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The water industry

Southern Rural Water is one of four rural water corporations in Victoria. We cover an area of 88,000 square kilometres, or the lower 37% of Victoria, stretching from the South Australian border to the New South Wales border, and from the Great Dividing Range to the Victorian coast.

Southern Rural Water is responsible for:

  • managing irrigation districts
  • the regulation of surface water, groundwater licensing and dams.
  • managing the bulk entitlements for environmental water, power generation companies and the raw water for some regional and urban water corporations to treat for drinking water

Frequently asked questions we can help with:

  • Do I need a licence to drill a bore?
  • I have a stock and domestic water licence – what can I use it for?
  • How do I get a water allocation?
  • What kind of licence do I need to build a dam on my property?
  • I’ve just bought a property, what kind of water can I access?
  • How do you monitor water use?

Frequent enquiries relating to other organisations:

  • Blocked drains, drinking water, toilet water
    We don’t do taps or toilets – contact your urban water retailer

For more information about how the Victorian water industry works see A Governance Guide to the Victorian Water Industry