About the area
The Broken Groundwater Management Area (GMA) is located upstream of Lake Nillahcootie and extends from the Victorian Alps to just south of the Murray River.
Rural centres within the boundary include Benalla, Dookie and Tungamah.
The water authority responsible for managing groundwater in the Broken GMA is Goulburn-Murray Water.
The Broken GMA Local Management Plan applies to groundwater resources to a depth of 200 m below ground surface, and includes 2 management zones; the Broken Sedimentary Plains and the Broken Highlands.
More information on the GMA can be found on the Goulburn-Murray website.
Groundwater level trends
Table 1: Groundwater level trends, Broken GMA
Response to water availability
Groundwater restrictions
There were no restrictions on licensed use for the Broken GMA in 2023-24.
Entitlements and use
Groundwater entitlements have been issued for licensed (non-urban) use and urban supply to Goorambat in the Broken GMA. Groundwater is also available for domestic and stock use.
Entitlement volumes
Table 2: Groundwater entitlements at 30 June, Broken GMA
Available water and take
The table below shows the total water available and taken under entitlements, and estimated domestic and stock use in 2023-24. 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 GMA, the assumed usage is 2 ML usage per bore per year.
More information on groundwater use and availability has been detailed in How we account for
Table 3: Groundwater availability and take, Broken GMA
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
There was an allowed increase in the total entitlement volume from the previous year
There was an overall increase of 1 ML.
Entitlement volume did not exceed the PCV
The volume of entitlements (2,942 ML) in the Broken GMA did not exceed the PCV (3,732 ML).
Total volume extracted under licences was within the available volume
The total volume extracted under licences (333 ML) was within the volume available for the year (2,942 ML).
Table 4: PCV vs total entitlement volumes, Broken GMA
Management responsibilities
Management of water in the Broken GMA is undertaken by Goulburn-Murray Water.
| Authority | Management responsibilities |
|---|---|
| Goulburn-Murray Water |
|
