Construction is now complete on the Mitiamo Pipeline Project, providing irrigators in northern Victoria with a more reliable water supply.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development Barnaby Joyce said the project includes over 300 kilometres of new pipeline to supply a new district covering more than 58,000 hectares of land north of Bendigo and southwest of Echuca, providing a year-round service to around 170 rural properties.
“This project is fantastic news for the local economy which is strongly backed by agriculture, with project construction also having supported 170 jobs here in regional Australia,” Joyce said.
Historically, more than 80 per cent of water supplied via the channels in the region is lost before use and only two-thirds of the project area is currently serviced.
Victorian Acting Water Minister Richard Wynne said the project will reduce public and private water losses by more than 1000 megalitres per year by replacing the old leaking channel with pipes, a pump station and 85-megalitre storage facility to provide year-round water supply.
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“A lack of reliable, quality water has constrained the expansion of agriculture in the Mitiamo region – this project will address this and help farming grow in northern Victoria,” Wynne said.
“Through the Mitiamo pipeline and other major water projects, we’re replacing outdated water infrastructure and delivering for landowners and the community.”
Water saved will be used to improve the health of rivers and wetlands in line with Victoria’s obligations under the Murray Darling Basin Plan.
State Member for Bendigo East Jacinta Allan congratulated those who helped make the project a reality.
“I also want to congratulate the passion and drive of the local community that has been central to the delivery of this important project,” Allan said.
“The completion of the Mitiamo pipeline will add to the list of water infrastructure projects the Victorian and Australian governments have already delivered in northern Victoria.”
The Mitiamo and District Water Supply Project received $14.5 million from the Australian Government, $10.2 million from the Victorian Government and $4.3 million from Goulburn Murray Water.