Sunraysia Water Efficiency Project (SWEP)
Creating a more efficient water delivery network across the Mildura, Red Cliffs and Merbein irrigation districts.
Completed
Modernising Sunraysia’s irrigation
The $37.9 million Australian Government funded Sunraysia Water Efficiency Project (SWEP) was an efficiency project undertaken in the Mildura region in North-West Victoria.
SWEP sought to sustain the long-term reliability of water delivery and agricultural productivity of the region by removing redundant assets and extending the lifespan of channel infrastructure.
By minimising water leakage and seepage, once audited the project aims provide 1.8 GL annually of recovered water back to the environment.
The project ran from late 2022, with the majority of construction taking place in winter 2023 and 2024. Construction works reached completion in November 2024.
Putting SWEP in context for Sunraysia
The Sunraysia’s region has a $2.7B economy, driven primarily by water-intensive agricultural and horticultural industries. Sunraysia’s agrifood sector is one of Australia’s most valuable horticultural regions, producing over 80% of the nation’s citrus exports, and an estimated 90% of its summer fruit and table grape exports.
At the heart of this high agricultural output is a reliable irrigation system, making the region’s water infrastructure crucial.
The region’s water is delivered via a complex network of concrete and earthen channels, many of which were built over a century ago. While some infrastructure has been updated over the years, much of it no longer reflects modern best practices.
Lower Murray Water (LMW) identified several challenges in maintaining this outdated infrastructure. These included:
- The threat of reduced agricultural productivity
- Inefficient water delivery systems due to ageing assets
- An increased risk of supply failure
Project scope
The project had two main scope components:
- Modernising 27 km+ of channel across the irrigation networks
- Undertaking works on 450+ water meters
Meters
Redundant and inaccurate flowmeters contributed to water losses across Sunraysia’s irrigation network, due to leakage through or around the meters, as well as unauthorised use. As part of the project’s water recovery goals, the team replaced two types of meters across the network: small meter outlets (SMOs) which are also known as Dethridge wheels, and domestic and stock outlets (D&S).
The project involved:
Channels
This ambitious project aimed to modernise over 27 km of outdated concrete and earthen channels across the network.
Earthen channels, constructed by digging directly into the ground and reinforced with gravel or rock, posed risks due to slope collapses and suffered significant water loss through seepage. The older concrete channels faced heavy degradation, leading to further water loss, leakage, and seepage into the surrounding soil.
To address these issues, the project installed more than 2.5 km of new underground pipelining, strategically chosen for areas where it offered both cost-efficiency and community benefit. The remaining channels were repaired and relined.
This process involved draining the channels, repairing cracked concrete, or, for earthen channels, re-cutting the channel and installing a durable liner on top.
Project achievements
Community engagement
Whether engaging with landowners, shut-down-impacted customers, industry or primary students in mini high-vis vests, it was clear the SWEP team had people at the heart of the project.
This genuine connection underscored our commitment to making SWEP more than just a project—it became a shared community experience. The project brought community along on the SWEP journey through educational tours, community events and even a community art initiative that turned removed water wheels intro art sculptures.
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