From The Land
AUSTRALIA’S largest private irrigation company has stepped into the water market to become the protector of the southern irrigation region.
Murray Irrigation Limited (MIL), based at Deniliquin, is in the midst of launching two major initiatives aimed at keeping water in the Murray Valley irrigation region around Deniliquin, Finley, Berrigan and Wakool.
The initiatives are also aimed squarely at blocking any Federal Government bully-boy tactics in the water market, in which increasingly desperate farmer shareholders are selling water in a market dominated by the strong Government buy-up.
Last week it began offering farmers the chance to sell water through MIL acting as an on-seller of bulk water, and this week it will launch its Waterbank Initiative aimed at retaining water in productive agriculture in the region.
Both initiatives are designed to support the company’s shareholder farmers, and ensure the long-term viability of the irrigation area.
In normal production years, the Murray Valley produces almost half of Australia’s rice crop, 20pc of NSW’s milk production, 40pc of Australia’s potatoes and 75pc of the country’s tomato crop.