Irrigation Journal Winter 2011 by CommStrat

The Official Journal of Irrigation Australia IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA – LEADERSHIP IN IRRIGATION TRAINING, INFORMATION AND REPRESENTATION.

www.irrigation.org.

IN THIS ISSUE ■ WATER EFFICIENT URBAN LANDSCAPES ■ ENERGY FOR IRRIGATION

WINTER 2011 VOLUME 26 NO. 02

CONTENTS

REGULAR ITEMS CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE

CEO’S MESSAGE

FROM THE EDITOR

In a little over two years, Chris and Jaclyn Atkinson have tripled production on their avocado farm near Mareeba in Far North Queensland. A large part of the improvement is the result of their involvement in a sustainable farming program established by the Northern Gulf Resource Management Group. The program brings together a team of mapping, irrigation, soils and crop nutrition specialists to work with farmers over 12 months and help them improve their farm and irrigation management. Photo – Anne Currey

IRRIGATION TECHNOLOGY: AGRICULTURE

IRRIGATION TECHNOLOGY: URBAN

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IRRIGATION RESEARCH

TRAINING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

IAL NEWS

NPSI IRRIGATION INSIGHTS

BUSINESS FEATURE

THE BIG ISSUE

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Advertising in this journal is managed by Hallmark Editions on behalf of the Irrigation Australia Limited. Irrigation Australia Limited takes no responsibility for the technical accuracy of article content. All contact with businesses and organisations about advertising are made by Hallmark Editions sales staff, who must identify themselves and the fact that they work for Hallmark Editions on behalf of the IAL. No special consideration will be given to any advertisers as far as editorial content or front cover material is concerned. Decisions as to editorial content and the front cover are the prerogative of the editor and the National Board of the IAL. Advertising enquiries should be directed to the Sales Director.

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FEATURES WATER EFFICIENT URBAN LANDSCAPES

WATER RESTRICTIONS PROMPT IRRIGATION MAKEOVER

IPOS HELPS REVIVE SCHOOL SOCCER PITCH

ENERGY AND IRRIGATION

ENERGY FOR IRRIGATION – HOW EFFICIENT ARE WE?

ON-FARM PUMP TESTING FOR ENERGY EFFICIENCY

PUMPING EFFICIENCY: HOW MANY KWH PER ML?

IRRIGATION, ENERGY AND GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS

ARDMONA GROWERS AIM HIGH WITH NEW ADVANCED PRODUCTION SYSTEM 46

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

CEO'S MESSAGE

CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE

CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE There are many instances in life where we go along with the flow, never questioning conventional wisdom. When preparing for a recent appearance before the Standing Committee on Regional Australia (the Windsor Enquiry) I was forced to rethink my position in relation to the funding, under the Water for the Future Initiative, for on-farm infrastructure. The accepted position is that, after several years where the focus has been on buying water and funding improved delivery infrastructure, it is time to shift to funding on-farm upgrades. On the surface this sounds fine: throw money at farmers and they will invest in infrastructure to improve water use productivity. But when I started to look deeper at the results of capital programmes in other areas and at the mixed success with trial projects so far, I started to wonder if there is a better way. The current model sees “delivery partners” apply for large parcels of funds. Farmers then make individual applications to the delivery partners for specific projects. The delivery partner takes a cut of the funding for managing the programme and the government avoids the burden of dealing with thousands of end users. It all sounds simple. But does it work? I can’t help thinking of the “Build it and they will come” approach taken in Kevin Costner’s famous baseball movie: if funding partners succeed in getting buckets of cash, farmers will willingly queue to access it. Those with a quick eye to a bargain, or who can gain a hand to fill in a complying application, may succeed in levering funds, but are they the most deserving recipients? Will their projects actually deliver? Will they achieve the required water savings? Do the funds flow to areas of greatest need? These questions remain unanswered. IAL firmly believes that any funding needs a clear link to outcomes. When every contract is awarded, a number of fundamental questions must be asked: are the recipients experienced in this area, can they demonstrate their competence, have all the likely costs been included, will the project deliver value to the end user or just a low price? To help minimise risk, every project should include a requirement for a formal commissioning to ensure the system as installed meets the original specifications. And further, every project must include end user training to ensure that they are competent in operating the system.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

