Promoting Water Smart Infrastructure Investment is a water and energy use efficiency project

designed to build the capacity of cotton irrigators to adapt to reduced water availability and

increasing energy costs. It has helped irrigators make informed decisions about infrastructure

change and to accelerate adoption of irrigation best practice.

Water availability is often limited for cotton production. Irrigators also face further potential

cutbacks with the implementation of the Murray Darling Basin Plan so must continue to

improve their water use efficiency (WUE).

An important outcome of this project has been to establish water use efficiency benchmarks

for the Australian Cotton Industry which enables the irrigated cotton industry to monitor and

determine the rate of change over the years. At a farm level, this allows irrigators to compare

their own performance with industry benchmarks and identify potential improvements. The

collection of high quality WUE data is also essential for sound evidence-based policy

decisions. For these reasons, the collection of robust irrigation benchmarking data for the

Australian cotton industry should continue.

The Gross Production Water Use Index (GPWUIfarm) is used to benchmark WUE. The

GPWUIfarm for the 2012/13 season was 1.12 bales/ML. This figure can be used to compare

benchmarks previously collected for the 2006-07 and 2008-09 seasons, which were 1.17 and

1.14 bales/ML, respectively. Interestingly, the seasonal conditions varied considerably for

the years the data was collected. The 2006-07 and 2008-09 had reduced plantings, low water

availability and cotton prices. In contrast 2012-13 saw record plantings and full production.

Despite this, statistical analysis found no significant difference between the three seasons

indicating that the cotton industry is achieving similar water use efficiency in years of full

production to that achieved in years of low water availability. However there was significant

variation in GPWUIfarm between individual farms, indicating scope for further efficiency

gains.

The Australian Government is providing incentive funding to modernise on-farm

infrastructure. While this provides an opportunity for Australian Irrigators, it has resulted in

the rapid expansion of overhead pressurised systems that are associated with higher energy

costs.

After years of improving water use efficiency, attention must now be placed on energy use,

and on–farm energy use efficiency. Benchmarks for energy use efficiency should be

established to complement water use efficiency, as this will maximise the efficient use of

water and energy on-farm through continuous improvement.

This project has increased the awareness of on-farm energy assessment through training and

on-farm demonstrations. While energy have not yet been established, this

project has heightened interest in this area, particularly Level 3 energy assessments (eg Pump

performance evaluation). A Pump Efficiency Monitor (PEM) was developed by the National

Centre for Engineering in Agriculture (NCEA) and has had initial trials on cotton farms. The

PEM continuously measures water flow, hydraulic head, engine and pump RPM and diesel

consumption during a pumping event. This information is used to examine pump

performance and identify areas for efficiency improvements.

Four level 2 energy assessments were conducted which showed a wide range in energy use

between the farms. The energy use varied between 6 and 12 GJ/ha, with costs ranging

between $208 and $374 per ha. Diesel energy inputs ranged from 151 to 304 L/ha. Energy

benchmarking is a critical step to improving on-farm energy use. This project has shown the need to continue working with cotton irrigators to examine on-farm energy use. High

variability in energy use between farms is evident in the assessment results, which highlights

opportunities for energy savings. Similar to WUE benchmarks, energy use efficiency

benchmarks allow irrigators to compare their own performance to regional and industry

averages and to investigate the potential for improvements. However, practical difficulties in

collecting Level 2 energy assessment data appear to be a barrier to adoption of on-farm

energy assessments. Further research could investigate improved methods for keeping onfarm

records of fuel and electricity use, or more easily accessing and collating energy use

data already available, such as that from tractor performance monitors.

Irrigation training with a focus on alternative irrigation systems was a significant output of

this project with a total of 26 training events delivered to 342 cotton irrigators, consultants,

retailers and industry personnel. Evaluation from these workshops showed participants had a

better understanding of irrigation best practice and importantly better understood the planning

and design of various irrigation systems. They were armed with greater knowledge as to

which questions to ask when considering irrigation infrastructure change.

A significant output of this project is the publication “A Review of Centre Pivot and Lateral

Move irrigation installations in the Australian Cotton Industry”. In collaboration with Qld

DERM and NCEA, this publication examines the changes in centre pivot and lateral move

installations since the previous review conducted in 2001 by Foley and Raine. It has

identified the perceived benefits and limitations associated with the use of CPLM irrigation

systems and will contribute to better informed investment decisions on the uptake of CPLM

machines.

The Promoting Water Smart Infrastructure Investment project team has been involved in a variety of field days, conferences and industry forums. Strong collaborative links have been fostered throughout this project with a range of cotton extension, development and research organisations. NSW DPI continues to build a wide network including key industry organisations and personnel with which they have a strong rapport.