Modernised Irrigation

A key element of G-MW's 2010/11 Corporate Plan was the internal functional separation of the gravity irrigation areas into the Modernised Irrigation Business on 1 July 2010. Modernised Irrigation had a clear and transparent focus on the management and delivery of improved valued customer service outcomes at the least cost to Goulburn Murray Irrigation District (GMID) customers. The delivery of service and business efficiency outcomes was clearly linked to the successful delivery of modernisation across the GMID, and many benefits have been realised this year.

A Focus on Customer Service

Moving from a focus on water delivery to a broader and modern approach to service has yielded positive outcomes for customers this year. Initiatives have included introducing Customer Account Managers to work closely with large farm businesses in the field, developing modernised service standards and introducing SMS services for allocation announcements, and notification of irrigation 'start/stop' times.

In addition, in areas that have been modernised, the planning function provides 24/7 customer contact to ensure around the clock service for irrigators, with substantially reduced requirements for advance water ordering notice and much improved response times for field maintenance issues.

Listening to Our Customers

G-MW has increased its engagement with customers this year by targeting a broader range of customers, including conducting the annual customer satisfaction survey by phone to ensure more representative participation. The suite of online communications tools has expanded, allowing customers and other stakeholders to opt in to regular communication (via email newsletters) and updates such as Irrigator e-news, Dam Levels and e-storage updates.

G-MW has also provided online pricing simulators and carryover simulators to help customers plan for their individual business needs. Over the year G-MW has continued to hold customer meetings in local halls and to meet regularly with its Water Services Committees.

Facilities Focus on Customers

Regional administration offices have been refocussed as customer service centres, and work has commenced on providing local shopfronts with a similar look and feel to reflect G-MW's consistent high standard of customer service. The Rochester office was remodelled following extensive flood damage and the old Pyramid Hill office is being replaced.

Restructuring Reduces Costs and Improves Service

This year has seen the consolidation of the Loddon and Campaspe Operations teams under the leadership of one manager, with field staff continuing to operate from their existing local depots. This has increased the operational efficiency of the workforce and resources by reducing management and allowing flexible use of operational and maintenance staff in the field. Based on this successful rollout G-MW will consolidate Central Goulburn and Goulburn Broken operations teams next year to extend the benefits.

Local weed spray teams have also been consolidated within the Infrastructure Group. This increasingly complex and important function will be delivered more efficiently under specialised management and field supervision.

Automation Delivers Efficiencies

The Shepparton and Central Goulburn Areas are the first systems to be automated under the modernisation program. Automation of water delivery has provided better control, monitoring, improved efficiency and improved service to these customers.

Distribution efficiency in the Shepparton Irrigation Area was 90% this year, compared with 75% over G-MW's entire system. Depending on conditions, efficiency can fluctuate between years however this demonstrates the results modernised systems are delivering for customers.

Water Delivery Infrastructure

G-MW owns and operates Australia's largest irrigation delivery network, with more than 6,300 km of channels, 900 km of pipes and 3,000 km of drains.

G-MW plans and schedules hundreds of water orders a day in the irrigation season. As the irrigation system is being modernised, the service expected by customers is being redefined and G-MW is restructuring and streamlining its operations to deliver an efficient and flexible service.

Water Delivery and Ordering

Regulated System Customers Customers who source their water from channels, rivers or lakes where the water is stored and flows are controlled or regulated by a large dam are known as regulated system customers.

Regulated System Operations

This year G-MW witnessed a major turnaround in seasonal conditions, with many years of drought broken by unprecedented flooding of the Campaspe and Loddon Rivers. This has seen most of the major storages full. The wet conditions resulted in very low demand for water deliveries - around half the orders compared with the previous year. G-MW customers placed about 65,000 orders during the irrigation season representing about 250 orders each day.

Explaining the trends in Delivery Shares

1. Campaspe - In September 2010 the Campaspe Irrigation District was united with the larger Goulburn-Murray Irrigation District (GMID). Uniting the two Districts enabled completion of NVIRP's program to decommission the Campaspe Irrigation District and allowed a number of existing Campaspe District irrigators to move to alternative supply arrangements sourced from the Goulburn system.

2. Rochester - An increase between 2009 and 2010 was due to bulk water delivery share for Coliban Water in the Water Register as a Delivery Share - other bulk water entities don't have delivery share in the Water Register.

3. Woorinen - During the year outstanding matters with two customers were finalised resulting in those customers no longer holding delivery shares in Woorinen.

