Surface Water Resources

• Water Storages
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• East Gippsland Rivers | Creeks and Lakes

The East Gippsland Basin covers a total area of 604 000 ha, of which 150 000 ha (25%) is in New South Wales. The average annual streamflow of the basin totals 770 000 ML (3.5% of Victoria's total discharge). Approximately 1 200 ML is diverted each year (DWR 1989). The main rivers in the basin are the Bemm, Cann, Thurra, Wingan and Genoa, all of which flow south or south-east into coastal inlets or lagoons, before entering the sea.

East Gippsland Rivers, Creeks and Lakes

The Streams, Lakes and Reservoirs map provides a broad indication of the location of major water resources in the region. The map was derived from the HYDRO500 and TEMP500 layers of the Department of Sustainability and Environment's Corporate Geospatial Data Library. Original data came from Division of Survey and Mapping's VICBASE. This is a 1983 Digital Map of Victoria which was formed using the AUSLIG 1:250000 as its base control.

The Snowy River Basin has a total area of 1 580 000 ha (41% lies in Victoria), with the remainder in NSW. The area that occurs in NSW generates the greatest proportion of the basin's total annual streamflow, which is 3 490 000 ML. Of this, 1 130 000 ML (32%) is diverted into the Snowy Mountains Hydroelectric Scheme. The Snowy River is the main river in the basin, but there are a number of major tributaries including the Suggan Buggan, Little and Buchan Rivers to the west, and the Deddick, Rodger and Brodribb Rivers to the east. Average annual water use within the Victorian part of the basin is only 2 230 ML, three-quarters of which is used for irrigation.

Snowy River at McKillop's Bridge.

Nicholson River.

The Tambo River Basin includes the Tambo and Nicholson Rivers and has a total area of 425 000 hectares. Its average annual discharge is 325 000 ML (DWR, 1989). Of this total surface water resource, 100 000 ML are divertible and 5 000 ML have been developed. The Timbarra River, a major tributary of the Tambo, forms part of the western boundary of the East Gippsland region.

The Mitchell River Basin extends 120 km from Lake Victoria in the south to the eastern highlands in the north and is typically 40 km wide. It is the westernmost catchment within the East Gippsland region and has a total area of 544 884 ha, or 2.5% of Victoria. The Basin is well endowed with surface water resources, with a mean annual flow of 960 000 ML, or 4.3% of statewide discharge. The divertible surface resource is 640 000 ML per year and of this volume, about 18 000 ML have been developed.
(DWR 1989)

Drainage Basins in the East Gippsland Region:

AWRC Basin	Major Rivers in the East Gippsland Region
Snowy	Snowy
Tambo	Tambo
	Timbarra
	Nicholson
Mitchell	Mitchell
	Wonnangatta
	Dargo

Source: DWR (1989)

Australian rivers and streams have highly variable flows with much of the variability being a function of seasonality. Most East Gippsland streams carry the greater proportion of their annual flow in winter and spring. Water storages in the East Gippsland region are used to modify and regulate stream flow in major rivers for reasons such as irrigation and flood mitigation. High-intensity rains at any time of the year can cause high stream flows and floods in the lower reaches of most major rivers in the region (LCC 1982).

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