WATER Minister Tim Holding has finally admitted the Victorian Government will divert about 12,000 megalitres from the Wimmera Mallee, originally earmarked for the environment, to Melbourne next year.

The Weekly Times last week revealed the Government was taking the water, which has traditionally been supplied to Wimmera Mallee farmers and towns by the Goulburn irrigation system.

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Even after the story broke, Mr Holding refused to acknowledge the water had been earmarked for the environment.

"With the Wimmera Mallee pipeline around six years ahead of schedule and saving huge volumes of water for communities in the region, water that has been delivered from the Waranga Basin will no longer be needed," Mr Holding said in a statement late last week.

"This water is not part of water savings generated from the Wimmera Mallee Pipeline which will be allocated to the environment."

However, Mr Holding's office this week admitted the water had been earmarked to boost environmental flows in the Loddon, Goulburn and Murray rivers.

Coalition water spokesman Peter Walsh said the government was being hypocritical in moving to lock up redgum forests in northern Victoria, while denying them environmental water.

The Government has now earmarked at least 64,000 megalitres of water for delivery to Melbourne next year, which Mr Walsh said was more than the Federal Government's $3.1 billion environmental water purchasing program would deliver this season.

"Melbourne will get 100 per cent of its allocation, while the Federal Government's purchases (of high reliability water) are likely to get seasonal allocations of just 20-25 per cent," Mr Walsh said.

The issue has fired up Nationals Federal Member for Mallee John Forrest, who has demanded the Federal Government step in.

Mr Forrest has written to Federal Parliamentary Secretary for Water Mike Kelly to: "seek your urgent intervention to prevent the Victorian Government reneging on a formal agreement that all water savings from piping the of the Wimmera Stock and Domestic water supply scheme should go to the environment".

Mr Holding secreted the Wimmera Mallee water away for Melbourne on June 28, by using his powers to qualify rights to Goulburn system water.

But unlike other ministerial qualifications of water rights, the June 28 order was not published.

Greens water spokesman Greg Barber said it was absolutely clear the water was earmarked for the environment.

"If I'd known (earlier) they were taking this water for the environment I would have been on to it like a seagull on to a hot chip," Mr Barber said.