After seven years of the CRC-IF and a longer span for NPSI, why have we been unable to reach farmers and get them to take up all of the wonderful new technologies and practices that the research programs have uncovered? The answer comes down to risk. Sure profitability may be enhanced by switching to a new gadget, but doing so carries a risk of failure. What if it doesn’t work, what if I can’t master it, what other activities must I drop to devote time to learning this new system? In the end, faced with a choice of taking on this risk or continuing to do what they have always done, farmers (and all of us), too often choose the latter. So why do we think that throwing money at them will suddenly make them advocates for change? After years of watching what happens when grants are thrown around, I am deeply sceptical of any handouts and subsidies. Firms who rely on providing good service get undercut by those willing to sell their souls for a slice of the action. Too often applications are based on getting the most cash, rather than what is needed. Suppliers who can provide proforma applications succeed in getting their product installed, regardless of its merits. Products that would normally not survive competitive pressures receive a boost, while better products are left behind. Then when the funding is withdrawn, the newcomers disappear (usually blaming the government) leaving an expensive legacy behind for the competent firms to fix. So what is the alternative? My suggestion is a complete turnaround in approach. Let’s start with an audit of each farm that identifies areas for improvement, and then make a plan to implement them. This plan should consider all aspects of farm operation, not just irrigation. By taking small, managed steps, the risk to growers can be minimised. Over time, however, these small steps yield far better results than a single step change. There are real examples in the marketplace where farm advisors (consultants) have successfully walked growers through this process of managed change. The best example I have seen is Bruce Cockroft with his focus on “Super Soil”. Bruce’s growers have gone from 10 to 20, to 80 t/ha and have set their sights on 150. Tell a grower at 10 t/ha that you can get him to 100 and you will be kicked off the farm. But show him this year how you can get him from 10 to 15 and he will give you an honest ear – and ask you

CEO’S MESSAGE

As Dylan wrote, “the times they are a changing”.

back next year to help them reach 20. This is exactly what Bruce has done. His growers expect him to come back each year with a new innovation. My vision is to see this model trialled with several groups of farmers. If the trial proves successful it could be rolled out in place of (or alongside) the existing delivery partner model, creating networks of farm advisors who work as part of their rural communities. The funding needs to have a fixed sunset clause, with a transition from funded to fee-for-service delivery. Why do I favour this approach? Firstly, because it will yield a system where extension is seen as a valued service, one that people willingly pay for. Secondly, because it starts with identifying the problem and then works towards a solution, not by starting with a bucket of cash and inventing ways to spend it. Thirdly, because it gives growers a first point of contact with someone they can know and trust, someone who is ideally IAL certified, but most importantly someone who is part of their community. The approach also links directly with our preferred model for RDE&A (Research Development Extension & Adoption). The only way to plug the adoption gap left behind as states pull out of extension activities is to build a network of private sector providers who live and breathe adoption. Peter Toome IAL National Chairman

Since the last journal, CEO Chris Bennett has left the organisation, and the board asked me after its February meeting to fulfil the duties of CEO in an acting capacity while the search was undertaken to find a replacement to take IAL forward. As I thought about what IAL needed to focus on to secure its longer term viability, I recalled the messages from the membership survey done in October last year. Clearly, this was your opportunity to tell management and the board where to concentrate our efforts. Put simply, you told us you wanted local activities such as: • localised training events • local new product demonstrations • prior notice and communication of when regional meetings are on • meetings held locally so you don’t have to travel so far. These messages have been shared with the regional committees and there is activity to strengthen them. In the coming months we will look to re establish regions in Far North Queensland and in the Hunter Region of NSW. We will be working with local members in the ACT and Riverina to ensure they too have the opportunity to meet and share the values of IAL. While on values, at board level we have been grappling for some time with the concept of our membership value proposition. The reasons why members belong to IAL are as varied as the membership is diverse. We have for so long offered a ‘one size fits all’ approach to members. This is all about to change, and we will unveil a clear membership proposition in the coming months. One way to ensure the varied needs of our membership are addressed is to create a wider community of special interest groups to provide a forum where likeminded individuals can regularly meet to further develop their area of interest. I am pleased to say

