Irrigators in the Mildura area say while a new Lower Murray Water Efficiency project is welcome, details as to how the benefits will be passed on are scant on details.
The federal government has announced it'll put $37.9 million towards the Lower Murray Water Efficiency project to better equip the Sunraysia water delivery network to combat a changing climate.
This project delivers 2.5 Gigalitres of water savings back to the environment, First Nations Peoples and securing urban water supply.
The project includes earth works to refurbish over 27km of irrigation supply channels, and the replacement or decommissioning of approximately 700 stock, domestic and dethridge meters.
It follows similar upgrades in the Goulburn Murray Irrigation District, part of Goulburn-Murray Water.
Irymple grape grower Frank Dimasi, Sunberry, said any improvement to make the system more efficient and capture water loss was a good thing.
"It's a process that's been going for a couple of years and it's good to see it finally deliver some results," Mr Dimasi said.
But he said he was concerned LMW had the highest charges in the country.
LMW increases fees and charges by 5.1 per cent for this financial year.
"It's not on, the whole methodology and the way rural water is delivered up here has to change because it puts the district behind the eight ball, in terms of delivering product around the world," he said.
'"The buyers don't want to know how much it costs, they just want a quality product, delivered as cheaply as possible."
He said savings should be passed on to irrigators.
"That's the whole point of the upgrade, to capture water, and deliver it more efficiently, which, in turn, should reduce charges," he said.
"The way the charges are set needs a good close looking at
"If we keep increasing charges according to inflation each year, all that does is drive investment away from Sunraysia and people go to greenfield sites, because they don't have all the fixed costs, which come from being in this district."
Mr Demasi said he believed LMW was out of step, with the rest of Australia, when it came to fees and charges.
"In other states the federal and state governments put in money on 40-40-20 split, 40 per cent federal, 40 pc state and 20 pc local irrigators," he said.
Government authorities then handed the system to irrigators to run.
'They take care of the operating cost and don't annoy government any more, they take care of the renewals - that's what has happened in the case of the Western Murray Irrigation (NSW) and Central Irrigation Trust (SA), which deliver water far more cheaply than in the Sunraysia."
COVID-19 related logistics disruptions and increased business costs had affected growers' financial bottom line.
"If Victoria doesn't step into line and put a model of delivering water that that is most efficient, it's just going to mean a lot of people can't survive," he said.
"The model they use in Victoria is unsustainable."
Fees and charges should have been frozen, due to the cost impacts of coronavirus, he said.
Vine fruit and date grower Peter Middleton, Irymple, said in the short term, the program should reduce fees and charges, which were among the highest in Australia.
"They are doing these upgrades, with government money, but in the long term we are going to have to replace the channel linings, so we are going to cop an increase in fees,' Mr Middleton said.
"LMW has the highest fees and charges of any comparable system in Australia, so I am worried about the fees going up long-term."
He said the benefits for irrigators, under the WEP, had not been articulated.
'There are no specifics about what service level improvements there are going to be - in other modernisation projects they have done, they have clearly articulated the benefits to irrigators, including service improvements."
Mr Middleton said in other irrigation districts, such as the Goulburn-Murray, irrigators had shared the water savings.
"There is no proposal to share the savings with irrigators - Goulburn-Murray Water shared a third of the savings, but there is none here."
He said he had raised the issues with authorities but had not had a response.
A state government spokesperson said the project would provide irrigators, stock and domestic customers with improved reliability and service delivery, with less supply interruptions and increased water delivery capacity during peak demand periods.
"The increased efficiencies in water delivery will create greater resilience and water security for the region's farm businesses in the face of climate change," the spokesperson sad.
"Water corporations' charges are regulated by the Essential Services Commission - Victoria's independent economic regulator - which acts to protect the long-term interests of consumers regarding the quality, price and reliability of essential services."
The ESC typically reset prices every five years.
LMW was testing its proposal for the next five years with customers, before submission to the ESC at the end of September.
Lower Murray Water's current prices are set in the 2018-23 Price Determination.
This Determination is approved by the Essential Services Commission and was developed in consultation with customers.
Price increases for 2022-23 have been capped to a maximum of 5.1 pc, to keep prices in line with the current inflation rate
Andrew Miller
I'm a general reporter with Stock & Land, with a special interest in irrigation issues. I completed my cadetship, with the Age, in 1980. Over my career, I've worked for ABC radio news (Mt Isa, Qld) and at provincial and suburban newspapers.
I'm a general reporter with Stock & Land, with a special interest in irrigation issues. I completed my cadetship, with the Age, in 1980. Over my career, I've worked for ABC radio news (Mt Isa, Qld) and at provincial and suburban newspapers.
