The Tasmanian and Commonwealth governments continue to work together to deliver nation leading irrigation schemes enabling farmers to diversify, value add and expand their existing farming operations.
Following a very positive response to water sales from farmers, the Business Case for the Northern Midlands Irrigation Scheme has now been approved.
Tasmanian Irrigation redesigned the Northern Midlands Irrigation Scheme due to significantly increased demand from irrigators, with the scheme to increase from 13,000 megalitres to 25,500 megalitres.
Under the Business Case, three pump stations and 157.3km of pipeline will deliver high surety water over a 180-day summer irrigation season with construction due to start in 2022 and scheduled for completion in October 2024.
The $146.88 million scheme would be funded by the Commonwealth and Tasmanian governments with $36.72 million from farmers through water purchases.
The scheme is expected to create 90 full-time jobs during construction and support up to 222 direct jobs once fully operational. The private on-farm investment undertaken by farmers taking up entitlements is estimated at around $81.98 million.
Minister Barnett said the Business Case would now be considered by the National Water Grid Authority, with the Scheme designed to allow farmers across the region to expand the area planted to high-value crops, increase rotations, boost yields, and diversify into new enterprises, such as wine grapes, leafy-green vegetables and berries.
“Having delivered 16 new irrigation schemes and the Greater Meander Valley Irrigation Scheme, Tasmania is the envy of the nation and we are getting on with the job, investing more than $30 million in the 2021-22 Tasmanian Budget to continue delivering our nation-leading irrigation projects,” Minister Barnett said.
“This is a key element in our comprehensive Agri-Food Plan to grow the value of agriculture to $10 billion by 2050.’’
Senator Chandler said Agriculture is the cornerstone of the Tasmanian economy, which is why the Commonwealth and Tasmanian governments are jointly investing $185 million to deliver irrigation infrastructure to support rural and regional Tasmania, creating jobs and expanding farm production to meet the growing demand for Tasmania’s premium produce.
“We’ll continue to work closely with the Tasmanian Government to deliver this and other irrigation projects around the State,” Senator Chandler said.
When completed, the Tasmanian Government’s Pipeline to Prosperity state-wide irrigation plan is expected to provide almost 78,000 megalitres of water, create up to 2,600 full-time jobs, trigger an additional $150 million in on-farm private investment and inject an estimated $114 million each year into the sector, and economy more broadly.