Drinking supplies in towns along the Murray have been assured for the next 12 months, but the uncertainty of supply beyond that was causing concern for thousands of Victorians yesterday in towns such as Mildura, Swan Hill, Wodonga and Echuca.

Those towns, like Adelaide, take their drinking water from the Murray, and local water officials said work had already started on contingency plans to manage possible shortages.

Owen Russell, general manager of Lower Murray Water, said a system of trucking water from locks and weirs along the river was at the heart of plans for the region between Kerang and the South Australian border.

"If the river got to a stage where it wasn't able to flow continuously, we do believe there would be enough water left in our locks and weir areas, so we would have to set up emergency watering areas from those," Mr Russell said.

Mildura Mayor John Arnold said there had been no talk of introducing recycled water to drinking supplies, but "I'm sure that that is something that will certainly be discussed".

Federal and state authorities are working on broader contingency plans for the basin in the 2009-10 financial year, and The Age believes that rationing of water this year — to create extra supply for the following year — is among the options.

South-East Queensland has imposed ration limits of 140 litres per day on its citizens in recent years.

The federal Environment Department confirmed that other measures included the disconnection of artificially managed wetlands.

Campaspe Shire, which includes Echuca, will hold a strategy meeting with its local supplier — Coliban Water — today. Mayor John Elborough said residents had shown a positive attitude towards managing water shortages.

"It's dangerous, there's no doubt about that, but we are just going to work through it," he said.

Swan Hill Mayor Gary Norton said his community had to "manage for the worst and hope for the best".

"It will be devastating and it will destroy all the confidence in the community … it just has a domino effect."