FUNDING for irrigated agriculture projects in northern Australia to boost farm-gate returns have started flowing via the $15 million Northern Australia Water Resource Assessment by the CSIRO.
The $15m forms part of the $500 million National Water Infrastructure Development Fund announced in the Agricultural Competitiveness White Paper.
The funding also supports Federal Agriculture and Water Resources Minister Barnaby Joyce’s passion for building dams to support agriculture and boost economic activity in the regions.
Mr Joyce and Northern Australia Minister Matt Canavan said work was underway on water resource assessments of the Mitchell River basin in north Queensland; the Finniss, Adelaide, Mary and Wildman basins in the Darwin region; and the Fitzroy River basin in Western Australia.
“These assessments are designed to ensure that any investment we make in water infrastructure delivers genuine returns at the farmgate, increases the capacity and productivity of agricultural industries and strengthens regional communities,” Mr Joyce said.
“Northern Australia has huge potential for economic development, including in agriculture, aquaculture and mining.
“For example, there are millions of hectares of soil that, with access to suitable water resources, could potentially support irrigated agriculture.”
Mr Joyce said the assessments would help unlock potential by providing a comprehensive evaluation of the feasibility, economic returns and sustainability of water infrastructure in each of the regions.
He said that would be achieved by undertaking comprehensive scientific analysis and modelling and identifying and testing the commercial viability of development opportunities like irrigated agriculture, aquaculture, forestry and mining.
Senator Canavan said developing water resources is a key element of the government’s commitment to unlocking the great opportunities of the north and realising the full potential of northern Australia as an economic powerhouse.
“More than half of Australia’s rainfall occurs in Northern Australia but it remains largely unused,” he said.
“Developing these water resources would remove one of the constraints holding Northern Australia back.
“The Northern Australia Water Resource Assessment will provide a detailed picture of what resources are available and where, giving us a solid understanding of the scale and nature of the opportunities for development.”
Senator Canavan said “You can’t develop what you don’t measure”.
“This work will build on the CSIRO’s recent assessment of the potential of the Flinders and Gilbert Rivers in the Gulf,” he said.
“These are already helping spur investor interest and the allocation of water in these systems.
“In addition to the $15 million for Northern Water Resource Assessment, we are also investing a total of $10 million in feasibility studies to look at expanding the Ord irrigation scheme in the Northern Territory (Ord Stage 3) and the construction of the Nullinga Dam in Queensland.”
Mr Joyce said the $500m National Water Infrastructure Development Fund comprised $50 million to start the detailed planning necessary to build new water infrastructure, and $450m for capital works.
He said $200m of the Fund is being directed to projects across the north of Western Australia and Queensland and the Northern Territory.
The CSIRO will be working closely with northern state and territory government agencies, local communities and key industry partners in the delivery of these resource assessments, he said.
Colin Bettles
National political writer for Fairfax Agricultural Media.
National political writer for Fairfax Agricultural Media.
