About the area
The Upper Ovens River Water Supply Protection Area (WSPA) covers the fractured rock and unconsolidated sediment aquifers in the Upper Ovens River catchment, upstream of the confluence with the Buffalo River near Myrtleford, in north-east Victoria.
Rural centres within the GMA boundary include Myrtleford, Bright, Harrietville and Porepunkah.
The water authority responsible for managing groundwater in the Upper Ovens River WSPA is Goulburn-Murray Water.
The Upper Ovens River WSPA Water Management Plan applies jointly to surface water and groundwater up to a depth of 200 m in the area.
More information on the WSPA can be found on the Goulburn-Murray website.
Groundwater level trends
Table 1: Groundwater level trends, Upper Ovens River WSPA
Groundwater restrictions
There were no restrictions on licensed use in the Upper Ovens WSPA in 2022-23.
Entitlements and use
Groundwater entitlements have been issued for licensed (non-urban) use and urban supply to Bright in the Upper Ovens WSPA. Groundwater is also available for domestic and stock use.
Entitlement volumes
Table 2: Groundwater entitlements at 30 June, Upper Ovens River WSPA
Available water and use
The table below shows the total water available and used under entitlements, and estimated domestic and stock use in 2022-23. Total water available under entitlements is the sum of opening carryover, allocation issued and the net trade in or out of water.
Estimated domestic and stock use is calculated based on an assumed usage per registered bore per year. In this WSPA, 2 ML usage per bore per year is assumed.
More information on groundwater use and availability has been detailed in How we account for .
Table 3: Groundwater availability and use, Upper Ovens River WSPA
Compliance
Compliance against water entitlements is reported for this groundwater management unit (GMU) in 2 areas:
- entitlement issued: that the volume of entitlements issued in the GMU does not exceed relevant permissible consumptive volumes (PCVs) or has not increased without appropriate approvals
- water extracted: that the volume of water taken under entitlements during the year does not exceed the total water available to licence holders.
Key points on compliance against entitlements
A PCV is not required for the Upper Ovens River WSPA because the management plan prevents additional entitlements or an increase in entitlement volume from being issued, except by trade.
There was an allowed increase in the total entitlement volume from the previous year
19 ML of licensed entitlement volume was transferred from an Upper Ovens WSPA surface water licence to a groundwater licence. Trade between groundwater and surface water licences is allowed under the Upper Ovens WSPA management plan.
Total volume extracted under licences was within the available volume
The total volume extracted under licences (858 ML) was within the volume available for the year (3,329 ML).
Table 4: PCV vs total entitlement volumes, Upper Ovens River WSPA
Management responsibilities
Management of water in the Upper Ovens River WSPA is undertaken by Goulburn-Murray Water.
| Authority | Management responsibilities |
|---|---|
| Goulburn-Murray Water |
|
