About the area
The Kiewa groundwater management area (GMA) extends from the Bogong High Plains to Wodonga and comprises the Kiewa River catchment from west of Falls Creek, including the Kiewa, Yackandandah and Running Creek tributaries.
Rural centres within the GMA's boundary include Killara, Yackandandah and Mount Beauty.
The water authority responsible for managing groundwater in the Kiewa GMA is Goulburn-Murray Water.
The Kiewa GMA Local Management Plan applies to groundwater up to a depth of 200 m below the natural surface, or up to 50 m below the base of the Tertiary surface. This is because the deepest Tertiary age alluvial sediments are less than 150 m thick.
More information on the GMA can be found on the Goulburn-Murray Water
Groundwater level trends
Table 1: Groundwater level trends, Kiewa GMA
Response to water availability
Groundwater restrictions
There were no restrictions on licensed use in the Kiewa GMA in 2024-25.
Entitlements and use
Groundwater is available for licensed (non-urban) supply and for domestic and stock use.
Entitlement volumes
Table 2: Groundwater entitlements at 30 June, Kiewa GMA
Available water and take
The table below shows the total water available and taken under entitlements, and estimated domestic and stock use in 2024-25. Total water available under entitlements is calculated as the sum of: opening carryover from the prior year (where available), allocation issued during the reporting year, and the net trade in or out of water, across all entitlements. The level of allocation issued is reduced if there are any restrictions in place.
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 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, Kiewa 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 in 2024-25
Increase in total entitlement volume
There was an allowed 19 ML increase of entitlement volume from the previous year.
Entitlement volume did not exceed the PCV
The volume of entitlements (3,114 ML) in the Kiewa GMA did not exceed the PCV (3,852 ML).
Total volume extracted under licences was within the available volume
The total volume extracted under licences (428 ML) was within the volume available for the year (3,115 ML).
Table 4: PCV vs total entitlement volumes, Kiewa GMA
Management responsibilities
Management of water in the Kiewa GMA is undertaken by Goulburn-Murray Water.
| Authority | Management responsibilities |
|---|---|
| Goulburn-Murray Water |
|
