SA’s desal water for farmers sells out in 24 hours

Thousands of drought-ravaged farmers have applied for water made available by SA’s desal plant, with the first 40GL essentially selling out in 24 hours. Here’s how it will be allocated.

• SA on track for driest year since 1929
• $2.2bn desal plant fires up for drought relief
• Murray-Darling Basin farmers leaving due to heat

The first 40GL of water that South Australia’s desalination plant will provide for drought-stricken farmers upstream has essentially sold out in the first 24 hours.

The Advertiser understands close to 4000 farmers submitted applications for the Water for Fodder program when it opened at 9.30am on Wednesday.

That meant it was “oversubscribed” in a single day.

A lottery will now be held to allocate 800 parcels of 50ML of water, which has been made available, thanks to SA firing up its $2.2 billion desal plant.

Water Minister David Speirs said SA was “proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with our country’s farmers and help them in their time of need”.

“For too long, Adelaide’s desalination plant has been a white elephant in our southern suburbs and now it is being used to provide water to drought-affected farmers across the nation,” Mr Speirs said.

Reigniting the underused desal plant under a $100 million agreement with the Federal Government was the “right thing to do at a time of national urgency,” Mr Speirs said.

“Our agreement with the Federal Government protects South Australia’s water security, our cost of water and helps drought-affected farmers who are doing it very tough,” he said.

The first 40GL of desalinated water has essentially sold out in the first 24 hours. Picture: AAP / Keryn Stevens

As the extra water provided by SA rolls out, The Advertiser can reveal Mr Speirs has flagged his conditional support for a Victorian proposal to restrict new irrigation extractions in the southern Basin.

Victoria effectively put its own cap on new licences for extraction in July this year for 12 months, unless applicants could show there would be no risk to current entitlement holders or the environment. In a letter to his Victorian counterpart Lisa Neville, ahead of next week’s water ministers meeting, seen by The Advertiser, Mr Speirs says he shares her concerns about “increasing extractions”.

Asked about the letter, Mr Speirs said he was “always cautious about market intervention” but Ms Neville had put forward “a sensible proposal” that should be looked at closely by Victoria, SA and NSW.

“The proposal would look at a short-term limiting of water-using developments along the Murray-Darling Basin to help ease pressures on the environment and existing irrigators,” Mr Speirs said.

“A policy like this needs consistency across state borders and it will now be up to NSW to decide if they will join South Australia and Victoria in pursuing this further.”

Farmers from the southern Murray-Darling Basin still have until 9.30am today to apply to enter a second ballot for water.

Parcels of water cost $5000 each and are specifically for growing fodder.

Individuals can apply for up to two parcels.

Another 60GL of water could be made available in 2020-21 after the scheme is reviewed in April.

An Agriculture Department spokeswoman said an independent firm would conduct the ballot.