Wednesday, 9 September 2026

 Wendy LOVELL (Northern Victoria) (19:05): (2796) My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Water. The action that I seek is for the minister to take immediate steps to reduce the risk of flooding in Rochester. In October 2022, Rochester experienced a catastrophic flood that inundated more than 90 per cent of the homes, and the town is still recovering from the traumatic event. The deluge was driven by water in Lake Eppalock overflowing into the Campaspe River, which then surged into Rochester. I have been contacted by numerous constituents who are deeply worried that the town is sitting directly in the line of danger once again, and they are asking for the minister’s intervention. For context, in 2022 Lake Eppalock was only half full at the start of winter, before heavy spring rain filled the storage and caused it to spill and flood Rochy. At this time last year the lake was at 55 per cent capacity, but this week it has already reached over 100 per cent capacity, holding more than 306,000 megalitres. That level is a sharp rise, from just 34 per cent capacity at the end of June 2026, gaining more than 200,000 megalitres in the last couple of months during very wet weather. There is now no headroom to contain inflows from further rain, but it is reported that Goulburn-Murray Water is only releasing half of the water that it could.

This winter’s heavy rain also means that the ground is absolutely soaked in the central Victoria catchment area. With the ground unable to absorb further water, even a small rainfall event of just 10 millimetres will result in an estimated 8000 to 12,000 megs of inflow at a time when there is no air space in the storage. The risk of a spill that will flood the Campaspe River is now very high, and farmers along the river as well as residents of Rochester are seriously worried. One farmer has contacted me to share a flood risk assessment he commissioned, which shows that there is a high risk of flood in the next eight weeks. He asked why more water has not been released to create more space in the storage for spring inflows and lower the risk of spillage and flood. I urge the minister to listen to the Rochester residents’ concerns by taking immediate action to reduce the risk of flooding in Rochester and communicate more effectively with the community whose fears mount while the government remains silent.