The irrigation season for channel and pipeline customers in the Macalister Irrigation District starts on Thursday, 15 August with good storage levels, allocation and weather giving farmers reason to smile.
Lake Glenmaggie is 70 percent full, with 122,000 megalitres currently in the storage. Simon Wilkinson, General Manager Service Delivery, says these numbers are in line with the 10-year average.
“If we remove the past four wet years, we are above the storage level we would traditionally see at this stage,” he said.
The current 2024-25 seasonal allocation is 80 percent for High Reliability Water Shares and this gets reviewed each fortnight during the season.
Simon says the long-range forecast is still relativity normal, with a wet spring with average to above average temperatures predicted.
“These are great conditions for farmers to grow fodder crops using natural rain fall supplemented by irrigation,” he said.
Southern Rural Water have started filling the irrigation channels to prepare for opening day. Stock and domestic water will be available to customers on the network as the channels and pipelines fill over the coming seven to ten days.
Simon said customers can place water orders from late afternoon Thursday, 8 August.
“If customers already know what water they need, they can use Waterline now to place their orders,’ he said.
“We’ve successfully completed our winter maintenance program that included a large investment in desilting channels to improve customer delivery, ensuring the network is ready and we’re excited to support customers to make the most of what’s shaping up to be another strong season.
“We have a dedicated irrigation planning team who actively monitor our system 24 hours a day during the irrigation season. If customers need help, I’d encourage them to contact us.”