Apollo Bay: Water, Your Say

Barwon Water is engaging with the Apollo Bay community, including Marengo and Skenes Creek to better understand local insights, priorities and values when it comes to a sustainable and resilient water future.

The Apollo Bay water supply system is able to meet forecast water demands in the short term, with water restrictions only likely to be required in very dry climate conditions.

With forecast growth in Apollo Bay, and potential impacts of a changing climate, we’ll need to take action within the next decade to maintain a reliable supply of water over the long-term to support a vibrant and sustainable region.

We’re eager to understand and support the values and priorities of residents and rate payers, businesses, community groups and regular visitors and work together to plan for long-term water security, climate resilience, affordability, a healthy environment and any other key values that the community shares.

The Apollo Bay system

All water for Apollo Bay supply system (including Marengo and Skenes Creek) is harvested solely from the Barham River, which is then stored in two storage basins in Apollo Bay and Marengo.

Over the summer and autumn period, when there is less water available in the river, stored water is drawn down to meet customer water demand.

The water supply can therefore be vulnerable to very dry conditions during summer and autumn.

This year has been a particularly dry year at Apollo Bay. It has been the third driest October to January period in 50 years at Apollo Bay. We’ve been closely monitoring stream flows and storage levels. In response to dry conditions, stage two water restrictions will be introduced in Apollo Bay, Marengo and Skenes Creek from Monday 7 April.

Community working group expression of interest

Your Say survey

Webinar

Apollo Bay: Water, Your Say webinar

To learn more about the Apollo Bay: Water, Your Say project, please join our webinar.

Details

Date: Wednesday 26 March

Time: 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm

How to join the webinar

Join on Microsoft Teams by clicking the link below:

Join the meeting now

Meeting ID: 479 023 026 778

Passcode: 8ZL7Ws2V

To join via laptop or PC, you can either use Teams if you have it installed, or you can join via a web browser without installing Teams.

To join via phone or iPad, you’ll need to download the Teams app first.

iPhone/iPad

Open App store > search Teams > pale blue with T heading includes: Call, Chat, Collaborate > Get

Android device

Google Play store > search Teams >pale blue with T, heading includes: Microsoft Corporation > Install

Can’t make it?

That’s okay, you can always ask a question below, send our friendly team a direct message at projects@barwonwater.vic.gov.au or call us on 1300 656 007.

Local projects and initiatives

We have the following local projects happening, all helping to support a sustainable resilient water future.

Recycled Water to Apollo Bay Golf Club

We've been working with the Apollo Bay Golf Club to supply sustainable recycled water for irrigation at the golf course.
Marengo Basin Dam safety maintenance

We’re undertaking maintenance works at Marengo Basin, to ensure it continues to deliver a secure supply to the Apollo Bay community.
Apollo Bay Basin storage capacity improvements

In 2022, we explored innovative ideas to optimise our storage capacity at the Apollo Bay Basin where we were able to increase storage capacity by 21 million litres.
Marengo digital meter trial saves water

In late 2022, we conducted a 12-month digital meter trial to explore sustainable water use in Marengo to find and fix otherwise undetectable leaks.
Building a Resilient Barham River

We’ll be investing in catchment and waterway health initiatives to protect and improve water quality in the Barham River.

Latest news

Invite us to your event

Have you got an event coming up and need to make sure people stay hydrated? Or maybe you have one of your regular meetings? Why not get in touch!

Email us

Key dates

March 2025

Join our community working group

If you’re interested in joining, please complete the short expression of interest form online now!

Friday 21 March 2025

Online survey - have your say

Have your say via our short online survey. Hard copies available on request - 1300 656 007.
The survey is open until Friday 21 March 2025.

Wednesday 26 March 2025 05:30 pm to 06:30 pm

We're engaging with the Apollo Bay community, including Marengo and Skenes Creek to better understand local insights, priorities and values when it comes to a sustainable and resilient water future.

To learn more register for our webinar.

Document Library

Apollo Bay: Water, Your Say - Community Working Group Terms of Reference
PDF (174.89 KB)

Timeline

Timeline item 1 - active

Phase 1 | Listen and share

February 2025
Timeline item 2 - incomplete

Phase 2 | Values and principles

March 2025
Timeline item 3 - incomplete

Phase 3 | Deep dive on options

October 2025
Timeline item 4 - incomplete

Phase 4 | Co-create our Apollo Bay future

Early to mid-2026

Frequently Asked Questions

We want the Apollo Bay, Marengo and Skenes Creek communities to be part of a conversation about a sustainable and resilient water future.

With a keen interest in the popular tourism destination’s future water security, we want to understand and support the values and priorities of residents and rate payers, businesses, community groups and regular visitors.

We’re committed to conducting ongoing, genuine engagement with the community to plan for long-term water security, climate change mitigation, affordability, environmental preservation and any other key values that the community shares.

Community members and customers will be able to have their say through a variety of ways, including surveys, community information sessions and pop-ups, sharing feedback in writing, by phone or by leaving a comment on our project website. We’re committed to keeping the community informed and will share information on opportunities to participate and have a say.

If you have any questions about the project or would like to register for email updates, please email us at projects@barwonwater.vic.gov.au or telephone 1300 656 007.

The coastal towns of Apollo Bay, Marengo and Skenes Creek are supplied with drinking water from the Barham River in the southern Otway Ranges.

The system has two small, off-stream storages that are filled directly from the river, mainly in winter and spring, then drawn down over summer. To protect the environment there are also strict limitations on how much water can be extracted from the river in the summer months, so this limits the ability to maintain storage levels during the time of year when demand is at its greatest.