Unregulated System Customers

Customers who source their water directly from rivers, streams and lakes - where supply is not managed from a storage but instead relies on access to natural stream flows - are defined as unregulated surface water customers. There are over 150,000 km of unregulated waterways across G-MW's region with customers holding approximately 160,000 ML of licence entitlement.

Unregulated Stream Management

To improve certainty and transparency about how customers' diversion licences are managed, including roster and restriction triggers, G-MW is undertaking a program to document all management arrangements applicable to unregulated stream catchments. The resulting 'Local Management Rules' will include roster and restriction triggers, as well as information about monitoring points and trading rules. The project is due for completion in 2015.

With significant rainfall occurring across the region during 2010/11, most unregulated streams had above average flows. Restrictions and rosters were removed across all streams for the first time in many years. Due to the high rainfall, usage within the unregulated systems was also well down with meters across the region showing little to no use.

Meeting Service Standards in a Year of Contrasts

With a vast range of seasonal conditions experienced throughout the year customers relied heavily on G-MW operational staff to deliver and vary orders at short notice. Despite the challenging season, G-MW generally met delivery targets in all Areas delivering 97.5% of water orders within a day either side of the customer request. The table below outlines water deliveries key performance indicators.

G-MW Annual Customer Satisfaction Survey

Each year G-MW undertakes a customer satisfaction survey to capture and measure performance against organisational key performance targets. Five hundred randomly selected customers participate in the telephone survey and record their satisfaction and perceptions against five key criteria - water management, water delivery/access, customer service, communications and consultation.

52% of those customers rated G-MW's service overall as 7 or more out of 10.

Water Management 42%

Water Delivery/access 58%

Customer Service 62%

Communications 60%

Consultation 42%

G-MW's target Customer Satisfaction Performance Indicator in the Corporate Plan was 62%.

Partnerships

G-MW again focused on building relationships with stakeholder organisations and groups to ensure a cooperative approach to programs and projects. G-MW concluded works with FutureFlow (a G-MW alliance) during the financial year. Works continue with Rubicon (key supplier of G-MW systems and technology) and the Northern Victoria Irrigation Renewal Project (NVIRP) to assist with planning, policy development and in ensuring G-MW technical standards are met. G-MW continued to provide a range of information to assist NVIRP in the delivery of its modernisation works across the region and in supporting and planning for the delivery of water reforms.

System Efficiency

G-MW continued to operate the systems to minimise operating requirements (losses). As a result of a continued focus on tight system management and low demand, due to wetter conditions, the lowest ever system operating requirements were recorded for the Irrigation Areas.

Qualifiers

1. System operating requirements include evaporation, leakage and seepage, meter error and unplanned outfalls (spills) and are sometimes referred to as losses. The data only refers to operations within the irrigation areas/district, it does not include storage and river operations.
2. System Operating Requirements = (Net diversion into an irrigation area or district) - delivery.
3. Since 2004/05 G-MW has implemented a number of drought response measures to reduce system losses. Since 2007/08, with the cooperation of customers, G-MW at times has not operated 20-30 % of its 6,300 km channel network, required customers along sections of the network to group their orders, ran channels at lower levels which impacted flows onto farm and tankered in stock and domestic supplies. These strategies are severe drought response measures not standard operating practices.
4. The Goulburn system losses do not include evaporation from Waranga Basin.
5. In 2005/06, the Campaspe system supplies were augmented by drought pumping from the Waranga Western Channel. This resulted in deliveries in the Campaspe system being higher than the diversions into the Campaspe East and West channels, and inflated the calculated efficiency. Drought pumping also augmented deliveries in 2007/08 and 2008/09.
6. In 2006/07 the Campaspe allocation was zero therefore no irrigation deliveries. Diversions to the channel network were required for domestic and stock supply.
7. Volumes supplied in 2009/10 and 2010/11 were from the Campaspe system only. Deliveries from the Waranga Western Channel are included in the Rochester deliveries.
8. Data supplied for 2010/11 contains both hydrographic and operational data. Figures may change as further hydrographic data becomes available.
9. The calculation of system operating requirements in the Torrumbarry system has been effected by the overbank flows that occurred during periods of flood in 2010/11. The overbank flows have compromised the ability to accurately assess the amount of water entering and exiting the system. The system operating requirements have been based on the total gauged flow into and out of the system.

