North Central Victoria is a rural region in the Australian state of Victoria. The region lies to the south of the Victorian/New South Wales border as defined by the Murray River, to the southwest of the Hume region, to the west of the Great Dividing Range contained within the Central Highlands and Victorian Alps, to the north of Greater Melbourne, to the northeast of the Wimmera, and to the east of the Mallee region. As at the 2016 Australian census, the North Central region had a population of , representing the aggregate population of the eight local government areas that comprise the region. Location Sustainability Victoria, a Victorian Government agency, defines North Central Victoria as the municipalities of Buloke, Gannawarra, Loddon, Campaspe, Central Goldfields, Mount Alexander, Macedon Ranges and the City of Greater Bendigo. A climate change study by La Trobe University also includes the Shire of Hepburn within the region. The major urban centres are Bendigo, Castlemaine, Maryborough and Rochester. Smaller localities include Kyneton, Pyramid Hill, Kerang, Donald and Creswick. In 2002 the estimated population of North Central Victoria was 200,000. Administration Political representation For the purposes of Australian federal elections for the House of Representatives, the North Central region is contained within the Division of Bendigo, a southwestern portion of the Division of McEwen, the westernmost portion of the Division of Murray, the northeasternmost portion of the Division of Mallee, and the northeasternmost portion of the Division of Wannon, For the purposes of Victorian elections for the Legislative Assembly, the North Central region is contained within the electoral districts of Bendigo East, Bendigo West, Macedon, Murray Plains and Ripon. Local government areas For administration purposes the region is divided into eight local government areas: Environmental protection The North Central region contains the Greater Bendigo National Park, Gunbower National Park, Heathcote-Graytown National Park, and the Terrick Terrick National Park. Climate The climate is moderate with wet winters and warm, dry summers. Annual rainfall ranges from near Swan Hill in the north, to over in the far southeast. Temperatures are warm in summer, typically ranging from a maximum of to a minimum of in Kerang in the northwest and from to in the south. Winters are cool with minimum temperatures of across the region. Natural resources Natural resource management is administered by the North Central Catchment Management Authority covering bounded by the Great Dividing Range, the Mount Carmel Ranges to