Apollo Bay’s storages have a total capacity of 401 million litres, meaning they do not have the capacity to store water for multiple years of annual demand of about 390 million litres. Each year, the amount of water available to meet peak summer demand in Apollo Bay depends on the reliability of rainfall and flows in the river the preceding winter and spring.

A pumping station at the river transfers water to the nearby Apollo Bay basin, before continuing on to the Marengo basin. From here, water is transferred via a pipeline to a nearby treatment plant, where it is filtered and disinfected.

We constructed the second storage at Apollo Bay in 2014, after our bulk entitlement was amended to make provision for new infrastructure, as well as the needs of the environment through passing flows. Prior to the second storage’s construction, Stage 2 restrictions were in place every summer (November to March) between 2001 and 2014 in Apollo Bay. The additional 250 million litre capacity of the second storage has enabled more water to be harvested during periods of higher winter and spring flow in the Barham River.

The Apollo Bay basin has the capacity to store up to 276 million litres ML and the Marengo basin has the capacity to store up to125 million litres.

We want to look at how we can maximise our opportunities and overcome some local challenges in partnership with the Apollo Bay community, which includes planning a long-term water supply upgrade.

Here are some of the things we’re doing now to prepare for our future:

We’re working with the Apollo Bay Golf Club to supply sustainable recycled water for irrigation of the golf course.
With some minor works, we’ve increased the capacity of our Apollo Bay Basin by 21 million litres.
We’re undertaking maintenance on Marengo Basin, to ensure it continues to deliver a secure supply to the Apollo Bay community.
We’ve commenced a new project: Building a Resilient Barham, to implement best catchment management and source water protection practices.
We’ve conducted a 12-month digital metering trial in Marengo to understand how we can save water by improving detection and reduction of network leaks.

The Apollo Bay system is relatively isolated because of its location and geography, so a connection to other systems (like the Geelong, Golden Plains, Bellarine and Surf Coast system) is challenging. The limited storage capacity in the system means that it is highly dependent on seasonal climate patterns, with the ability to meet peak summer demand reliant upon rainfall in the preceding winter and spring.

Apollo Bay uses around 390 million litres every year which is the equivalent of approximately 156 Olympic-sized swimming pools.

The coastal towns of Apollo Bay, Marengo and Skene’s Creek experience an influx of visitors during summer, which temporarily swells the population ten-fold to around 20,000. The permanent population is around 2,000 and expected to grow towards 3,000 by 2065.

Apollo Bay’s average annual water demand of 390 million litres is primarily residential use. Daily demand is substantially higher over the summer months, with the influx of visitors, along with higher water use to maintain gardens, public open space and other irrigated areas such as the golf course.

There are currently no water restrictions in place in Apollo Bay. This year has been a particularly dry year at Apollo Bay. It has been the third driest October to January period in 50 years at Apollo Bay. We’ve been closely monitoring stream flows and storage levels. In response to dry conditions, stage two water restrictions will be introduced in Apollo Bay, Marengo and Skenes Creek from Monday 7 April.

All towns within Barwon Water’s service region – including Apollo Bay – follow the Permanent Water Saving Rules all year round. These are a set of simple, common-sense rules to reduce demand and make sure we all use water wisely.

The permanent water saving rules are always in place, and are uniform across Victoria.

Prior to the second storage at Apollo Bay’s construction, Stage 2 restrictions were in place every summer (November to March) between 2001 and 2014 in Apollo Bay. The additional storage has tripled capacity and enabled more water to be harvested during periods of higher winter and spring flow in the Barham River.

For more information visit our website here: https://www.barwonwater.vic.gov.au/water-and-waste/permanent-water-saving-rules

Even though storage levels are able to meet forecast water demands in the short term, we are seeing a long-term shift towards a hotter, drier climate making seasonal rainfall less reliable.

The “Apollo Bay: Water Your Say” project will help the community and Barwon Water plan a sustainable and resilient long term water future together to support ongoing prosperity for a thriving and sustainable township to live, work, visit and play.

We conduct detailed modelling to understand our water needs for the future.

Longer-term planning is based on forecasting system performance for different levels of service under a range of possible climate and population scenarios, including low rainfall and high growth. Our long-terms plans are usually based on high-risk scenarios which helps ensure we never run out of water.

We’re investing $2.5 million over the next five years across the region, including Apollo Bay, to help customers and businesses save water, and provide programs, grants and rebates. We’ll also work with tourism operators on leak detection and repair, education and advice.

Here to help!

Contact Information
Name	Strategic Community Engagement Team
Phone	1300 656 007
Email	projects@barownwater.vic.gov.au

Contact Information
Phone	1300 656 007
Email	info@barwonwater.vic.gov.au
Website	www.barwonwater.vic.gov.au
In writing	PO Box 659 Geelong, Victoria 3220

1300 656 007

info@barwonwater.vic.gov.au

www.barwonwater.vic.gov.au

PO Box 659
Geelong, Victoria 3220

Your Say Barwon Water

Apollo Bay: Water, Your Say

Barwon Water is engaging with the Apollo Bay community, including Marengo and Skenes Creek to better understand local insights, priorities and values when it comes to a sustainable and resilient water future.

Community working group expression of interest

Your Say survey

Webinar

Apollo Bay: Water, Your Say webinar

Details

How to join the webinar

Local projects and initiatives

Recycled Water to Apollo Bay Golf Club

Marengo Basin Dam safety maintenance

Apollo Bay Basin storage capacity improvements

Marengo digital meter trial saves water

Building a Resilient Barham River

Latest news

Invite us to your event

Contact Us