The state government pledged $100,000 toward clearing the jam as part of its election promise in August last year.

The log jam has been a sore topic for landowners in the region, one of which - David Talbot at Baythorne - experiences significant flooding on his land as a result of a water backlog caused by the kilometres-long blockage.

Northern Midlands mayor David Downie said the state's works application was approved late in June.

Cr Downie said he believed the works were for the removal of logs from the river, but said an important aspect of resolving the trouble was opening up more channels for the river to flow.

He said about five upstream channels were present in that particular leg of the Nile River but some were blocked, which could have triggered issues.

The Examiner sent questions to Environment Minister Matthew Groom asking whether the state planned to fully remove the log jam or address its causation.

A government spokesman said the works were targeted at "removing woody debris accumulation at the major log jam site on the river".

"Engineering design work has been completed to achieve this," the spokesman said.

A report commissioned by the former state government in August 2003, Flood Management: Nile River at Deddington Review and Recommendations, said the jam would develop at 30 to 40 metres every three years.

The report supports Cr Downie's beliefs and outlines formation of the river upstream as a cause of the log jam.

" Land owners have been calling for this issue to be addressed for a number of years and that's why the Government made it an election commitment to address the issue in its first term," the government spokesman said. "The log jam built up over decades. Improvements in land use and riparian management in recent decades will help address the issue once the log jam is cleared.

"Works will commence once the weather improves and it is safe to do so."