Mokoan Project
The Minister for Water, the Hon Tim Holding MP, has received an application from each of the River Murray and Broken System bulk entitlement holders to amend their bulk entitlements under section 44 of the Water Act 1989.
The applications are for amendments to the following Orders:
- Bulk Entitlement (River Murray - Goulburn-Murray Water) Conversion Order 1999;
- Bulk Entitlement (River Murray – Lower Murray Urban and Rural Water - Urban) Conversion Order 1999;
- Bulk Entitlement (River Murray – Lower Murray Urban and Rural Water - Irrigation) Conversion Order 1999;
- Bulk Entitlement (River Murray – First Mildura Irrigation Trust) Conversion Order 1999;
- Bulk Entitlement (River Murray – Goulburn Valley Water) Conversion Order 1999;
- Bulk Entitlement (River Murray – Flora & Fauna) Conversion Order 1999;
- Bulk Entitlement (River Murray – Grampians Wimmera Mallee Water) Conversion Order 1999;
- Bulk Entitlement (River Murray – North East Water) Conversion Order 1999;
- Bulk Entitlement (River Murray - Coliban Water) Conversion Order 1999;
- Bulk Entitlement (River Murray – Snowy Environmental Reserve) Order 2004;
- Bulk Entitlement (Broken System - Goulburn-Murray Water) Conversion Order 2004;
- Bulk Entitlement (Broken System – Tungamah, Devenish & St James – North East Water) Conversion Order 2004;
and the revocation of the following Order:
- Bulk Entitlement (Broken System – Snowy Environmental Reserve) Conversion Order 2006.
The proposed amendments are required to reflect the decommissioning of Lake Mokoan, the new operational arrangements for the Victorian Mid-Murray Storages and the resulting new environmental commitments for the Snowy and Murray Rivers. The Mokoan Project was foreshadowed in the Victorian Government White Paper (Securing our Water Future Together, 2004) and has secured 50 billion litres of long-term water savings, which will be transferred to existing environmental bulk entitlements as part of Victoria’s contribution to the Living Murray and the Snowy Initiatives.
Further information on the applications can be obtained from the DSE Customer Service Centre on 136 186. Further background on the Mokoan Project can be found on the Mokoan Project website.