Irrigation - Consumption
Australia
How much water is used for irrigation compared to other uses?
The use of surface water for irrigation in 1996/97 represents 15,354 GL or 80% of the total surface water use in Australia (19,108 GL). A further 2,581 GL of groundwater is abstracted for irrigation, which is about 52% of the total groundwater abstraction in Australia. At a national level, about 70% of total water use is for agricultural purposes (predominantly irrigation), however in the Murray Darling Basin, about 85% of total water use is for irrigation purposes.
NLWRA 2000
| Surface Water | Ground Water | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Total Water Use 96/97 (GL/yr) | Irrigation Water Use 96/97 (GL/yr) | Irrigation Use as % of total (%) | Total G/W Abstraction 96/97 (GL/yr) | G/W Abstracted for Irrigation (96/97) (GL/yr) | Irrigation Abstraction as % of total (%) |
| AUS | 19,109 | 15,354 | 80.00 | 4,974 | 2,582 | 52.00 |
| ACT | 68 | 4 | 6.00 | 5 | 2 | 27.00 |
| NSW | 9,000 | 8,000 | 89.00 | 1,009 | 644 | 64.00 |
| NT | 51 | 6 | 12.00 | 128 | 47 | 37.00 |
| QLD | 2,970 | 2,163 | 73.00 | 1,623 | 817 | 50.00 |
| SA | 747 | 465 | 62.00 | 423 | 354 | 84.00 |
| TAS | 451 | 267 | 59.00 | 21 | 10 | 46.00 |
| VIC | 5,166 | 4,021 | 78.00 | 622 | 431 | 69.00 |
| WA | 659 | 430 | 65.00 | 1,138 | 281 | 25.00 |
NLWRA 2000
The volume of total water used in 1996/97 for irrigation ranges from about 5 GL in the ACT to 8,600 GL in NSW. Surface water use for irrigation ranges from 4 GL in the ACT to 8,000 in NSW, while groundwater use ranges from 1 GL in the ACT to 643 GL in NSW. Irrigation water use represents 80% of total surface water use and 52% of total groundwater use nationally. Across all States irrigation water use represents close to 60% or more of the surface water use. In the ACT and NT it represents only 6% and 12% of surface water use respectively. The Northern Territory uses more groundwater for irrigation than surface water.
NLWRA 2000
What percentage of allocated irrigation water is used?
The volume of water allocated may vary significantly from the volume of water used. Across Australia, water use represents about 66% of the volume of water allocated on average each year. The table and chart below compare the proportion of irrigation water use to the volume of irrigation water allocated for each State.
This is due partly to the existence of licences or allocations that are not currently being used ('sleepers') or are only being occasionally used ('dozers'). This usually results when additional water is available to allocate in wet years and allocations are high.
| State | Water allocated for Irrigation (Gl/yr) | Water used for Irrigation (GL/yr) | Irrigation Use : Irrigation Allocation (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| AUS | 26,976 | 17,936 | 66.00 |
| ACT | 78 | 6 | 7.00 |
| NSW | 12,491 | 8,644 | 69.00 |
| NT | 126 | 53 | 42.00 |
| QLD | 4,187 | 2,979 | 71.00 |
| SA | 1,383 | 819 | 59.00 |
| TAS | 437 | 276 | 63.00 |
| VIC | 6,249 | 4,452 | 71.00 |
| WA | 1,994 | 711 | 36.00 |
NLWRA 2000
ABS AgStats 97, 93 & 84 (concorded to 1996/97 SLA boundaries by BRS)
How does water application vary from the main irrigated cultures?
The range of water application rates varies within and across States for a number of reasons including climate, soil, crop type and method of application. The range of water application rates for different States within the Murray Darling Basin has been compiled for various culture types. Generally it can be seen that the application rate for rice is the highest, varying between 11.9 and 13.9 ML/ha. The application rate required for crops such as vegetables, fruit and grapevines vary between 2 and 5 ML/ha. Water use for cotton varies between these two ranges.
The Murray-Darling Basin: A case study
The total area of irrigated crops and pastures in the Murray-Darling Basin represents approximately 64% of Australia's total area of irrigated crops and pastures. The main irrigated enterprises in the Basin include rice, cotton, dairy, horticulture and viticulture. Water used for irrigation represents 75% of the total volume of water used for irrigation in Australia.
The Murray-Darling Basin Commission is developing an Irrigation Management and Reporting System that will provide access to irrigation data characterising the extent, location, value and efficiency of irrigation activities in the Basin. Data and information that is currently available on irrigation in the Basin has been compiled and presented on the Murray-Darling Basin web page.
Further information
- ABS Website
- Agriculture, Australia ABS publication
- ABARE Website
- BRS Website
- ANCID Website
- National Program for Sustainable Irrigation
- Australian Water Resources Assessment 2000
- Australian Dryland Salinity Assessment 2000
Link to Map maker to make a map using this information.
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