Victorian Water and Climate Initiative

The Victorian Water and Climate Initiative (VicWaCI) is a research program that aims to better understand our climate and water resources.

VicWaCI also focuses on working with the water sector, and sectors dependent on water resources, to apply this knowledge to water resource management.

Research covered by VicWaCI includes:

• changes in streamflow rates across Victoria, and the reasons for the changes
• different weather types and their influence on rainfall
• rainfall and streamflow projections.

VicWaCI phase 2 (2021-2024) was a partnership between:

• the Victorian Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA)
• the Bureau of Meteorology
• the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).

Some of the key findings include:

• Victoria’s rainfall is variable but has decreased in the cool season, with a more rapid decline in recent decades.
• After the end of the Millennium Drought, streamflow has remained significantly lower than average in many central and western catchments.
• Victoria’s average temperature has increased and will continue to increase further over future decades and average cool season rainfall will continue to decline.
• The projected decline in cool season rainfall combined with higher potential evapotranspiration will likely result in reduced catchment runoff and water resources in future.
• Extreme rainfall events, such as those occurring once a year or less on average, are projected to become more intense due to increased moisture in the atmosphere.

To see the summary and detailed reports: Victorian Water and Climate Initiative