Connections Project making all the difference to local farmers
THE $2B Connections Project is on track for completion in 2020 and there has already been plenty of work carried out to modernise 6,234 landowner’s infrastructure.
Currently, the project has seen 1,222km of channel decommissioned and 7,869 meters installed and 277km of channel remediated.
For local Harston dairy farmer, Hamish Crawford, having his farm modernised through the project has been a real game changer.
When Hamish bought a 125ha dairy farm in Harston it was one of the wettest years on record, but he knew that he would need to improve the farm’s irrigation infrastructure in order to stay ahead of the game.
In 2012, through the $2B Connections Project, Hamish agreed to rationalise one of three outlets and upgrade two remaining, inefficient Dethridge Wheels replacing them with modernised meters.
A section of the Stuart Murray Canal, which borders the farm, was remodelled to enable a flow rate of 15ML/day.
Further works included replacing concrete stops with metal slides and six-inch pipes featuring watertight Padman Stops to make irrigation faster and more efficient.
The 44-year-old said there were a few things he wouldn’t miss about the old irrigation system.
“I don’t miss drop bars or Dethridge Wheels and I don’t miss getting up in the morning to turn the wheel on,” Hamish said.
“With the new system the water starts while I’m still in bed. By the time the channel has filled up, I’ve watered my first couple of bays and by 6am are in full swing.
“That’s the best bit of the Connections Project. It used to take four days to order water. Now, with Total Channel Control, I only need to give 24 hours notice, sometimes less, and I always get the water on time.
“In the future we need to make better use of our water as water becomes more scarce.
“Water is crucial. It’s the reason we are here. It’s the first and the second priority for dairy farmers. We need reliable and affordable access to water and we need to use what is available efficiently.”
