Surface Water - This dataset displays Victoria's surface-water Water Supply Protection Areas (WSPAs), and has been prepared for the Groundwater and Licensing Branch and the River Health Branch DSE, by LICS (Land Information Cartographic Services) and Melbourne Water. As part of the 2002 amendments to the Water Act 1989, surface-water was included to allow WSPAs to be declared for the protection of surface-water resources in a defined area. A legally enforceable Streamflow Management Plan is then developed. The aim of the plan is to manage the surface water resources of the WSPA equitably and to ensure the long-term sustainability of the resource. An extensive consultative process guarantees that surface water users have a major input into the development of the Streamflow Management Plan for their area. A Ministerial appointed Consultative Committee which represents all relevant interests prepares the Plan. In an area where farming predominates, farmers who own or occupy farming land in the area must comprise at least half of the membership of the committee. Groundwater - This dataset displays Victoria's groundwater Water Supply Protection Areas (WSPAs), and was originally prepared for Groundwater and Licensing Branch DSE, by LICS (Land Information Cartographic Services). Boundaries generaterd by LICS and Melbourne Water. Subsequent revisions have been undertaken by GLiB and the Rural Water Corporations. WSPAs are areas that have been (or are proposed to be) proclaimed under the Water Act 1989 for the purpose of establishing a management plan. The aim of the plan is to manage the groundwater resources of the WSPA equitably and to ensure the long-term sustainability of the resource. An extensive consultative process guarantees that groundwater users have a major input into the development of the Groundwater Management Plan for their area. A Ministerial appointed Consultative Committee, which represents all relevant interests, prepares the Plan. In an area where farming predominates, farmers who own or occupy farming land in the area must comprise at least half of the membership of the committee.

This layer is to be used in conjunction with the WSPA layer. It represents individual zones within a specific Water Supply Protection Area.

This layer provides the boundaries of the Groundwater Catchments of Victoria and is a product of the NWC funded Secure Allocations, Future Entitlement (SAFE) Project. The Groundwater Catchments (GC) have been developed to provide complete coverage of Victoria while considering the following: (1) Reflect aquifer systems and groundwater movement; and, (2) Align with physical (i.e. surface water) and administrative boundaries where appropriate. The GCs are aligned within Victoria’s Groundwater Basins (GB). Boundaries that related directly or in-directly to the physical characteristics of groundwater resources included groundwater flow divides, surface water flow divides, topographic divides, and geological structural features that influence aquifer extent and groundwater flow direction. Administrative boundaries directly linked to the management of groundwater resources include: The Victorian State Boundary (Water Act (1989); WSPA: Water Supply Protection Area (formally declared under provisions of the Act); GMA: Groundwater Management Area (described and lodged as a plan with the Central Plan Office); RWC: Rural Water Corporation administration areas - Grampians Wimmera Mallee Water (GWMWater), Goulburn Murray Water (GMW), Lower Murray Water (LMW) and Southern Rural Water (SRW); and MDBA: Murray Darling Basin Authority (Federal Water Act (2007)). The description of water resource management is often described in terms of surface water and groundwater. In reality, the two resources are connected; however there are differing degrees of interconnection depending on the groundwater system and location within the surface water catchment. In preparing the Groundwater Catchments (GC), surface water catchments were directly considered. The key surface water boundaries considered are: Victorian Sustainable Diversion Limits (SDL) Catchment boundaries; Bureau of Meteorology (2011) Surface Water Basins (Australian Hydrological Geospatial Framework, product suite v2 2011); Victorian Surface Water Basin Catchment (Australia’s River Basin, 1997); and, Geoscience Australia (500 sqkm) National Nested Catchment.

As part of the cross border management between South Australia and Victoria, zones have been set up either side of the state borders. These borders zones are also referred to as the 20 kilometre zones and are divided horizontally. The zones extend 20 kilometres either side of the state border and extend from the southern coastline up to the River Murray. This layer contains only the South Australian zones. This layer will mainly be used for administration purposes for water licensing. While this dataset was created in June 1998, the age of the zones is unknown and probably date back to early period of development of the South Australian/Victorian border agreement on groundwater.

