Mr Coulton welcomed last week’s announcement by the Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources, the Hon Barnaby Joyce MP of the Commonwealth On-Farm Further Irrigation Efficiency (COFFIE) programme.

 

Minister Joyce described the COFFIE programme as the first in the next generation of Australian Government programmes that will support on-farm water use efficiency across the Basin.

 

“This is an opportunity for irrigators, industry, potential delivery agencies and others with an interest in the programme to have their say and help shape the design of this important programme to ensure it best meets their needs,” Minister Joyce said.

 

“The programme will run until 2024 and will provide funding to help irrigators modernise their on-farm irrigation infrastructure, increasing efficiency and flexibility in water use on-farm and delivering environmental benefits.

 

“But we want as many irrigators as possible to benefit from improved on-farm irrigation technology so COFFIE will be rolled out across the Basin, and we expect that it will also accept smaller projects with a minimum of 10 megalitres of water savings.

 

“We are also proposing that any application that meets the criteria can be accepted and approved any time rather than running competitive funding rounds.”

                                       

Mr Coulton indicated that the COFFIE programme provides an excellent opportunity for the   upgrade of irrigation infrastructure across the Basin.

 

“I would encourage local irrigators to get involved in informing the design of this next generation Basin-wide programme,” Mr Coulton said.

 

“The minimum water savings from projects will be returned to the environment, while additional water savings will be retained by the irrigator.

 

“These types of programmes are a key element in our delivery of the Murray–Darling Basin Plan and effectively support the triple bottom line of economic, social and environmental outcomes.

“Participants in other similar programmes, such as the On-Farm Irrigation Efficiency Programme (OFIEP) in NSW, have found that the benefits of participating in these programmes go beyond water use savings.

 

“For example, irrigators have found the improvements they’ve been able to implement under the programme have given them greater flexibility of crop choice, increased yield from crops and the ability to produce a larger crop from lower water allocations.”

 

The Coalition Government is committed to delivering the Basin Plan on time and in full, investing an average of around $2.5 million dollars every day in infrastructure upgrades to support sustainable agricultural production, healthy rivers, and strong communities across the Basin.

 

Amendments made to the Water Act 2007 in February 2013 require an additional 450 gigalitres in water savings (on top of the 2750 gigalitre target) to be made.  The amendments also included a legislated commitment of $1.8 billion to achieve the additional water savings.

 

The next generation of on-farm irrigation efficiency programmes being developed is funded through this commitment.

 

To find out more and have your say on the design of the COFFIE programme, visit www.environment.gov.au/water/rural-water/coffie/consultation or contact the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources on 1800 218 478 or email efficiency.meaures@agriculture.gov.au.