A southern Riverina producer body has urged its members to write to candidates for the upcoming election, pointing out water is their key priority.
Ricegrowers' Association of Australia has issued the letter, which contains five main points.
Those signing the letter say water is the primary focus, in the upcoming Federal Election.
"In this election, I'm seeking strong political leaders who have the power and influence to pursue the win-win solutions, who seek to protect irrigation as well as the environment, and who genuinely work with the community in a transparent and flexible manner," the letter says.
"We want the best possible outcome for our rice industry and its people."
The RGA's five top priorities for the coming election are:
. no more productive water recovery
. accountability for environmental water use
. delivery of the 605gigalitres of Water Recovery Offset projects, without negative socio-economic impacts
. stopping the erosion of water entitlement reliability
. reducing the pain of water reforms to communities and industries
RGA president Jeremy Morton said the organisation was not telling members how to vote, instead encouraging them to get involved in the process.
"I think it's something different representative bodies do at different times," Mr Morton said.
"This is the approach we have taken, and it's mostly based on our already agreed policy positions."
While Mr Morton said most of the RGA's members were in Farrer, the organisation was happy for anyone interested in irrigation to send the letter to their candidates.
The letter was far from an exhaustive list of issues facing the irrigation community.
"Water is a pretty complex area, and there are lots of issues," Mr Morton said.
He urged those sending the letter to take the time and effort to put their personal angle into it.
Mr Morton said he wasn't aware of other peak producer bodies doing a similar letter-writing campaign, this election, but it was a tactic that had been employed in the past.
Birganbigil, NSW's Tim Strong, Willow Park, has grown rice when there's been sufficient water allocation, and agreed the letter-writing campaign was a good one.
He said he'd like to see the letter sent to all politicians.
"If you are not this side of the mountain ranges, in NSW and Victoria, you don't understand what's happening, you don't know where your food is coming from," Mr Strong said.
City residents also had a narrow view of what was happening outside the urban areas, based on what was portrayed on current affairs programs.
"In this election people are not asking the Greens, if they have the balance of power, what is their water policy?
"They wanted to take more than 7000giglaitres out of productive agriculture - we've taken 2500-3000 already and seen the devastation that has caused."
He said irrigators needed to do whatever they could, to get the message across.
"It's signatures on petitions and things like that that change people's minds; that's how come the environmental movement does so much.
"They have time to demonstrate, and it gets publicity."
But Rawalak Farm's Michael Hughes, Deniliquin, said one of the biggest challenges was the misinformation about water policy and irrigation.
While writing to politicians was positive, the amount of change would depend on how much courage politicians had to carry it out.
"It's a bit of a challenge," Mr Hughes said.
"Leading up to the election they will say what they need to say, and they will listen, but the push and shove will be on, after the election," Mr Hughes said.
"It will depend on how much change they want to implement."
He said if a candidate from one of the major parties were to be reelected, or elected, it would be hard for them to represent voters views fully.
"I am not one to defend (current Farrer MP) Sussan Ley, but this is where the trouble is," Mr Hughes said.
"She is one person on the floor of the house and needs another 74 MP's to align with her way of thinking to make a change.
"That's a challenge."
Mr Hughes said he also felt the election of independents would also make things difficult.
If some predictions were correct, and up to 12 independents were elected in May, that would mean the views of 12 different constituencies and policy positions that would have to be accommodated.
"It's a bit like herding cats," he said.