Barwon Downs

Barwon Downs

Licence renewal application under Section 58

The s58 application:

Southern Rural Water (SRW) assesses licences for extraction of groundwater in southern Victoria, in accordance with the Water Act 1989, taking into consideration relevant policies and community and stakeholder expectations, in order to ensure groundwater resources are managed in an equitable and sustainable manner. Barwon Water’s licence for extraction at Barwon Downs in the Gerangamete Groundwater Management Area expires 30 June 2019.

Update 14 March 2019:

Barwon Water has today (14 March 2019) withdrawn its application under Section 58 (s58) of the Water Act 1989 for the renewal of its licence to extract groundwater from the Barwon Downs borefield. For their full statement, please see this link.

For further enquiries, please contact the SRW project team on: BarwonLicenceRenewal@srw.com.au

Remediation plan direction notice under Section 78

On 11 September 2018, Southern Rural Water, as the Minister for Water’s delegate, issued Barwon Water a direction notice under Section 78 of the Water Act 1989  to submit and implement a legally enforceable remediation plan for the Boundary Creek and Big Swamp environment.

The process around Barwon Water’s response to the s78 notice is independent of the s58 licence renewal application, which has now been withdrawn.

Barwon Water has submitted its remediation Scope of Works on 20 December 2018, the deadline required under the s78 notice. See the blue panel (top right) for a link to the scope on Barwon Water’s website.

SRW and its Technical Review panel is now considering the Scope of Works to provide feedback to Barwon Water.

For more detail, see the s78 notice and Frequently Asked Questions on Barwon Water’s website.