Goulburn River landholders again raise flooding concerns

The lake's current storage level is 97.2pc.

GMW Water Resources manager Mark Bailey said releases had been reduced from 12,000 megalitres a day in response to increased tributary flows

"Releases are currently at 11,000ML per day and are likely to resume at 12,000ML per day in the coming days after these tributaries fall," Dr Bailey said.

"These releases are expected to continue through July."

"Minor adjustments will be made to accommodate any increased inflows downstream of Eildon and to minimise bank erosion."

Dr Bailey said downstream impacts were a key consideration b behind any releases of water from Lake Eildon, particularly as private land was affected before the minor flood levels are reached.

Due to a wet catchment and rainfall in June, GMW has moved to the wet operating scenario when determining its filling targets.

He said the new scenario aimed to have Eildon full by November 1, rather than October 1.

But landholders around the Yea area say it's "too little, too late," after extensive flooding last October.

Molesworth beef producer John Scott, Bimbilla, whose property was flooded last year, said it wasn't enough.

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"The level needs to go to 90pc, at least," Mr Scott said.

Landholders had again met with GMW last week and asked them to drop the level of the lake.

"Depending on the flow of the tributaries, they are releasing water at between 10-12,000ML a day and the inflow is about the same, so it's really sitting pretty steady," Mr Scott said.

"I said to them at the last meeting keep it simple - the KISS principle - if you allow 10pc of the capacity for flood mitigation, which I think stakeholders are entitled to, you won't have all these problems of getting the lake overfull and flooding us."

If there was heavy rain in spring, GMW would again have to release large quantities of water, he said.

Binbilla manager Catherine Jessop said GMW missed an opportunity in May to lower the lake volume, "despite many people suggesting it would be a good idea.

"The place is holding a lot of water and there is not much margin for error," she said.

"During the heavy rainfall we recently had, because the lake was at a lower capacity, they were able to shut the outflow down to next to nothing and allow the natural tributaries to flood.

"That's not something they can do, if the lake is too high."

Yea beef producer Jan Beer said GMW appeared to be acting after pressure from Upper Goulburn catchment landholders, after last year's massive floods.

"We have speaking with GMW for months and this is the first time they have indicated they will attempt to draw the weir down to 94pc in a month's time," Ms Beer said.

"We are currently in the 'lap of the Gods', because if the present rain event coursing down from northwest Australia continued into Victoria, we would have an absolutely catastrophic flood.

"In the Upper Goulburn, every dam, waterhole, lagoon is full and overflowing with all gullies continually running and upstream tributaries chockers as well."

She said the dam catchment was absolutely saturated and far wetter than at the same time last year.

"The Goulburn is currently overflowing in the Molesworth area and at a channel capacity of 18,000 megalitres plus at Trawool," she said.

"Just one bigger rain event will see another major flood in the Goulburn, destroying all the pasture renovation and repair to infrastructure that has taken place with the assistance of state and federal flood recovery grants."

In an average year, Eildon received 30pc of its capacity as inflows.

"So with the weir currently at 97.2pc we are in an extremely precarious situation," she said.

Jock Blakeney manages beef-producing properties on the Goulburn River at Whanregarwen.

"We would like to see a buffer zone in the lake to be used as flood mitigation and take pressure off the river system itself," he said.

"The river system itself is in as bad a shape as I have ever seen it, with erosion and turbidity.

"The length of the spill last year, from a very unnatural flood, saw a lot of country under water for four to five weeks."

He said landholders had not seen any environmental study on the effects of last year's flood.

Mr Blakeney lives on the river flats, managing properties for McRae Pastoral.

"We have seen a loss of income through pasture loss and a lot of work through re-fencing," he said.

Last year's floods had done a lot of damage to the river; in sections, it was trying to break out and change its course.

The Goulburn River couldn't handle the current flow rates, he said.

"There are a lot lower flow rates than there were leading into last year's floods and it's breaking out a lot more now, a lot more country is going under."

If GMW planned to hold the lake at a lower level, until spring, "that would be sensational for us, because it would give us some buffers - but it's probably too little too late, the horse has probably already bolted," he said.