Because of ongoing drought, the Northern Victorian Irrigation Renewal Project (NVIRP) was etablished in 2007 to upgrade irrigation systems to save water. The water saved is to be made available to irrigators, the environment and Melbourne. As part of NVIRP, waterwheels are being replaced by solar outlets. The water wheel, designed by Melbourne civil engineer John Stuart Dethridge and introduced in Victoria irrigation areas in 1911, was widely adopted overseas. It measured the amount of flood irrigation water used by each revolution. This photo captures water wheels made redundant at Pyramid Hill. The numbers on the wheels denote the channel outlet and farm.