that the Centre Pivot Lateral Move and Drip groups are well advanced but always keen to increase the level of participation. One group not currently represented is Groundwater, something we will be rectifying in June 2011. Recently a group of members in SouthEast Queensland interested in developing performance standards for irrigation started work on a set of guidelines and a code of practice. This group will expand its representation to include members from all states and regions, and I have invited the regional chairs to nominate interested representatives to this working group. Unlike previous attempts to develop these standards, IAL will ensure that once this is done the group will provide ongoing review and update to keep the project alive. By the time this journal is in your hands we will have: • Appointed a new chief executive officer. • Provided all existing industry development officers with a contract to June 2013. • Appointed an industry development officer in WA. • Recommenced discussions with Horticulture Australia about future funding. • Delivered to the federal government a new outcomes-based model for funding on farm upgrades. I urge you to read the chairman’s message to understand our approach. As we enter the future, the IAL will be focusing on five key objectives to ensure our long-term sustainability:

• strengthening our financial position • invigorating connection to regions and special interest groups • growing the membership • improving communications • providing quality services. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you, the membership, for your emails and phone calls of support over the past weeks as we have worked on moving the organisation forward. To all the IAL ‘team’, thank you for stepping up and doing that little bit more as we continued to operate as usual. And finally, to the board, which had the confidence to give me a chance to prove myself as your CEO, hopefully this will not be my final column as we truly position IAL as the peak industry body representing the entire irrigation industry. I encourage you to remain actively involved; I encourage those members not financial to come and experience the change; I challenge you to share your thoughts and comments as we progress; and I ask you to feel confident that you can tell us where we are not meeting your expectations and how we can improve. It is your association; the national office is in place to support the regions achieve the objectives for IAL. It is now time for action not words. Working together we will deliver! Trevor Le Breton Acting Chief Executive Officer

FROM THE EDITOR Welcome to the winter edition of the journal. In this issue, our special features look at irrigation and energy, and water efficiency in urban landscapes. With so much in the news lately about carbon emissions and energy use and talk of a slowing of policy momentum on urban water conservation as a result of recent rain in eastern Australia, both these issues are particularly relevant. Our authors provide thought provoking perspectives as well as practical examples about dealing with these issues. I’d be interested in your views too and would welcome feedback, whether you agree or disagree. It’s only 3 months to the Irrigation Australia Conference, which is being

held in Tasmania. While the program is being finalised now there is still a lot of information about accommodation, workshops, tours and special sessions. The article about the conference (in IAL NEWS) outlines conference themes and provides a general overview. It promises to be a mustattend event. This issue includes all the usual regular columns. I particularly enjoyed writing the Irrigation Technology: Agriculture article after my visit to Chris and Jaclyn Atkinson’s farm in Far North Queensland. In a couple of short years they have achieved a great deal, especially as a result of reorganising their irrigation system and scheduling. I hope you enjoy the read. Anne Currey Editor-in-Chief

