The Environment Protection Authority (EPA) has established a groundwater protection policy for Victoria – the State Environment Protection Policy (Groundwaters of Victoria). This policy aims to recognise the highest value of the groundwater resource in all parts of the environment and to protect its highest Beneficial Use, including both current and potential future uses.

The policy:

• defines the current water quality status of both committed and untapped groundwater resources; and
• categorises this current groundwater condition into different Beneficial Use segments, based on water quality criteria thus providing a benchmark to which protection measures can be applied.

To support this policy, DSE has mapped the quality or Beneficial Use of groundwater across the entire State, according to the published EPA Beneficial Use segments. These maps should assist members of the community, planners, resource managers and government officers when considering groundwater as a resource to be used and protected.

Almost half of the total volume of groundwater, or about 480,000 ML, is considered to be fresh while 35% is marginal in quality, 13% is brackish and 3% is saline.

• Groundwater quality is generally good in the eastern half of the State and marginal in the Port Phillip region.
• In the south-west, divertible resources tend to vary from very good to marginal quality while the smaller minor sources tend to be brackish.
• Groundwater salinity causes problems in the river basins which drain to the River Murray in the north-west quarter of the state.
• Groundwater in the Mallee and Wimmera regions is particularly saline. The use of groundwater for economic purposes is seriously limited in many parts of these regions.

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