This layer provides boundaries for the management of groundwater in Victoria and is a product of the NWC funded Secure Allocations, Future Entitlement (SAFE) Project. The Groundwater Management Basins (GMB) layer has been derived from the Groundwater Catchments (GCs). Both the GMBs and GCs have been developed to provide complete coverage of Victoria while considering the following: (1) Reflect aquifer systems and groundwater movement; and, (2) Align with physical (i.e. surface water) and administrative boundaries where appropriate. The GCs are aligned with the GMBs. Boundaries that related directly or in-directly to the physical characteristics of groundwater resources included groundwater flow divides, surface water flow divides, topographic divides, and geological structural features that influence aquifer extent and groundwater flow direction. There are five Groundwater Management Basins (GMBs) in Victoria. Each basin encompasses a number of Groundwater Catchments (GCs): (1) Goulburn Murray Basin: includes the Loddon, Campaspe, Goulburn-Broken, Ovens and Upper Murray Groundwater Catchments; (2) Wimmera-Mallee Basin: includes the Wimmera-Mallee, West Wimmera and Avoca Groundwater Catchments; (3) Otway-Torquay Basin: includes the Glenelg, Portland and Hopkins-Corangamite and Otway Torquay Groundwater Catchments; (4) For ease of reporting: Port Phillip, Westernport and Tarwin Basins are grouped into Central Basin. Central Basin includes: West Port Phillip Bay, East Port Phillip Bay, Westernport and Tarwin Groundwater Catchments; (5) Gippsland Basin: includes East Gippsland, Central Gippsland and Seaspray Groundwater Catchments.

This dataset representst Victoria’s Groundwater Management Areas (GMAs) Where groundwater has been intensively developed in Victoria, or has the potential to be developed, Groundwater Management Areas (GMAs) are established and the Permissible Consumptive Volume (PCV) is progressively set. Monitoring of the groundwater resource in these areas is undertaken by the Department of Sustainability and Environment through the State Groundwater Monitoring Network. Water levels and the amount of water allocated to groundwater users in the areas are closely monitored.

River basin catchment areas for Melbourne. This layer has two intended purposes:,

River basin catchment areas for Melbourne. This layer has two intended purposes: To provide a readily available amalgamation of MWC_Catchments that make up the river basins within Melbourne Water’s area. Useful for larger scale plans and maps.Data for basin boundaries have been captured by relevant State and Territory authorities from 1:10 000 and 1:250 000 scale source material. The balance of the data are from Geoscience Australia's GEODATA Coast 100K which includes coastlines and State and Territory borders. Topographic Drainage Divisions and River Region boundaries are updated based on current research, data and technology. It references previous work of the Australian Water Resources Management Committee as shown in Australia's River Basins 1997. This work is a collaboration of scientists from the Bureau of Meteorology, Australian National University Fenner School of Environment and Society, CSIRO Water for Healthy Country Flagship and Geoscience Australia.In late 2008, the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM), in partnership with Geoscience Australia, CSIRO and the Australian National University (ANU) commenced the development of the Australian Hydrological Geospatial Fabric (Geofabric). Geofabric is being developed to underpin the Australian Water Resources Information System (AWRIS) within a single, consistent, national geospatial framework for hydrological features. Geoscience Australia's role in the Geofabric is to provide the best available national topographic spatial data for surface water features based on the National Topographic Data and Map Specifications. The river basin boundaries have been aligned (by Melbourne Water) to Melbourne Water Corporation (MWC) drainage catchments, to produce a consistent drainage and waterways catchment dataset to State level, since 2005.NOTE: Whilst every effort has been taken in collecting, validating and providing the attached data, Melbourne Water Corporation makes no representations or guarantees as to the accuracy or completeness of this data. Any person or group that uses this data does so at its own risk and should make their own assessment and investigations as to the suitability and/or application of the data. Melbourne Water Corporation shall not be liable in any way to any person or group for loss of any kind including damages, costs, interest, loss of profits or special loss or damage, arising from any use, error, inaccuracy, incompleteness or other defect in this data.

Boundaries defining the approximate jurisdiction of the Rural Water Corporations in Victoria.