NATIONAL IRRIGATORS’ COUNCIL
Advocating for the Australian irrigated agriculture industry
NIC team have prepared the attached draft SDLAM submission for review by Members. We re-scheduled the drop in session, to Wednesday 28th October to be used as an opportunity to discuss the submission and relevant issues online. Alterntaively, we welcome tracked
changes to the document. The slides from the General Meeting are useful background to this submission.
Feedback is due no later than Thursday, 29th October as submissions are due 1 October.
NIC has set up a dedicated Member Area section for our Advocacy Roadmap materials. The first focus campaign page - Growing Australia:Moving Forward, Together that details the messaging and asks for the Water Act and Basin Plan under its time to move beyond "just adding water" is starting to be built. Please note the full message house and draft Basin RiverCare brochure is now available to view.
The NIC have prepared a background 'Certinaty Uncertain: A report on water security with a variable and changing climate in the Murray
Darling Basin' to support our recently Member approved Climate Resilience and Water Security Position Statement.
We will be releasing this in early November, to lean into the many pre-meetings prior to the 2026 UN Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC
COP31) in Türkiye from November 9. To do do, we are accepting FINAL feedback no later than 29th October 2026 and the earlier the better.
As requested, the slides from our Annual General Meeting and General Meeting, including the content on SDLAM and the Advocacy Roadmap are
available in the meeting documents page of the Members Area.
We will notify members when the minutes are available.
A new report by National Irrigators’ Council launched for National Water Week, has found that just 23% of the total water available in the
Murray-Darling Basin is diverted for human use, while 77% remains non-diverted and in rivers.
“Water is life – supporting healthy rivers, productive farms and strong communities. This National Water Week, it's important we recognise
how much the Basin has changed and what that means for its future,” said National Irrigators' Council CEO Zara Lowien. [...]
NIC has asked the question - how much water is actually used in the Murray-Darling Basin? After 30 years of reforms to rebalance.
This key piece of information is needed to understand and review water management in the MDB, to understands where that balance is now
- between water diverted for human uses, and water not-diverted to remain in rivers. This goes to the original purpose of the Basin Plan.
The Report’s key finding is clear: just 23% of available water is diverted for human uses, leaving 77% in rivers, wetlands, and floodplains
to support the environment.
Basin communities have responded to the Water Amendment (Ending Further Murray-Darling Basin Water buybacks) Bill 2026 introduced in parliament today, saying “it’s time to move beyond ‘just adding water’”.
“The science is clear, restoring the remaining environmental challenges in the Basin cannot be solved by “just adding water””, said CEO of
National Irrigators' Council, Zara Lowien.
NIC Members agreed to a Menindee Lakes Position Statement following on-going work program of reviews into Menindee Lakes.
This position statement was prepared in conjunction with our Position Statement on Reliability of Water Access Entitlements and
our guiding principles.
Approved14 October 2026.
NIC Members agreed to a Climate Resilience and Water Security Position Statement following on-going work program into climate risk, and
water security for Australia as part of the Murray Darling Basin Plan and Water Act review.
This position statement was prepared in conjunction with our Position Statement on Reliability of Water Access Entitlements, Position Statement on the Murray Darling Basin Plan and our guiding principles.
Approved14 October 2026.
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agriculture industry.