Blockies in the Robinvale, Red Cliffs and Merbein districts appear to have already breached the four per cent cap on water allowed to be traded out of the district in any one year.

According to the Victorian Water Register yesterday, the three areas had already breached the cap by 382 megalitres.

Large amounts have been sold to government buyback schemes, which are exempt from the cap.

The register splits Lower Murray Water into two trading districts with Robinvale, Red Cliffs and Merbein in one section and the former First Mildura Irrigation Trust area in another.

The four per cent cap in the Robinvale, Red Cliffs and Merbein district is 3742.7 megalitres, but 6213.9 megalitres have already been sold from the region.

This includes 4124.5 megalitres of genuine sales and 2089.4 megalitres of “exempted” sales, presumably to the government.

In the former FMIT district, there is still a long way to go before hitting the cap.

The tradeout limit from the district is 2525.4 megalitres, with 809 megalitres traded.

A total of 423.7 megalitres are “exempted” or government sales.