Murrumbidgee Irrigation

Yesterday in Wagga, Minister for Natural Resources Ian Macdonald announced a new Extraordinary Assistance Program (EAP) for irrigators in the Murray and Murrumbidgee Valleys . The assistance will provide up to a maximum of $50,000 for farmers affected by drought in these regions.

Dick Thompson, Chairman of Murrumbidgee Irrigation (MI), welcomed the Minister's announcement yesterday saying that “the relief package is a step in the right direction by the Minister and NSW Government and acknowledges the plight of southern irrigators suffering hardship under these unrelenting conditions.”

For Murrumbidgee irrigators, essentially they need to demonstrate that they have implemented drought mitigation strategies through the purchase of additional water in 2006/07 and have suffered significant adverse financial impact resulting in extraordinary financial distress.

Further details and the application form are available for download from either www.mirrigation.com.au or www.dnr.nsw.gov.au with the program being managed by the NSW Rural Assistance Authority. Deadline for applications is Friday 9 March 2007.

Mr Thompson further advised that “MI is still working through the details of the package however on first impressions it may not be applicable for many of our irrigators. Farmers who are not eligible for this new EAP assistance and who have exhausted other assistance avenues should approach us so that representations can be made on their behalf. In addition to discussing these anomalies, we will also seek the assistance of the Minister in providing further watering post March. The Minister has proven to be open to discussion and finding solutions by working with us through his past support on the Snowy Hydro payment deferral and Barren Box redevelopment funding.”

“In these times we need to be working together as this drought is neither a regional issue nor industry specific. It affects over 90% of NSW and has severely impacted on farm businesses and regional communities. Everyone needs to work together through this period rather than in isolation if communities and industries are to survive,” he said.