News

With water resources already stretched to the limit in many parts of the country, climate change looms as a major long-term threat to farming and communities across Australia.

In fact, the latest forecasts generally show a decrease in precipitation over much of Australia because of climate change, exacerbating our current water crisis even further.

And Dr Jason Evans, a scientist at the University of New South Wales, said our irrigators will be particularly vulnerable.

“They make use of the majority of deliverable surface water in many locations for their crop production,” he said.
Jason points out, however, that the modeling used to predict the impacts of climate change pays little or no attention to irrigation — despite its important place in Australian agriculture.

Jason’s project involves developing regional modelling that better represents irrigation practices common in Australia.

“It will not only provide predictions of the water required for irrigation, but also the supply through precipitation and run-off into reservoirs,” he said.

It can also be used to study the impact of various changes on water supply and water demand within a particular catchment, including: land-use changes — such as increases to an irrigated area; changes in methods — from using sprinklers to drips for example; climate changes and annual variability — whether, for example, we’re experiencing an El Niño or a La Niña pattern.

Jason will test his modelling in the Murrumbidgee catchment during a full irrigation season. Since it takes into account the full water cycle, the modelling could also be used to design the spatial arrangement of irrigated fields to maximise or minimise the effects of changes to the local wind fields and precipitation rates.

“The project will have major benefits for water managers and irrigation planners alike.”

“Dealing with climate change will arguably be the greatest challenge facing water resource managers and the agriculture sector in the coming century.”