STATE Government funding for repairs to the Dimboola and Jeparit weirs has ended a two-year struggle to have the flood-damage assets restored.
Treasurer Kim Wells and Member for Lowan Hugh Delahunty announced $3.46 million for the repairs under Victoria's Natural Disaster Financial Assistance Scheme on Friday.
Hindmarsh Shire Council chief executive Dean Miller said council was 'thrilled to bits' by the funding.
"It is a fantastic outcome because this has been an issue now for well over 18 months and it has been a very complex issue," he said.
"The Dimboola Weir is owned by GWMWater so they put in an insurance claim after the floods, which was knocked back over the definition of whether it is a dam or a weir.
"The Commonwealth Natural Disaster Fund stipulates that it only covers local government-owned assets, meaning that because council does not own it, it would not be funded.
"It was then left to the State Government to have a look at the whole thing."
Mr Miller said as owner of the weirs, GWMWater would co-ordinate the project.
He said Jeparit Weir's handrails and flume gates would be replaced, while Dimboola Weir would be re-designed to cope with future floods.
"The damage bill at Jeparit was in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, not in the millions like Dimboola," he said.
"It would be irresponsible to replace like-for-like at Dimboola because if there was a similar-sized flood the same damage would occur.
"The idea is to make the structure more resilient, which will include a spillway so that if there is a flood there will be less pressure on the weir."
Mr Miller said construction was due to start in April and the projects would be complete by November.
He said consideration was still being given on how to stem the Wimmera River to allow for Dimboola Weir works.
"There are some details we have to work through but one option we are looking at is using a temporary coffer wall up the river to hold back the water," he said.
"When construction is complete the wall will be removed. We would expect that during construction there would still be a weir pool."
Member for Lowan Hugh Delahunty said the Dimboola Weir, which was constructed last century, had traditionally provided water to the Dimboola township.
"The weir is now a hub of activity with families and tourists using it for recreation," he said.
"By undertaking these important repairs, we are making sure the weir pool can continue to host events such as the annual rowing regatta in November.