Diversions Customer Newsletter

Your voice matters: Shaping our region’s water future (Basin Plan Review)

The Murray-Darling Basin Plan Review 2026 is happening now, and the decisions made in this review affect everything from farm viability, regional economies, the environment and community life for everyone in our region.

GMW is actively advocating on behalf of our customers and communities, but our submission alone is not enough. The greater number of community submissions, the stronger the case for our region.

Your input is critical in providing lived experience from our region, reflecting the importance of northern Victoria’s irrigated agriculture $3.2 billion contribution to the economy; ensuring there is a balanced approach to outcomes for the environment and the economy; and helping to protect against continued water buybacks without smart safeguards.

We've prepared a range of ready-to-use materials to make the submission process as straightforward as possible.

Have your say – it takes less than 15 minutes. Submissions close on Friday 1 May

Important dates

To ensure your application can be finalised by 30 June 2026, please note:

• May 29 - Final Submission for temporary transfer of groundwater application; last day to submit land applications
• June 16 – Last day to submit water share transfer applications (must be submitted by 5:00pm)
• June 16 – Last day to submit interstate allocation trade applications (must be submitted by 5:00pm)
• June 21 – Last day for Diversions/Groundwater customers to phone in any usage since meter was read (as indicated by sticker on meter)
• June 23 – Last day to submit paper-based allocation trade applications (must be submitted by 5:00pm)
• June 26 – All interstate allocation trades submitted online via Broker Portal or API will be processed manually from 5:00pm
• June 30 - Last day to submit online applications to trade or relinquish allocations via MyWater; Water Register and trading closes at midday (12:00pm)
• July 16 - Last day to pay 2025/26 Variable Charges accounts

GMW provides water entitlement holders with information about their end of season options as a courtesy. Customers are responsible for ensuring they undertake the necessary steps to carry over, use, sell or relinquish their unused water allocation before the appropriate deadlines.
allocation before the appropriate deadlines.

Release of the Sustainable Yields Assessment

As part of Groundwater Management 2030 (GM2030), the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) has been working with GMW and other the rural water corporations to carry out a state-wide technical assessment and review of the potential limits of take under licences, more commonly referred to as Sustainable Yields assessment (SY assessment).

This is to make sure we continue to protect all users (including the environment) from unacceptable impacts, protect reliability of supply and support economic development opportunities. It will support more informed decision making for groundwater management and licensing in the future under a changing climate.

DEECA has now released the SY assessment. 

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE SUSTAINABLE YIELDS ASSESSMENT on the DEECA website

Time to switch to the new WaterLINE

GMW is encouraging customers to transition to the new version of the WaterLINE website before the end of the current irrigation season.

The legacy version will be switched off on Friday 15 May, so customers are encouraged to switch now to ensure they are ready to place orders ahead of the 2026/27 season starting in August.

The new WaterLINE provides a more flexible and user-friendly experience. Customers can order water at any time, from any device, and access real time information including Allocation Account (ABA) and outlet capacity monitoring.

GMW is hosting a webinar to help transition to the new WaterLINE version on Thursday 23 April at 11am. 

REGISTER NOW

To access WaterLINE, you’ll need your User Number and PIN. If you need help or access to your details, you can call us on 1800 013 357.

Additional sessions to transition to the new version will be held in August, keep an eye on GMW’s YourSay website or Facebook page for more details.

WATERLINE

Understanding your bill

Your GMW bill shows the costs of managing your licence and service point.

Service point fee
Covers operating and maintaining your service point, including meters and readings. The amount depends on whether your service point is metered or unmetered.

Access fee
A fixed annual charge for managing access to water under local rules and plans. This applies to surface water and groundwater licences.

Resource management fee
Supports planning and management of water resources in your area. Charged per megalitre for unregulated surface water and groundwater customers.

Customer fee
A standard charge paid by all GMW customers. It covers billing, account management and customer support.

For full details and current rates, see the 2025/26 price list on our website.

Seasonal prepardeness

Climate variability is part of our reality. In October 2022 we were experiencing floods. In 2025/2026, northern Victoria is experiencing warmer weather and below median rainfall.

We have developed a seasonal preparedness hub on our website to provide our customers and communities with the latest information, tools and resources to prepare for changes in seasonal conditions and support sustainable water use.

