Summary: Natural Resource & Water Preparedness in the Great South Coast & Barwon Regions

Overview

The Great South Coast and Barwon regions are in a period of structural climate change, characterised by declining cool‑season rainfall, increasing temperatures, longer dry periods, and more frequent extreme climate events.

As an outcome of Great South Coast and Barwon Regional Drought Resilience Plans, Food & Fibre Great South Coast (FFGSC) with the support of project partners undertook to closely examine water and natural resource resilience across the Great South Coast and Barwon regions.

Together, the resulting Water Preparedness to Improve Drought Resilience and Natural Resource Preparedness to Improve Drought Resilience reports provide a combined roadmap for safeguarding the region’s environmental assets, agricultural industries and communities over the next 10–15 years.

Why This Matters

Climate change is already reshaping the region’s landscapes, economies and water systems. Key trends include:

≥ 1.2°C warming, accelerating evaporation and soil moisture decline
Persistent reduction in winter/spring rainfall
Rising drought frequency, heatwaves and bushfire risk
Lower streamflows and groundwater recharge
Increasing stress on farms, rivers, wetlands, biodiversity and infrastructure

These changes place pressure on agriculture - from dairy and horticulture to dryland grazing and forestry – and pose escalating risks to high‑value natural systems such as Ramsar wetlands, groundwater‑dependent ecosystems (GDEs), grasslands and threatened species habitats.

Key Strategic Takeaways

These two reports together highlight that:

Water and natural resources cannot be treated separately – ecology and agriculture are deeply interdependent.
Preparedness requires a shift from emergency response to long-term, integrated resilience planning.
The region's competitive advantage will increasingly depend on its ability to: manage scarce water, protect natural systems, support farmers through knowledge, infrastructure and policy alignment and foster cross-sector partnerships.

Overall, resilience depends on coordinated action across systems - water, land, biodiversity, agriculture and community. The region’s future competitiveness will rely on its ability to plan, collaborate and adapt now.

These projects of the Regional Drought Resilience Planning program received funding from the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund and the Victorian Government.