1367.2 - State and Regional Indicators, Victoria, Jun 2002  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 06/08/2002   
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MEDIA RELEASE

August 6, 2002
Embargoed: 11:30 AM (AEST)
102/2002

Victoria's water storages below 40%

Victoria's rural water storage levels were at 37.9% of capacity at the end of June this year, down from 46.2% a year earlier, according to statistics released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) in the publication State and Regional Indicators, Victoria.

The largest falls were observed in the catchments of the Campaspe (from 64.7% to 33.1%) and Loddon (from 57.0% to 35.2%) river basins. Water storages on the Goulburn and the Murray fell 9.6% and 8.7% respectively. Small rises occurred in the Ovens (up 4.8%) and Glenelg/Wimmera (up 2.9%) catchments.

In contrast, Melbourne's storages rose from 49.3% to 50.4%.

However, June proved to be a good month with inflows which saw rural water storage levels rise 2.5% over that month. Ovens storages improved from 31.0% to 65.3% for the month. Small increases were observed in the Broken, Goulburn, Loddon and Murray River basins, and small decreases in Campaspe, Glenelg/Wimmera, Maribyrnong and Werribee.

A feature article in this issue of State and Regional Indicators, Victoria includes census tables showing the population of all suburbs of Melbourne, Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo. With 45,509 people, Reservoir was the most populous suburb, and also the suburb with the greatest number of people aged 65 and over (8,460). This is the first time the ABS has released Census data to the level of suburbs.

People aged 65 or more made up 53.3% of the population of Bangholme, 42.2% of the population of Marshall and more than 30% of Rosebud West, Sorrento, Portsea, Heatherton and North Geelong. Lake Wendouree (24.6%) and Kennington (19.9%) had the largest proportions of seniors in Ballarat and Bendigo respectively.

Hoppers Crossing had the largest number of children under 15 (9,977). Kilsyth South (34.3%) topped a list of 14 Melbourne suburbs where more than 30% of the population was under 15 years old. More than 25% of the residents were under the age of 15 in four suburbs in Geelong, four in Ballarat and three in Bendigo.

Further details, are in State and Regional Indicators, Victoria, June Quarter 2002 (cat. no. 1367.2).