An open channel in Victoria that loses nearly 80 per cent of its water through leaks, seepage and evaporation will undergo a $160 million upgrade.

The infrastructure project will modernise water infrastructure around Bendigo and surrounding townships – seen as essential work to deliver more water for the Murray–Darling Basin.

“We’ve said from the start that we will use all the tools at our disposal to deliver the Basin Plan in a way that balances the needs of our communities and our environment,” Federal Minister for the Environment and Water Murray Watt said.

“The passage of our Government’s Restoring our Rivers Act 2023 provided us more time, more tools and more funding, including for water infrastructure and efficiency.”

According to Coliban Water, the Coliban Rural Water Efficiency Project represents a major step towards a more efficient and sustainable water future for the region. The project will reduce water losses, expand the use of recycled water throughout the network, and improve reliability and productivity for customers and irrigators.

Coliban Water will contribute $40 million to the project, with the Federal Government allocating $120 million through the Resilient Rivers Water Infrastructure Program, which has now been fully allocated across 14 projects.  

“We are delivering for Bendigo with this $160 million investment that will upgrade our water network, which will help our local communities grow and deliver more water to farmers,” Victorian Premier and Member for Bendigo East Jacinta Allan said.

“Currently enough water to supply over 20,000 homes is being lost through leaks and evaporation – we are going to end that with an upgraded system.”

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