Visit to access:

• Seasonal determinations
• Current outlooks
• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
• Systems specific updates
• Links to government assistance programs, health and wellbeing support and on farm efficiency programs
• Links to The First 72 Hours – a handy guide to preparing ahead of fire, flood and other emergencies.

Learn more about seasonal preparedness

Developing the Lower Loddon Plains Groundwater Management Area and Local Management Plan

We are proposing a new groundwater management area (GMA) in the Lower Loddon Plains region and developing a local management plan to support this.

The proposed Lower Loddon Plains GMA will extend from Nyah/Nyah West in the north to south of Boort, and from Quambatook to Cohuna. It will include townships of Woorinen, Swan Hill, Lake Boga, Kerang, Boort and Pyramid Hill, and will cover all major aquifers in the region.

The development of a local management plan provides clear management rules for groundwater resources in that region. It will also support sustainable resource management in an area with increasing interest in access to groundwater, particularly in the Loddon Plains area which has highly saline groundwater.

Community consultation on a draft plan will occur in mid-late 2026. 

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE LOWER LODDON PLAINS GMA AND LMP

Key information about easements

Information about managing vermin, noxious weeds and vegetation on easements is now available on our Easements webpage.

You will also find other key information about easements on this page such as fencing along easements.

Our Customer Relations team are here to support you with any specific queries you have about easements on your property: 1800 013 357.

Learn more about EASEMENTS

Seasonal determination update

On 1 April the Resource Manager for northern Victoria announced the final determinations for 2025/26 and released an updated outlook for 2026/27. With some flows into storages and milder conditions, there were small improvements across most systems, while the Murray and Campaspe remain at 100% High-Reliability Water Share.

In an update to the outlook for 2026/27, rainfall in February and March had little influence on determinations and opening allocations in the Murray, Goulburn, Campaspe and Loddon systems are likely to remain low. However, there were small improvements in the outlook for the Murray and Campaspe systems. The outlook will next be updated on Friday 15 May.

VIEW CURRENT DETERMINATION

VIEW CURRENT 2026/27 OUTLOOK

Changes to the Victorian Mid Murray System

From 1 July 2026, GMW will be making some changes to how the Victorian Mid-Murray Storages are operated. Going forward, and within the existing rules, we will be changing how and when we store and release water from Lake Boga, Kangaroo Lake and Lake Charm. 

The changes are needed due to several factors, including the need to optimise the operation of the storages for Victorian Murray entitlement holders and the increasing challenges of operating the Murray River.

Other changes GMW needs to respond to include spikes in demand for water particularly during hot and dry periods, climate change, population growth and shifts in customer needs and land use.

As a result of the operational changes, there will likely be some impacts on the water levels (more fluctuations) and improved salinity concentrations (salt levels).

Have your say on the CHANGES TO THE VICTORIAN MID MURRAY SYSTEM

Recreational Area Management Plans

We are developing Recreational Area Management Plans for the declared recreational areas at the water storages we manage across northern Victoria. The plans guide access, activities, safety, environmental care and cultural heritage. Ten plans were completed in 2025, with the final eight now being developed.

HAVE YOUR SAY ON THE RECREATIONAL AREA MANAGEMENT PLANS

Consider carrying over your water before 30 June 2026

Customers can carry over their unused water allocation from one irrigation season, to the next based on the local carryover rules.

Carrying over water means that unused allocation is available to use or trade at the start of the season. This option is open to those in the Broken, Bullarook, Campaspe, Goulburn, Loddon and Murray systems.

For entitlements held in the Goulburn and Campaspe systems, customers need to factor returning spillable water allocation into their carryover planning for 2025/26.

If you have unused water you wish to carryover, it’s important to link your allocation account to a water share, limited term transfer of a water share, or supply by agreement before 30 June 2025.

Learn more about carrying over

Watch the Northern Victoria Resource Manager’s explainer video .

Call our Customer Experience team on 1800 013 357 for additional support.

Zone 7 Telemetry update

Recent telemetry upgrades in Irrigation Zone 7 will significantly improve access to water‑use information for customers along the Murray and Little Murray rivers.

