Waterways

The type of issue you are seeking to report will determine whether or not you should contact the North East CMA or another agency or council.

Refer here to examples of non-CMA issues and where to report them

Over the next few months, the North East CMA will undertake an assessment of flood affected waterways. State Government funding will be sought for flood recovery works where deemed necessary to protect waterways and public assets.

The Victoria State Emergency Service is the control agency for flooding in Victoria.

Works and activities in, under, on or over the bed and banks of designated waterways in Victoria require a permit from the relevant Catchment Management Authority.

Catchment Management Authorities have specific responsibilities for waterway management under the Water Act 1989.

Large wood and native vegetation play an important role in influencing the health of rivers, estuaries and wetlands.

The North East CMA plays an important role in the development of flood studies and floodplain management plans.

In the same way land animals breathe oxygen from the air, aquatic animals such as fish and bugs use dissolved oxygen in the water to “breathe”. When the amount of dissolved oxygen in the water is low it can harm these animals.

The Strategy commits to preparing a Dryland Rural Drainage Resource Kit to support agencies and landholders to make informed decisions about managing dryland rural drainage.

The Environmental Water Resources Program funds an Environmental Water Resource Officer to undertake the Environmental Water Reserve (EWR) responsibilities outlined in the CMAs Statement of Obligations.

Across the Murray-Darling Basin, there are physical and operational barriers - or “constraints” - that limit the environmental flows that can be delivered and the outcomes that can be achieved.

A number of reports have been completed looking at the Markwood / Ovens river complex and both North East River Alliance (NERA) and non-NERA members have requested access to these reports. To ensure transparency these reports have been uploaded to the NECMA website.

Twenty percent of Victoria’s 128,000 kilometres of water frontage is Crown land. A riparian management licence for a Crown water frontage recognises that all or part of the frontage is being managed by licensees to protect and improve the riparian environment

In the North East region, landholders can now apply to North East CMA for a permit to access and maintain existing levees on Crown Land in order to actively reduce the flood risk to their property by undertaking levee maintenance years before a flood occurs. Previously, landholders needed to seek approval under several different land acts.

Contacts for issues relating to urban water accounts and sewerage connections, and licencing, irrigation, dams and bores.

The Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action has released the Victorian Waterway Management Strategy. The updated strategy sets out a plan for managing Victoria’s rivers, estuaries, wetlands and floodplains over the next ten years. It builds on more than 20 years of experience and lessons learned, providing a detailed framework for managing the health of our waterways.