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

IRRIGATION TECHNOLOGY: AGRICULTURE

IRRIGATION TECHNOLOGY: AGRICULTURE AVOCADO GROWERS TAP INTO SPECIALIST ADVICE AND TRIPLE PRODUCTION Anne Currey, Irrigation Australia Growing avocados and managing the intricacies of irrigation is a long way from flying helicopters in Outback Australia, but that’s the change that Chris Atkinson made in early 2009, with his wife, Jaclyn. At the time they were living in Central Queensland and Chris was a full-time helicopter pilot working for a variety of companies doing jobs ranging from mustering stock to checking electricity lines. Both Chris and Jaclyn confess that they didn’t really have a burning ambition to buy into an avocado orchard and neither of them had any experience with horticulture or irrigation. In fact, before they moved, Chris said the closest they came to irrigation was watering some plants in their home garden using a hose. That didn’t stop them taking up the farm though. “We had been looking for something to do for a while. One day I saw an ad in the paper for an avocado farm near Mareeba and here we are,” said Chris. The 35 ha farm, 18 ha of which is under trees, now is a totally different place to the one they moved on to in January 2009. “When we got here the place was pretty run down and the trees looked like they needed a good drink and feed,” said Chris. “In fact, we were advised to doze out quite a lot of trees because we were told they wouldn’t recover.” Things were looking pretty grim and then they became involved in a sustainable farming program established by the Northern Gulf Resource Management Group (NGRMG) and funded through the Federal Government Caring for Country Program and Queensland State Government Q2 Coast & Country Program. The innovative program brings together a team of mapping, irrigation, soils and crop nutrition specialists to work with ten farmers over 12 months and help them improve their farm and irrigation management. Tablelands mapping coordinator with the NGRMG, Trevor Parker, explained that the aim of the program is to build the resilience of farming businesses in the Mareeba-Dimbulah Water Supply Area. It does this by helping them adjust to a changing business environment and making farming enterprises more adaptable to climate change. “Using a team approach, we have contracted specialists to work with farmers to take up improved land and water management practices to improve their sustainability, productivity and profitability, reduce soil and nutrient loss, and improve the quality and efficient use of water,” Trevor explained. “One of the benefits of this project is it promotes the efficient use of power, water and nutrients.” Chris and Jaclyn agreed that it has been extremely valuable to them and has helped them improve their knowledge and management as far as avocado farming and irrigation are concerned. They identified the “team approach” to giving advice as one of the best aspects of the program. “Getting on to the program has been a turning point for us because it’s shown us how to fine tune our management and has given us confidence in our abilities,” said Chris.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

Flume Gates, Northern Victoria – FutureFlow Irrigation Modernisation Alliance

It’s because we do, that we know how Trevor Parker (l) goes over the farm map he developed with Chris and Jaclyn Atkinson. The map, which the Atkinsons are using to plan future expansion, includes physical infrastructure, and the location of things such as irrigation lines and system equipment. Irrigation system audit The first step with looking at the irrigation system was for Pat Daley from Daley’s Water Services near Warwick to do an audit of the irrigation system. Merv Jessen, IAL IDO, was also involved, and together they did an evaluation and hydraulic analysis of the existing system. The irrigation system was gravity fed, using under tree microsprinklers. The 18 ha orchard is divided into four irrigation blocks, and the allocation is 132 ML/year. As the water is supplied through a piped Sunwater supply system which feeds the Mareeba Dimbulah area, it was noted that the operating pressure available to run the system could fluctuate considerably, depending on the irrigation water demand throughout the region. It was also established that with the system being gravity fed, pressures were very different along the lines resulting in uneven application of water and nutrients. Other things that were identified were the hydraulic limits of the system, e.g. the number of sprays on the various lateral pipe sizes. Fertigation issues were also addressed. The existing nutrient injection system was designed as a “V” tank bulk mixing and feed. This system is labour intensive and presents some OH&S issues. This system did the job for the long waterings used in the past, but presented some problems in delivering nutrients proportionally into irrigation with short watering times. This will be particularly important in wet weather when nutrients are needed with less water applied. This is the next step for Chris and Jaclyn now that irrigation efficiency has been improved. To fix the irrigation system problems, Pat recommended that an inline pump be installed to act as a booster to the system and ensure that water pressure didn’t vary. According to Chris, getting the pressures right was the key to improving the irrigation and tree health.

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IRRIGATION TECHNOLOGY: AGRICULTURE

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“Now we have a bigger electricity bill at around $2000 a quarter, but at the same time we have nearly tripled our yield from 5000 to 14,000 trays,” said Chris. Importantly, Pat and Merv didn’t just hand Chris and Jaclyn a report on what they found, rather they went through how improvements could be made and they were able to provide advice and answer questions over the 12 months.

