On-Farm Irrigation Efficiency Program

The Hon. G.A. KANDELAARS (15:03): My question is to the Minister for Water and the River Murray. Will the minister update the chamber on the fourth round of the On-Farm Irrigation Efficiency Program and the positive effect this funding is having on South Australian farmers and irrigators?

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation, Minister for Water and the River Murray, Minister for Climate Change) (15:03): I thank the honourable member for his most important question. An important part of addressing the health of the River Murray is ensuring that water is used wisely and environmental water is returned to the system. Using our natural resources efficiently and well and sustainably is an essential part of safeguarding our irrigated agricultural sector (worth, I am told, about $1.5 billion annually) as well as our world-renowned food and wine producers for the generations into the future. That is why the On-Farm Irrigation Efficiency Program, introduced by the federal government in 2009, has been so very successful.

This is a $575 million fund aimed at assisting irrigators within the southern connected system of the Murray-Darling Basin to assist farmers to modernise and improve the efficiency of their irrigation practices. On 12 December 2014, a formal funding agreement was executed between the South Australian Murray-Darling Basin Natural Resources Management Board and the commonwealth Department of the Environment for the fourth round of this important program. I am pleased to report that, as in each of the previous rounds, South Australian irrigators have been extremely successful in this round of funding.

As a delivery partner, the South Australian Murray-Darling Basin Natural Resources Management Board has played an important supporting role for our farmers in each of these funding rounds. The board, as I understand it, is the only regional delivery partner to have been awarded funding through all four rounds of the On-Farm Irrigation Efficiency Program. This latest round will see an additional $31.5 million invested into 122 irrigator projects. It is expected that these projects will generate an approximate combined saving of about 14,300 megalitres of water. Of the total savings, around 9,300 megalitres are expected to be returned to the environment to support the health of ecosystems in the Murray River wetlands and our flood plains. The remainder will form a dividend to the irrigators to enhance their business flexibility.

In the previous three rounds, our state attracted, I am told, $45 million worth of funding. This has funded almost 300 South Australian irrigator projects, resulting in more than 16,000 megalitres of water and, importantly, the water savings generated through the On-Farm Irrigation Efficiency Program also contribute towards making up the gap between current diversion limits and the sustainable diversion limits proposed through the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.

Improving the efficiency of on-farm irrigation systems not only saves water, it can also result in lower nutrient run-off and increased crop quality and yield, and provide crop rotation and flexibility for our irrigators. All this helps bolster the region's food production potential, ensuring that producers are well positioned to compete in an increasingly competitive global market while securing the long-term health of the river.

I am told the Angove Family Winemakers in McLaren Vale, for example, have used the on-farm irrigation efficiency funding to install a new filtration system and switch from overhead sprinklers to automatic drip irrigation. I am told again that this has saved about 2.5 megalitres per hectare of watering and ensured greater consistency and uniformity in watering. The result has been improved vine health, fruit quality and increased yield, as well as substantial time savings through automated systems.

Bookpurnong Fruits in the Riverland has also noticed substantial time management advantages since installing drip irrigation, and water savings of up to 40 per cent for young fruit trees. The Wurst family farm at Waikerie has achieved better crop yields and fruit quality as a result of the salt moisture monitoring equipment and fertiliser injection system that they have installed. These are just a small cross-section of local businesses reaping the benefits of the On-Farm Irrigation Efficiency Program. I would like to take this opportunity to commend all the irrigators who have benefited from this initiative for trying to save water and be more sustainable.

I would also like to thank all the staff and members of the South Australian Murray-Darling Basin Natural Resources Management Board for their efforts in obtaining this funding for our communities. The board's knowledge and expertise, as well as its strong connection with the irrigator community, have no doubt played an essential role in the success, and I congratulate the former Labor government for introducing this program.