Qualifiers

1. System operating requirements include evaporation, leakage and seepage, meter error and unplanned outfalls (spills) and are sometimes referred to as losses. The data only refers to operations within the irrigation area/district, it does not include storage and river operations.
2. System Operating Requirements = (Net diversion into an irrigation area or district) - delivery.
3. Diversion data based on hydrographic and operational data. Not all hydrographic data available at the time of publication. System operating requirements may change once all hydrographic data has been incorporated.
4. Since 2004/05 G-MW has implemented a number of drought response measures to reduce system losses. Since 2007/08, with the cooperation of customers, G-MW at times has not operated 20-30 % of its 6,300 km channel network, required customers along sections of the network to group their orders, ran channels at lower levels which impacted flows onto farm and tankered in stock and domestic supplies. These strategies are severe drought response measures not standard operating practices.
5. The Goulburn system losses do not include evaporation from Waranga Basin.
6. The calculation of system operating requirements in the Torrumbarry system has been effected by the overbank flows that occurred during periods of flood in 2010/11. The overbank flows have compromised the ability to accurately assess the amount of water entering and exiting the system. The system operating requirements have been based on the total gauged flow into and out of the system.
7. The Torrumbarry distribution network includes more than 300km of natural carriers. The existing network offers limited opportunities to reduce losses using drought response measures applied in other irrigation Areas, however with appropriate investment there are opportunities to improve system efficiency while continuing to meet the environment needs of wetlands and other areas currently serviced by the network.
8. Losses reported for Torrumbarry for 2010/11 include the losses associated with the operation of the Victorian Mid Murray Storages.
9. Diversion data for the Campaspe Irrigation District is based on operational data.
10. In 2006/07 the Campaspe allocation was zero therefore no irrigation deliveries. Diversions to the channel network were required for domestic and stock supply.
11. Volumes supplied in 2009/10 and 2010/11 were from the Campaspe system only. Deliveries from the Waranga Western Channel are included in the Rochester deliveries.

Compliance and Enforcement Activity

The surveillance efforts by G-MW and the community resulted in 254 reports of suspected unauthorised diversions of water and/or suspected interference with G-MW works, 35 fewer than last year.

Enforcement

G-MW prosecuted 54 Water Act offences during 2010 /11 including the taking of water without authority and contraventing licence conditions (94 last year).

The number of successful prosecutions was 47 (84 last year). This figure includes some incidents investigated in previous years.

National Framework for Compliance and Enforcement

A project to implement the National Framework for Compliance and Enforcement in Victoria started during the year and will run until 2016.

Preparing for Water Pricing

G-MW is required to produce a schedule of fees and charges for its services for the coming year. Following approval by the Essential Services Commission (ESC) G-MW published its 2011/12 price list detailing nearly 400 fees and charges for groundwater, unregulated and regulated river diversions, pumped irrigation, channel delivery, drainage and water district services. More than a third of the 2011/12 prices were reduced or unchanged from the previous year. Of the prices that changed, half increased by less than 10%. All prices include the consumer price index increase of 3.3%.

The annual costs are determined in consultation with local Customer Committees who advise G-MW on the trade-off between an appropriate level of services and cost of delivering this service standard. Long term costs are determined according to a formula defined by the ESC.

During the year, G-MW developed a suite of online simulator tools to help customers estimate and understand the fees and charges that may apply for their water services for 2011/12 as well as simplifying customer accounts to help customers understand their fees and charges. As no two customers have exactly the same combination of water services, pricing simulators and online carryover simulators were developed to assist customers in understanding how certain charges may affect them.

G-MW Water Services Committees

Water Services Committees (WSCs) are an important source of customer advice and feedback. Committee representatives are appointed by the Board to provide advice in critical areas such as pricing, service standards and asset management. Customer Committee contributions combined with G-MW's water management expertise enable the best outcomes for customers and their communities. There are potentially 110 positions available and currently 96 committee members represent G-MW's customer base across 13 committees.

A review of the Diversions Customer Committee commenced in July 2010. Fifteen Catchment Committees, system WSCs and groundwater reference committees were consolidated into five new regional WSCs to streamline roles, administration and support the integration of diversion functions and resources with other retail water services, management and resources.

In August 2010, two of the five new regional committees Loddon and Campaspe Regional WSCs were combined due to similar geography, service interest and limited community nominations.

The annual nomination process for WSC representatives whose terms expire was conducted in May 2011 for ten of the committees. Sufficient nominations were received for the vacant positions, so a ballot was not required.

The Board declared Loddon Valley Irrigation Area Water Services Committee positions vacant in June 2011. The nomination process concluded on 24 June and the ballot process was completed on 15 July 2011 which reduced the number of nominations received to equal the number of vacancies on the committee. Appointments were made by the Board at its August 2011 meeting.