NCCMA Internet - Our Catchment

Situated in north central Victoria, our diverse region covers an area of around 30,000 km² (about 13 percent of Victoria). It is bordered by the mighty River Murray to the north, which injects life into the land around it, the Great Dividing Range and Wombat State Forest to the south and Mt Camel Range to the east.

The area we manage takes in a population of over 200,000 people; the region has become one of Victoria's most rapidly growing areas in terms of urban and agricultural activities over the last 5 years.

The region is packed with an abundance of diverse natural attractions from forested national parks to waterfalls, gorges and slowly meandering waterways. Our backyard is home to a teeming assortment of flora and fauna, some of which are found nowhere else, all easily accessible as wonderful day trips.

The four major river catchments in our region include the Campaspe, Loddon, Avoca and Avon-Richardson; they are the lifeblood to the region and its people. They have helped shape, grow and sustain communities including Bendigo, Bridgewater, Donald, Echuca, Kerang, Kyneton and Swan Hill.

Discovery of gold in the 1850's and 1860's resulted in the most significant human event in the evolution of this region. The mass influx of people from all parts of the globe, together with the influences of irrigation in the late 1800's/early 1900's, inevitably altered the 'balance' of the natural environment of this region.

Much has changed in our backyard since then; whilst these changes have provided wealth, stability and protection, it has come at some cost to the region's natural health and wellbeing.

The North Central Catchment Management Authority and the landholders in our region understand how important our natural environment, in particular our river catchments and other key waterways, is to the region and its people. We all recognise our responsibility to look after our precious waterways and their surrounds for the use and enjoyment of future generations.

We take pride in our region, as well as the role we play in managing our region's natural resources of land, water, biodiversity and climate; after all it's our backyard too.

Region Map

Waterways and Wetlands

Four major rivers cover our region, including the Campaspe, Loddon, Avoca and Avon-Richardson. The Campaspe and Loddon rivers run directly into the River Murray, while the Avoca River runs into a series of terminal lakes and wetlands known as the Avoca Marshes.

During flood events the Avoca occasionally may run into the River Murray and then via 'outbreak' channels into a further series of terminal lakes. The Avon-Richardson is internally drained, with most surface water running into Lake Buloke in the north of the Catchment.

Water Resources

The north central region of Victoria experiences annual rainfall between approximately 300 mm in the north-west to over 1200 mm in the south-east.

The region has significant groundwater and surface water resources. Groundwater is used extensively to irrigate horticultural crops and pastures in the south of the region; mineral springs in this area are also utilised to support both processing and tourism based industries. Increasing use is also being made of deep aquifers in the lower reaches of the Loddon and Campaspe valleys.

veral major water storages are located within the region. The two major storages are Lake Eppalock, located on the Campaspe River, and the Cairn Curran reservoir on the Loddon River. These storages provide water for domestic, commercial and agricultural use throughout the region. The irrigated water supplies from the Murray and Goulburn systems, and the stock and domestic supplies from the Wimmera system, supplement the region's surface water resources.

Land Use

The north central Victoria is an agriculturally diverse region. Irrigation areas cover much of the lower Loddon and Campaspe riverine plains, with horticultural and dairying land uses making up the main land based enterprises in the region.

Improved irrigation technology, along with the introduction of tradable water entitlements, has encouraged the rapid expansion of horticulture outside traditional irrigation areas. Dryland agricultural areas are characterised by broad acre land uses, such as cropping and grazing. Land close to the major centres is increasingly developed for horticulture, new and emerging agricultural commodities and for 'lifestyle' farming. Intensive animal production industries are also represented in the region.

The region is rich in natural assets of regional and international significance. Approximately 13 per cent of the region is public land, with much of this reserved and managed for specific purposes including national, state and regional parks, flora reserves and reference areas.

The region was once Australia's premier gold-mining region. Several gold-mining ventures are currently active in the Region, mostly in the Bendigo area. Fossicking is widespread throughout the Box-Ironbark forests of the goldfields.

Significant changes in land use over recent years have seen the introduction of new agricultural developments, including viticulture and olives. An increasing influx of people onto small land holdings, previously used for dryland agriculture, does present challenges for conservation and protection of remnant vegetation.

The most active forest operations are concentrated in foothill forests and softwood plantations in the south. A range of products including firewood, posts and poles, furniture timbers, honey and Eucalyptus oil are obtained from the forests and woodlands in the north.

Most soil types in the region are fragile, have poor fertility and are shallow and prone to degradation.

Like many rural regions, North Central Victoria continues to face regional challenges: none more so than the ongoing drought and the effects it is having on the population, industry and the environment.

Other significant threats facing the region include irrigation and dryland salinity, water quality decline, groundwater contamination, soil acidification and erosion, as well as fragmentation and destruction of wildlife habitat, and pest plant and animals' infestations and proliferation.

The viability of some agricultural industries is also threatened. The region has some of the most severely salt affected areas in Victoria, which has a direct impact on the Murray River.