Watching soil moisture After Chris and Jaclyn checked the irrigation system for its flow and pressure efficiencies the next step was to automate it. Part of that change was done by altering the irrigation valves opening from forty taps down to only four. This was done by connecting the irrigation system to the home computer using a radio network. It was a big step for Chris and Jaclyn to take control of their irrigation system as they realised they needed to understand more about plant available water and soil type. They invested in a 0.5 m EnviroSCAN placed in the oldest of the three blocks and installed tensiometers in all blocks. One of these was placed next to the EnviroSCAN to provide comparative data of soil moisture readings. The soil moisture readings gave them a good understanding of the crop's water needs and the effect this had at different stages of the crop's growth cycle. This allowed them confidence to apply more water when needed, thus improving yield and fruit size. After seeing improvements to their crop Chris and Jaclyn have decided to upgrade by investing in soil moisture probes measuring soil temperature and EC. These will allow them to closely monitor their nutrient movement using liquid fertiliser on a daily to weekly basis. Jaclyn said that Fabian emphasised the best way to learn about soil moisture monitoring was to watch the orchard and match what was happening in the paddock to what was happening to the computer screen. “We found that he was right,” said Jaclyn. “The more we used it, the more we got to understand what was happening and be confident with our watering.

Now we recognise patterns and water accordingly,” she explained. As an indicator of how they have come to understand the system, Jaclyn said they used to ring Fabian at least once a week but now it’s much longer between phone calls! One measure of how working with the team has helped Chris and Jaclyn change their management is that when they took over the farm they were watering for 22 hours a day. Now they are down to watering for two and a half hours in the morning and an hour and a half in the evening. The temperature probe is set turn the sprinklers on for 20-minute intervals across the orchard if it gets to 32 degrees and hotter; if the temperature falls below 3 degrees it initiates the sprinklers to protect against frost damage. Three years ago neighbours and local experts were telling Chris and Jaclyn to doze out trees and make them moisture stressed to promote fruiting. Rather than take this advice, they embarked on a program where they have worked with specialists to learn about how to manage their situation. Now neighbours lean over the fence and compliment them on how the orchard looks. The health of their tress and rapidly improving yields are the proof that these compliments aren’t misplaced. Chris and Jaclyn are now planning an expansion to their orchard.

Chris Atkinson (foreground) and Pat Daley check pressure from the supply system.

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IRRIGATION TECHNOLOGY: URBAN

IRRIGATION TECHNOLOGY: URBAN IT’S TIME TO FOCUS ON EFFICIENCY Geoff Connellan Increased water availability has seen a change in the approach to the management of water in most urban areas in Australia. In a short period of time, for many locations and because of above average rainfall, the focus has shifted from a regime of water restrictions to unlimited supply for irrigation. As the water scene has changed the messages to encourage higher standards of water management have also changed. During restrictions the “water savings” message has been used by many government agencies and water authorities to encourage reduced water use. In most cases, it is actually about reduced potable water use. Allied to this message is the implication that any reduction in potable water consumption was an improvement in efficiency. Changing water sources is sometimes claimed as improving efficiency. Using no water or less water for irrigation is also often quoted as a source of efficiency gain. An unfortunate consequence of adopting a water savings only strategy is that the services or outcomes provided by the irrigated site are not adequately considered or are even ignored. Turning off irrigation in parklands, which has resulted in the death of valuable and significant trees, is an example where the water savings strategy has failed. While some trees and plants will die during drought, it should be the consequence of decisions made about the requirements of the vegetation and the water available, rather than applying blanket or global reductions in water used for irrigation. The question arises as to what we mean when we say “efficiency”. This has been addressed in numerous studies, including Fairweather et al (see reference at the end of this article). There are many terms available to express efficiency of water use, water management and irrigation.

Water use efficiency Water use efficiency (WUE) covers a broad range of measures, more accurately called indices rather than efficiencies, which describe the production or output resulting from the use of water. In agriculture, WUE commonly includes yield and economic returns in the determination of the specific WUE term. These measures may include irrigation water or rainfall only or both irrigation and rainfall. In the urban environment WUE can be described as a measure of the output arising from the use of irrigation water. The output, sometimes called “landscape outcome”, may be expressed in terms of areas maintained and services provided, including green space benefits. WUE is improved through strategies such as planting lower water demand species, providing the plants deliver the required services, optimum use of rainfall, alternative surfaces, use of mulch, improved soil health and water sensitive plant cultural practices. For a public garden, WUE may be expressed, for example, as litres per visitor. In the case of sports grounds, WUE may be expressed as the water used relative to the area maintained

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

Water use efficiency is the touchstone for policy makers, managers and operators. To achieve high water use efficiency, one of the key elements is irrigation efficiency, determined by how effectively water is applied to the root zone of the plant and scheduling efficiency. Also important in determining water use efficiency is the landscape outcome, e.g. the services provided by the irrigated area.

