Barwon Downs is a town in Victoria

Victoria (Australia)

Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....

, Australia. The town is located in the foothills of the Otway Ranges, 151 kilometres (93.8 mi) south west of the state capital, Melbourne

Melbourne

Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...

. The township was proclaimed on 10 May 1910. At the 2006 census, Barwon Downs had a population of 167.

The main industries in the area are agriculture, forestry and tourism. The town has a general store, tennis courts and public hall. Barwon Downs also has a local Country Fire Authority

Country Fire Authority

Country Fire Authority, or CFA, is the name of the fire service that provides firefighting and other emergency services to all of the country areas and regional townships within the state of Victoria, Australia, as well as large portions of the outer suburban areas and growth corridors of Melbourne...

 (CFA) with members from the local community. Since the 1990s an aquifer

Aquifer

An aquifer is a wet underground layer of water-bearing permeable rock or unconsolidated materials from which groundwater can be usefully extracted using a water well. The study of water flow in aquifers and the characterization of aquifers is called hydrogeology...

 in the Barwon Downs area have been used as a supply of water for Geelong in periods of drought.