As West Gippsland Catchment Management Authority (CMA) wraps up another year of caring for the catchment, we would like to take the opportunity to wish everyone a happy Christmas and thank you for your support in 2024.  

Each day, our team is hard at work partnering with Traditional Owners, Landcare, landholders, government and community to improve West Gippsland’s catchment from the mountains to the sea. The Authority’s newly published Annual Report and Achievements Brochure summarise the work of the CMA and the benefits for catchment health.  

“In 2024, we were extremely proud to deliver environmental initiatives funded by the Victorian  
and Australian governments and acknowledge the support of Traditional Owners, partners and community,” said West Gippsland CMA CEO, Martin Fuller.  

“All of our projects focus on catchment health and include restoring rivers and wetlands, managing estuaries, delivering water allocations for the environment and working with landholders on sustainable agricultural solutions.”  

“Partnerships are at the heart of the work a CMA does and range from Landcare, community groups and government agencies. Supporting self-determination for Traditional Owners is also a key focus.” 

In 2023-24, West Gippsland CMA delivered many projects to benefit waterways including: 

• Planting 104,050 trees over 152 hectares
• Delivering 34,476 megalitres of water for the environment
• Protecting 106 hectares of remnant vegetation
• Treating 993 hectares of weeds
• Securing 96 management agreements to work together with landholders to repair and restore waterways.

The team also completed a program of flood recovery works stemming from the major impacts of the June 2021 flooding and storm event delivering:

• 19 waterway structures
• 7.5 kilkometres of fencing
• 6 hectares of vegetation
• 17 earthworks
• 30 management agreements.

“This was a year when many major projects wrapped up and new ones beginning. Two highlights were commencing the Toward Zero Extinctions: Protect the Eastern Hooded Plover project and the delivery of a fresh round of Corner Inlet Connections where we focussed on protecting shorebirds and other values of the internationally renowned Ramsar wetland.” 

A key function for the CMA is supplying statutory services and advice and we processed 904 planning permit referrals and requests for flood advice along with providing support and assistance to ensure appropriate permitting and planning is undertaken to protect waterways and floodplains in the region. 

“As we look back on 2024 and forward to working together to address the challenges and opportunities of 2025, we sincerely thank everyone for their ongoing support to be able to achieve benefits for West Gippsland’s catchment health that ultimately contribute to Gippsland’s wealth,” Martin concluded. 

West Gippsland Catchment Management Authority (the CMA) is responsible for over 40,000 kilometres of designated waterways across the region. All of these waterways flow to the Victorian coast, discharging through the Gippsland Lakes, or directly into Bass Strait and the Southern Ocean.