In short
Short answer: the Salinity Management Overlay (SMO) is a Victorian planning overlay set out in clause 44.02 of the Victoria Planning Provisions and applied to land through each council's planning scheme. In the clause's own words, its first purpose is: “To identify areas subject to saline ground water discharge or high ground water recharge”. (Department of Transport and Planning (Victoria), verified 27 Sep 2026)
An overlay sits on top of the land's zone and adds controls for one issue, whatever the zone is; a lot can carry several.
What it typically means for a buyer (Delora editorial, not legal advice): Land affected by salinity; works and vegetation removal may need a permit.
Check whether the Salinity Management Overlay applies to an address with Address Check. For a decision on a specific property, the official record is a Planning Property Report from VicPlan, and the council's schedule sets the local detail.
What the clause says
Clause 44.02 of the Victoria Planning Provisions (Salinity Management Overlay) states its purposes as: to identify areas subject to saline ground water discharge or high ground water recharge; to facilitate the stabilisation of areas affected by salinity; to encourage revegetation of areas which contribute to salinity; to encourage development to be undertaken in a manner which brings about a reduction in salinity recharge; to ensure development is compatible with site capability and the retention of vegetation, and complies with the objectives of any salinity management plan for the area; and to prevent damage to buildings and infrastructure from saline discharge and high watertable. (Department of Transport and Planning (Victoria), verified 27 Sep 2026)
Ask your conveyancer: Which schedule applies to this land, and what does it require?
Shown on planning scheme maps as SMO.
How much of Victoria this covers
From the 2899 sample suburbs Address Check's export has processed so far — a lower bound, not a statewide total, until the export runs statewide.
10,117 land parcels and 12,232 addresses in the sample so far.
Councils with the most coverage
- Mildura (4783 lots)
- Central Goldfields (2149 lots)
- Surf Coast (807 lots)
- Greater Shepparton (570 lots)
- Golden Plains (539 lots)
- Mitchell (295 lots)
Suburbs with the highest share
- Daisy Hill — 98% of addresses checked (234)
- Talbot — 97% of addresses checked (411)
- Dookie — 94% of addresses checked (234)