Up to the end of June Shepparton had 270.3mm — well more than half of the annual mean, 436.7mm.
Lake Eildon, the main water storage on the Goulburn River, is sitting at 83.5 per cent of capacity, the highest level at this time of year for more than a decade.
The last time Lake Eildon was holding more water in early July was in 2011, following a major rainfall and flood event.
At the same time last year, the storage was at 59 per cent, a difference of 800,000 megalitres. Sydney Harbour holds 562,000 megalitres.
The Bureau of Meteorology climate outlook for August to October forecasts more above-average rainfall across most of Australia.
Water is abundant across the Murray-Darling Basin, which has also influenced environmental watering priorities.
Murray-Darling Basin Authority general manager of applied science Matt Coleman said with more water in rivers and storages, now was the time to capitalise on the fantastic fish and bird breeding events that had occurred and set plants and animals up for even greater success.
"Despite what some may think, now is the perfect time to focus environmental watering in areas of the Basin that have recently benefited from some of the largest natural flows in more than 10 years," Dr Coleman said.
"By delivering water for the environment at key sites over successive years, including wetter years, we should see an even greater rebound in fish and bird populations. That's because they need a few good seasons in a row to nest, breed and grow their young.”
An environmental flow downstream of Goulburn Weir planned for the next few weeks, known as the winter fresh, will increase the river height for short periods through to early August.
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