LEETON was the centre of a major political announcement this week.
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Representatives from the state and federal governments converged on the shire on Wednesday to announce more than $263 million in funding was being made available to improve on-farm irrigation efficiency and return water savings to the environment.
The money was available under round five of the on-farm irrigation efficiency program.
NSW Minister for Primary Industries and Minister for Lands and Water Niall Blair, along with federal parliamentary secretary to the minister for the environment Bob Baldwin joined together to make the announcement at Peter and Erin Draper’s Leeton shire property.
Using the funding, Mr Draper will convert five fields into one. He will then terrace the irrigation bays to provide further means of efficiency.
Both the state and federal governments are chipping funding that will cover 365 projects. Mr Baldwin said the money would cover the “triple-bottom line” that was always discussed when it came to water efficiency and the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.
“This funding will provide growers and stakeholders with the opportunity to have further on-farm efficiencies, the community will in turn become more sustainable in the long-term and the environment will benefit in a big way.
“These projects will deliver a substantial amount of water to farmers, as well as the environment.”
Mr Blair, who is a former Leeton resident, was pleased to be in the area for the announcement.
“It’s a significant announcement that we are making and I could think of no better place than Leeton to do it,” he said.
“Leeton is such a diverse growing area. This funding will allow the successful applicants and stakeholders to get on with what they do best. That is growing and producing the best food and fibre in the world.”
Projects across southern NSW as a result of the funding will include laser levelling of paddocks, upgrading overhead irrigation, replacing flood irrigation, modernising drip irrigation systems and more.
In Leeton, $32 million of conditional funding has been approved.