The world’s fresh water supplies are almost fully exploited.Almost al, 97 per cent, of the world’s water is salt. Of the fresh water in the world, two thirds is locked up as ice and snow (the cryosphere – to you and me, kid!). Globally, three quarters of the water that is used is used by agriculture. India, China and the United States, use more fresh water than is available. The water level in those nation’s aquifers is falling as a result.The current food crisis has come about largely as a result as the shortfall in available water begins to impact on the cost of irrigation.Â
Good rains over southern west Australia and inland NSW and Queensland have raised expectations of a good wheat crop this year, but scientists are worried that dry conditions will return again next year. Most of Australia’s wheat growing areas have received sufficient rainfall to see the wheat seeded and growing before the winter sets in Continue Reading →
From The Land WIDESPREAD rain over many parts of the Australian wheatbelt has helped to lift the emerging wheat crop for growers, especially in northern NSW and in the Wimmera in Victoria. In Queensland, the rain has been moving east into parts of the southern wheatbelt from the slow-moving low hovering over Qld’s south-west pastoral Continue Reading →
From Stock and Land The Federal Government is set to buy up to 300 billion litres of water entitlement out of Victoria in the next five years. After days of speculation about negotiations between the Feds and the Victorian Government, confirmation came today that the Commonwealth would be able to buy up to 300 billion Continue Reading →
Matthew Franklin and Asa Wahlquist | May 29, 2009
KEVIN Rudd has sharply escalated his campaign to return natural water flows to the ailing Murray-Darling river system by buying $303 million of NSW irrigation licence allocations – enough water to meet the needs of Sydney for six months.
But ongoing drought means that, on 2008-09 irrigation allocations, less than 20 per cent of the 240 gigalitres will actually make its way back into the river system.
The Prime Minister announced yesterday the Government had sealed the biggest one-off water buyback deal in the nation’s history, snaring irrigation licences for 240 billion litres of water a year from the NSW-based Twynam Agricultural Group.
Despite the move winning backing from the environment movement, the Opposition ridiculed what it called a waste of public money on “phantom water”, demanding the Government instead spend more to improve irrigation infrastructure to save water through greater efficiency.
Victoria’s water storages are at an all time low after the driest autumn on record. The Thompson Dam which captures water from Gippsland to be pumped over the mountains to Melbourne is only 17 per cent full and there is no rain in site. A new pipeline is being built to take a gigalitre of Continue Reading →
Sugarloaf Reservoir this month. Photo: Justin McManus
The long dry is sapping Melbourne’s dams and raising questions about the viability of the city’s water supply.
It’s a sight to raise the spirits. The dam is full to the lip, its body is swollen. For weeks now, water has rushed down a spillway at the side of the dam wall and cascaded down the creek in a torrid, white flurry.