Work is now complete on the Werribee Irrigation District modernisation project, which involved replacing the region’s ageing and inefficient channel irrigation network with a modern piped system.
The Werribee Irrigation District modernisation project began in 2016 and was completed in 2024. It was delivered in five stages and involved the installation of over 39 kilometres of new pipe and 208 customer outlets.
The once-in-a-generation, $42 million infrastructure investment future-proofs the district, saves water and sets up customers for long-term success.
A reliable piped supply means less water is lost to leakage and evaporation, increases the efficiency of how water is supplied, enhances the reliability of local food production, and ensures growers are more climate resilient. The full project, across all five stages, is estimated to generate approximately 5,000 megalitres of water savings, which will be used to enhance local irrigation and the health of the Werribee River.
Stage 5, the final stage, was completed in October 2024 and included construction of 8.3 kilometres of new pipeline and a new regulator inside the Tarneit Street irrigation channel
Stage 4 was completed in December 2023 and involved construction of 7.9 kilometres of pipeline in the vicinity of Hoppers Lane south to Aviation Road, and an additional 340 meters of pipeline adjacent to Aviation Road.
Seventy customer outlets were automated as part of Stage 4 and Stage 5 works. Automation improves service to customers, enables reliable water delivery and more accurate meter reads.
Stages 1 to 3 were completed in 2019 and delivered 23 kilometres of pipeline and 138 upgraded customer outlets.
The modernisation of the Werribee Irrigation District was jointly funded by Southern Rural Water, the Victorian Government and the Australian Government through the National Water Grid Fund.