The Sunday Creek Project aims to provide a more water efficient and cost-effective irrigation system by delivering water directly to Sunday Creek and returning Lake Moodemere to a “more natural wetting and drying regime.”
Goulburn-Murray Water’s (GMW) Sunday Creek Project is continuing to move forward, with project design and planning works progressing well.
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The project, funded by the Australian and Victorian governments and delivered in partnership with Goulburn-Murray Water, aims to provide a more water efficient and cost-effective irrigation system by delivering water directly to Sunday Creek and returning Lake Moodemere to a “more natural wetting and drying regime.”
Currently, irrigation water is delivered from the Murray River via Lake Moodemere, with approximately 40 per cent of the diverted water lost to seepage and evaporation before it is extracted by irrigators.
According to GMW, the project will reduce these water losses, improve water security for the future, and better support the ecological values of the lake.
Key design features of the project include:
A new purpose built 36ML/day electric pump station to extract water from the Murray River
A direct pipeline to transfer water from the pump station to Sunday Creek
A new embankment at Hells Gate, allowing Sunday Creek and Lake Moodemere to operate independently of each other
Decommissioning the old pump station and replacing the existing Lake Moodemere regulator on the Murray River
Earlier this year a cultural heritage study was undertaken of the project area in with cultural heritage advisors and the Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation (YYNAC).
This quantified the known heritage in the area and assessed the potential impact of construction activity on unknown heritage. The investigation will provide information for a draft Cultural Heritage Management Plan for approval.
Terrestrial and aquatic flora and fauna surveys of the Sunday Creek and Lake Moodemere have also been undertaken and a number of targeted threatened species surveys have also been completed, including for platypus which is known to thrive in the area.
Executive Manager Operations at Goulburn-Murray Water, Water Efficiency Project John Davison provided a progress update last week.
“Last month we asked for the environmental impacts of the project to be assessed by the Australian Minister for the Environment and Water, as well as the Victorian Minister for Planning,” Mr Davison said.
“We did this voluntarily, to make sure that the project goes through the most rigorous process possible. We hope to have the result of these assessments in the next few months.
“We have also recently finalised an extensive hydrological modelling process, which allows us to better understand how the levels in Lake Moodemere will respond once replacement infrastructure is in place.”
A map showing new pump station and pipeline.
Mr Davison said hydrological modelling of the lake precinct and surrounding catchment zone has been produced to better understand how the levels in Lake Moodemere will change with the new infrastructure and to help determine future operating rules,
“The model uses Bureau of Meteorology climate data, historical Lake Moodemere height data, LiDAR, drone footage, rainfall records, river levels, evaporation and seepage data to show how water levels in Lake Moodemere respond under changing conditions,” he said.
“In addition to incorporating existing records, we also commissioned a bathymetric survey of Lake Moodemere and Sunday Creek. The survey measured the depth and mapped the underwater features of both waterways to ensure the model maintained a high degree of accuracy.
“With the modelling exercise complete, the project team has explored a number of operational scenarios to seek out ways to balance the needs of all users, along with ensuring local wildlife is given the best opportunity to thrive in the years to come.”
Goulburn Murray Water will attend the upcoming Rutherglen and Wahgunyah community forum on Tuesday, September 13. The meeting commences at 6pm at the Rutherglen Memorial Hall.
To submit a question visit www.indigoshire.vic.gov.au/About-Council/Have-your-say/Community-forums.
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