The project involved installing telemetry on 82 meters and upgrading a further 41 meters between west of Echuca and west of Swan Hill. These upgrades provide customers with accurate flow rates and near real‑time water‑use data, helping them better manage their water entitlements.

With meters now read remotely, GMW can monitor water use more efficiently, identify issues sooner and improve compliance, particularly in high‑trade areas. The upgrades also allow GMW to better track meter condition, supporting proactive maintenance and asset replacement.

Funded by the Victorian and Commonwealth governments, the project is delivering greater certainty for customers—especially important as dry conditions continue.

GMW will soon begin the Murray–Darling Basin Telemetry Uplift Program, installing telemetry on a further 695 high‑priority meters across its network.

New fines in place for meter tampering

GMW has a zero-tolerance approach to water theft.

Tampering with water meters doesn’t just break the law, it disrupts water delivery to customers, increases metering costs and undermines fair water management.

Individuals can now be fined for tampering with a water meter or prosecuted for more serious breaches.

As of 17 December 2025, anyone caught destroying, damaging, removing, altering, or interfering with a water meter or associated works without proper authorisation can now be fined:

• Individuals: fines up to $2,442
• Body Corporates: fines up to $12,211

If you suspect meter tampering or any other breach of the Water Act 1989, you can phone GMW on 1800 013 357. 

Meter reading reminder

GMW’s Diversions Inspectors will begin undertaking end-of-season meter readings from late April. Inspectors will record the reading and date on a sticker left on or near the meter, which will become the start reading for the following season.

Any usage that occurs after the date recorded on the sticker and before 30 June needs to be communicated with your local Diversions Inspector on 1800 013 357.

If you’re a regulated surface water customer wanting to use entitlement during May or June, please order through the WaterLINE website, or contact your local Diversions Inspector so your usage can be accounted for in the current season.

If you’re an unregulated surface water user or groundwater customer and you use water during May or June, please inform your Diversions Inspector so usage can be accounted for in the current season.

Any usage in May or June after the meter reading not communicated to a Diversions Inspector will be accounted against your 2026/27 usage.

Licence renewal reminder

Have you received a notice to renew your diversions licence before its expiry on 30 June 2026? If you haven’t yet returned your application, please do so as soon as possible.

If you need a new form, please contact our office on 1800 013 357 or email LandandLicensingApplications@gmwater.com.au

Spillable water account

If the volume of allocation you carry over plus what you receive from next year’s seasonal determination is greater than the volume of your high and low-reliability water shares, then the volume above your water share will be transferred into a spillable water account.

Allocation held in spillable water accounts is not available for use or trade until the risk of spill in your particular system falls below 10 per cent. Deductions from spillable water accounts occur when Lake Hume, Lake Eildon or Lake Eppalock spill or water is released keep the storage level close to full.

In the current 2025/26 season, the risk of spill fell below 10 per cent in the Goulburn system on 11 August and in the Murray and Campaspe systems on 10 September, and the allocation in spillable water accounts was transferred back into allocation accounts.

The risk of spill in the Murray, Goulburn and Campaspe systems in 2026/27 will depend on how much water is released from the storages in the next few months to meet demands. The risk of spill in the Murray system is expected to be about 35 per cent at the start of July 2026. The risk of spill in the Goulburn system is expected to be about 10 per cent and 30 per cent in the Campaspe system in early 2026/27.

Above entitlement storage fees

Above entitlement storage fees apply if the total carryover and allocation available over the season is more than the full water share volume. This ensures people who hold more water in storage than their entitlement volume contribute their fair share of storage costs. Fees do not apply to any water that spills, or any allocation traded in during the current season.

Like the fixed entitlement storage fees, above entitlement storage fees are paid by the water share owner. However, above entitlement storage fees cannot be raised until allocations are finished and the declaration has been made. These fees are not raised until late in the season, with the end of season variable charges accounts.

It is important to be aware that if you buy a water share prior to the above entitlement storage fees being raised, you will be liable for any above entitlement storage fees issued later in the year for that water share.

The charges for each basin for 2025/26 are:

• Goulburn - $5.39 per ML
• Campaspe - $5.39 per ML
• Murray - $3.01 per ML

Please note – once these charges have been raised, we will request them to be paid prior to the approval of a water share transfer.

LEARN MORE ABOUT ENTITLEMENT STORAGE FEES