used at a time when it is most needed and provides maximum benefit for the environment. The environment's share of water savings will be over and above the Living Murray and Snowy commitments and will primarily target the use of environmental water for priority Victorian wetlands and tributaries. This will also have flow on benefits when the water enters the Murray River, which can then be reused to meet the needs of the Murray, its floodplains and wetlands, including Kerang Lakes, Barmah Forest, Gunbower Forest, Hattah Lakes, Lindsay-Wallpolla Island and various other sites. NVIRP is a key component of the Victorian Government’s strategy for ensuring water supplies across the State – Our Water Our Future – The Next Stage of the Government’s Water Plan (2007). NVIRP is a state body established under the State Owned Enterprise Act 1992 by an Order in Council dated 20 December 2007 and is responsible for planning, designing, and delivering Stage 1 of the project. It is led by an independent, skills-based Board with day-to-day stewardship the responsibility of Chief Executive Officer Mr Murray Smith. The project area covers 86 per cent of the GMID and a total of 6,200 km of channel supply system. The modernisation program focuses on Central Goulburn 5-9 channels, Rochester-Campaspe, Pyramid-Boort, Murray Valley and Torrumbarry. The remaining 14 per cent of the GMID are covered by the Shepparton Irrigation Area Modernisation Project and the Central Goulburn 1-4 channels project which are the responsibility of Goulburn-Murray Water. The project aims to recover water lost through leakage, seepage, evaporation and system inefficiencies through some channel lining and pipeline construction, automation of channels across the GMID, metering upgrades, and reconfiguration (i.e. rationalising and realigning the historical layout of the irrigation channels). Modernisation aims to increase irrigation water use efficiency from approximately 70 per cent to at least 85 per cent. NVIRP will place great priority on establishing strong links with irrigators and the community in developing a timetable for the works and in realising the water savings. |