We’ve been busy in recent months completing a range of program improvements across the Macalister, Werribee and Bacchus Marsh Irrigation Districts.
Every year we take time during the winter shutdown to upgrade vital infrastructure such as regulators, pipelines, channel assets and customer outlets.
Works are scheduled during the irrigation off-season to minimise disruption to customers and support reliable operations for the coming season. These investments form part of our ongoing commitment to improve reliability, support efficient water delivery and renew ageing irrigation infrastructure.
Macalister Irrigation District
This year we completed the final stage of the $62.6 million Phase 2 Macalister Irrigation District modernisation program. We’ve modernised another 14 customer outlets so water in the system can be ordered at any time and there’s no need for meter reads. We’ve also upgraded key infrastructure including regulator assets along the Main Northern Channel and renewal of a critical pipeline on the Main Southern Channel to help maintain consistent water levels and flows. And we’ve treated approximately 32km of channels to reduce weed growth and support reliable water delivery to the district.
Werribee Irrigation District
We replaced the ageing penstock gate at the Werribee River offtake with a new modern gate that can be remotely monitored and controlled. This will make it easier to operate the system and supports our longer-term plans for a fully automated irrigation network. We also renewed sections of the Spur 5A–5–1 pipeline, including replacing a 90-degree bend, to improve performance and help extend the life of the network.
Bacchus Marsh Irrigation District
Over in the Bacchus Marsh Irrigation District, on Spur 2 and Spur 2–2, crews renewed critical pipeline sections to help improve the performance and reliability of the network. Along the network on Spur 5 we replaced ageing valves to improve operational flexibility and make future maintenance easier.