PYRAMID Boort irrigators are outraged by Goulburn Murray Water's decision to sack their water services committee.

GMW announced last week it had decided to "dissolve" the committee after suspending it last year for being "dysfunctional and ineffective".

    TELL US WHAT YOU THINK
  • Have Your Say in the form below

Irrigators will instead continue being represented by the interim Pyramid Boort Customer Reference Group, whose members are appointed by GMW, not elected by farmers.

Pyramid Hill mixed farmer Allan Mann said the sacking of the committee was an "insult" to irrigators.

"It's undemocratic," Mr Mann said. "They were elected by the people."

Mr Mann said he believed the committee was sacked for speaking its mind on aspects of the Northern Victorian Irrigation Renewal Project which it believed would leave farmers worse off.

Yarrawalla dairy farmer Howard Miles said he was disappointed the committee was sacked and that GMW never properly explained why.

"They said it was unworkable, but the issues were never stated as to why it was unworkable," Mr Miles said.

"I'm also disappointed that the customer reference group represents me to GMW but I don't get a say on who's on it."

Former committee chair John Nelson said the "whole episode has been handled pretty badly".

"If this is the way they do business, it's no wonder there is such low morale across the irrigation districts," Mr Nelson said.

He said the committee had "never really been told why we were sacked".

GMW general counsel and corporate secretary Russell Barnier said the board had dissolved the committee to give "finality" to its decision to suspend it.

"The board still had to decide whether to keep the water services committee - it needed finality in some way," Mr Barnier said.

He said the board still intended to move back to an elected water services committee in the future, but was unable to say when.

In the meantime, GMW would appoint three extra members of the Pyramid-Boort Customer Reference Group, Mr Barnier said.

Victorian Farmers Federation water council chair Richard Anderson said GMW should be "looking to move back to a democratically customer elected process as soon as possible".