River Rescue and Regional Renewal discussion paper | Environment Victoria

River Rescue and Regional Renewal discussion paper

Northern Victoria’s rivers and their fertile floodplains are the lifeblood of the region and support all its ecological, cultural and economic values.

Rivers like the Goulburn, Campaspe and Loddon have sustained abundant life and prosperous communities for generations, and today provide Victorians with good food, clean water and places to love and enjoy. But Northern Victoria is experiencing a period of rapid and profound change, the like of which has not been seen before. And so Environment Victoria’s River Rescue and Regional Renewal project aims to explore the way forward and provide a pathway towards realising a fresh vision for Northern Victoria that will be shared and supported by the region’s communities.

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Executive Summary

Introduction

Moving from a ‘wicked' problem to a historic opportunity

Question: What approaches can we take to address the environmental and economic crisis facing our northern Victorian rivers and communities?

Rivers rescue - returning water to river and wetlands

• What is a healthy river?

• Health report for northern Victoria’s rivers

• The Environmental Water Reserve

• How much water do our rivers need?

• The balance between consumption and the environment

• Catchment issues

  Question: What are the priorities for river health in northern Victoria?

• Management of environmental water - efficient and effective

Regional resilience

• Transition framework

• Current Victorian initiatives

• A framework for achieving multiple benefits

  Question: What is the best way to drive multiple benefits for communities and the environment?
  

• Alternatives to irrigated agriculture

• Broad-scale landscape reconfiguration for multiple benefits

• Ecosystem service opportunities

• Carbon sequestration opportunities

  Question: What kind of information or support do people need to help them adjust to reduced water availability and explore new opportunities?
  Question: Do all farmers need the same kind of support?
  Question: What types of people or approaches are likely to be most successful in promoting change?

Government policy

• Water

• Resilience and sustainable development

• Driving structural adjustment: making better use of government initiatives

  Question: What are the key elements of a structural adjustment package to maintain viable rural communities and allow transition to other economic opportunities?
  

  Question: How can existing government programs and funding be better aligned and integrated to drive the kind of change required?

Imagining the future in northern Victoria

• Irrigation modernisation for high value, efficient agriculture

• Bringing strategy and foresight to bear on the 'wicked' problem 

Case histories

• Greg and Jo Bear - Loddon catchment

• Anne-Marie Monda - Campaspe catchment

• Alister Purbrick - Goulburn catchment

• Peter and Marlies Eicher - Loddon catchment

• Ron Snep - Loddon catchment

• Tony and Jennie Croft - Murray catchment