Tough choices loom

A storm is brewing for those who have made no arrangements about connecting to a backbone channel.

Crunch time is coming for thousands of GoulburnMurray Water irrigators.

Just about every irrigator will soon be asked to decide how they want to connect to the backbone channels under food bowl modernisation.

G-MW has begun a massive consultation program— targeting 180 areas which each have about 40 customers— under its connections program.

Each area will be asked to set up a consultation committee called a landholder steering committee to discuss options for connections.

While G-MW expects the great majority to remain connected, some irrigators will have to make some tough choices: revert to dryland farming with only a stock and domestic supply; buy another property closer to the backbone; or exit farming.

Many will have to consider monetary offers around how G-MW continues delivery to their property.

G-MW has about $650 million to help irrigators connect more efficiently to the backbone.

Doug Cobbledick is one farmer worried about his future access to irrigation water.

He has about 120 ha for a beef farming enterprise in the Yalca district.

‘‘ I’m about 4 km from the backbone and they want to dry me off,’’ Mr Cobbledick said.

‘‘ They’re talking about compensation but so far it hasn’t been worthwhile.

‘‘ They’ll have to come up with a better offer.’’

He attended a recent G-MW meeting with other farmers in his area.

Jason Lummis, who was at the meeting, said he couldn’t see how it was going to work with his farm.

He said his business was on hold until he could work out how he would be connected.

Irrigator Max Baker has looked at the three options considered by the G-MW board for his area and can see how he will continue to have access to water.

Now he just wants them to get on with the job and lift the cloud from the area.

‘‘ I’m optimistic I will get connected,’’ Mr Baker said.

‘‘ I’m fairly positive towards the whole thing, but at the moment I see us being devalued because we can’t tell people if we are connected or not.

‘‘ I first had a discussion with a farm planner about two years ago.’’

He noted his area had an average usage of about 130 per cent of allocations, which proved there were many serious farmers there.

Farmers Mike Deacon and Robyne Blee have welcomed the next stage of modernisation and urge farmers to work with G-MW to achieve a more efficient system.

The water authority’s connections manager George Warne said many farmers were facing some tough decisions, particularly those with small-holdings some distance from the backbone.

‘‘ Our first priority is to connect agricultural businesses to the backbone,’’ Mr Warne said.

‘‘ While there are many options we will work with people on, our priority is to get them connected efficiently and costeffectively, so it works for them and for us.’’

He said there were multiple options available which G-MW would assist farmers to implement. But when all options were exhausted and no agreement could be reached, he said G-MW had powers of compulsory configuration.

Mr Warne said it was hoped that negotiations with all 180 groups would be completed by the middle of 2014.

Many customers who get their water from a G-MW channel and have hobby farms or mainly residential properties have to consider piping in a shared arrangement, dubbed the ‘‘ poly pipe’’ solution. G-MW has indicated there may not be as many options available for non-farm properties as it concentrated its energies on agriculture.