Domestic and Stock (Household) Dams
From March 2011 all new household dams in rural-urban fringe areas in Victoria will need to be registered with rural water corporations.
The regulations commenced March 2011. They require property owners in rural residential areas to register with their rural water corporation any new aesthetic dam, domestic and stock dam, or plans to significantly alter existing dams before commencing any works.
A rural residential area is any property located within the rural living zone, green wedge zones and any residential zone as defined by Victoria’s Planning Schemes, or any property that is eight hectares (20 acres) or smaller.
You can check with your local council if your property is in a rural residential zone. Property owners can also find out what zone they live in.
People with existing dams in rural residential areas will not need to register them unless they plan to alter the dam in any way.
Property owners who live outside a rural residential area (with a property size greater than eight hectares) do not need to register their domestic and stock dams.
If you require a surface water licence (take and use) or a dam construction licence then you do not need to also register your dam. Your licence application form is sufficient for the purpose of the regulation.
If you are unsure whether you need to register your dam or actually require a licence you can contact the Diversions Team on 131 722.
More information
The Department Of Sustainability and Environment has produced a questions and answers sheet on registering domestic and stock (household) dam (PDF, 292kb).
To register your new domestic and stock dam, or altered existing dam, please complete and return the application to register domestic & stock dam form (PDF, 253kb).
Downloads
- Household Dams Questions and Answers (PDF, 292kb)
- Registration Form - Domestic and Stock Dam (PDF, 253kb)
You will need Adobe Acrobat to access the above PDF documents. 