Victorian water policy shaken up

The Wonthaggi Desalination Plant could be used to support communities struggling with drought in northern Victoria as part of a planned water policy shake-up.

The proposal follows the state government announcement of a complete overhaul of Victoria's 19 water corporations in response to challenges posed by climate change and rapid population growth.

Minister for Environment, Climate Change and Water, Lisa Neville said on Wednesday the change in focus needed to start at the top.

All 135 positions on the state's boards had been cleared, she announced. However, new and former members are able to apply or re-apply for the roles.

More than 65 of the positions had already been up for renewal in September but the others weren't expected to change until 2017.

The move has been slammed by the opposition, saying it will create a vacuum of corporate knowledge.

But Ms Neville said water authorities had failed to plan for climate change under the former government's instruction, prompting the need for fresh ideas.

The controversial north-south pipeline will not be back on the agenda in the short term, she said.

However, the government would investigate how communities facing drought in northern Victoria could be supported by other areas of the state.

"That's what the desalination plant allows us to think about," she told reporters.

"We've got an opportunity, through the desalination plant, to think outside the square."

The Wonthaggi plant was completed in 2012 but no water has been used from the facility.

The notion that the plant could be used to replenish communities in the north was bizarre, Opposition Leader Matthew Guy said.

"The water minister is either incompetent or foolish if she really believes that six million trucks a year can be filled full of water and taken through the city, across the divide from the desal to lakes in northern Victoria," he told reporters.