Australian Water Management Review Vol 1 2010 | Page 30

Water for the Future
Preparing Australia for a future with less water

The Australian Government is
getting on with the job of tackling
water scarcity in the face of climate
change through a comprehensive
national response to meet water
availability challenges in both rural
and urban areas.
Water for the Future is built on four
key priorities: taking action on climate
change; using water wisely; securing
water supplies; and supporting
healthy rivers.
These priorities will be delivered
through a ten-year, $12.9 billion
investment in strategic programs
including infrastructure investment
to help water users adapt to a future
with less water, purchasing water
for the environment, and a renewed
commitment to water reform nationally.
Water for the Future provides $5.8
billion for rural water use and
infrastructure projects to improve the
efficiency of water use on farms and in
irrigation delivery systems.
To help restore the health of
our vitally important rivers,
wetlands and floodplains, Water
for the Future has $3.1 billion for
purchasing water entitlements.
Other initiatives include securing water
supplies for cities and towns through
projects such as recycling, desalination,
and stormwater harvesting.

The Australian Government is
implementing a suite of policy measures
and funding programs to give effect to
the Water for the Future priorities: taking
action on climate change; using water
wisely; securing water supplies; and
supporting healthy rivers.
The policies that are reforming the way
water is managed in Australia range from
changing the governance arrangements
for the Murray-Darling Basin to developing
a new national water market system.
Funding programs are addressing water
scarcity at all scales and encompass
multi-million dollar assistance for irrigation
businesses to modernise their operations,
rebates for householders to install
rainwater tanks and grey-water systems,
and support for local governments to
secure town water supplies into the
future. Specific actions are restoring

Water Management Review 2010

parts of our environment that have been
degraded by reduced water availability.

Sustainable Rural Water Use and
Infrastructure
The amount of irrigation water that
leaks out of irrigation systems or is
lost to evaporation is about the same
as all our major capital cities consume.
Making better use of the water that
is available is critical to adapting to
reduced water availability which is
forecast as a result of climate change.
That’s why the Government is investing
heavily in helping irrigators to upgrade
their water infrastructure.

To meet the challenge of reduced water
availability in the future, the Government
has committed more than $4 billion so
far to upgrade and modernise water and
irrigation infrastructure in the MurrayDarling Basin.
As part of its support for irrigators to
modernise their infrastructure, the
Government has invested more than $4.6
million to assist 18 water providers to
develop modernisation plans for irrigation
districts and covering about 75 per cent of
total irrigation entitlements in the Murray
Darling Basin.
Another component of the Government’s
investment in irrigation infrastructure
is an assessment of ‘hotspots’
to identify and quantify the worst
water losses in key areas, using a
methodology developed by the CSIRO.
The findings will help planning for
modernising irrigation infrastructure with
assistance through the Private Irrigation
Infrastructure Operators Program.
Irrigators in the Lachlan and southernconnected system of the Murray-Darling
Basin are being assisted through the
$300 million On-Farm Irrigation Efficiency
Program to modernise their on-farm
irrigation infrastructure and return water to
the environment.
The Government is also helping small
block irrigators to leave the industry while
staying on their farms. The Small Block
Irrigators Exit Grant package is providing
funding for eligible farmers willing to
sell their water entitlements to the
government and change to different kinds
of farming or other activities.
Top: Irrigation sprinklers near Hay, NSW (Andrew Tatnell & DEWHA)
Bottom: Irrigation channel near Mooroopna, VIC (John Baker & DEWHA)