(ML/ha) or it may be expressed in terms of the services provided by the area, for example, 2,000 player hours per ML. Changing grass species, so that 3,000 player hours per ML are achieved, is a very big improvement in WUE. The recommended way of achieving overall efficiency of water use in urban sites is: Step 1: Site landscape outcomes or services defined Step 2: Landscape design and horticulture to deliver services determined Step 3: Water supply required to maintain site vegetation selected Step 4: Efficient irrigation of the site The main driver in the process is the services provided by the site. Does the turf surface need to be high quality throughout the season? Or do trees need to be maintained in a healthy condition, with vigour, or is it about ensuring tree survival only? Considerations like these are crucial in the overall efficiency approach. Both high water use efficiency and high irrigation efficiency are required to achieve high efficiency of water use.

The term “overall irrigation efficiency” (Eo) can be used to describe how well irrigation has been carried out: Eo = Ea x Es The main efficiency term used to describe and evaluate urban irrigation is Ea. The uniformity of sprinkler systems is evaluated using distribution uniformity (DU) coefficient. The industry standard is that DU should not be less than 75% in the field. While DU does not include all potential application losses, it is a valuable measure to promote improved irrigation efficiencies. Achieving high efficiency is well illustrated with drip systems. This irrigation method is characterised by potentially high Ea, in that water can be effectively deposited into the root zone, however, it does need to be well managed to achieve high overall irrigation efficiency. Operating drip systems for too long so that water drains below the root zone is a source of waste and low efficiency. Achieving high Es without knowing the actual soil moisture content is a real challenge. There is much to be gained through the use of soil moisture sensors to provide feedback to inform irrigation management decisions. Local daily ET and rainfall data are essential in achieving precision in irrigation control and scheduling.

Performance indicators and efficiency Measurement and efficiency go hand in hand. It is not possible to demonstrate efficiency if there are no measurement records of the water used to irrigate an area. Measurement is also the cornerstone of performance evaluation. Performance indicators are important in achieving efficiency and also in reporting efficiency. The most basic and fundamental measure is the volume of water used. Additional indicators, such as volume per area (e.g. per ha or 1,000 m2), provide a greater understanding of the irrigation practices.

To determine overall irrigation efficiency it is necessary to analyse the water used in the context of the weather during the irrigation period. One measure of efficiency is the irrigation index (Ii) which makes provision for the conditions that were actually experienced during the irrigation season. Ii is defined by the ratio of “water applied” relative to “water that should have been used”. An Ii value of 1.0 is ideal. If Ii is greater than 1.0, it indicates a degree of waste or inefficiency. Irrigation efficiency should be considered within the overall context of achieving high water use efficiency. Plant performance, soil health, site amenity value, site water management all need to be monitored and assessed as part of achieving a sustainable irrigated site.

Summary To be efficient requires an integrated and holistic strategic approach to the site. The supplementary water used to maintain the site and deliver the required services needs to be minimised and the irrigation efficiency needs to be maximised. It is not just about having the right irrigation technology but it is also about managing the system well to reflect site needs and local weather conditions so soil moisture is maintained, within defined levels, to achieve the required outcomes.

More information For more detail go to website: www.geoffconnellan.com.au and select Water Links: Parks 2010 Congress presentation Reference Fairweather, H, Austin, N and Hope, M (2002) Water Use Efficiency – An Information Package, Irrigation Insights No.5, NPIRD Publication, Land and Water Australia, Canberra.

Irrigation efficiency It is important to recognise that irrigation efficiency only relates to the process of applying water into the root zone of a designated target area of plants. Achieving irrigation efficiency can be broken down into two parts. These are: 1. Effectiveness of application of water to the plant root zone, referred to as the application efficiency (Ea). 2. Timing of irrigation duration and event to meet plant needs, referred to as scheduling efficiency (Es). Each of these efficiency areas is prone to water losses. In the case of Ea, water can be lost as a result of wind, evaporation, surface runoff and deep drainage. In the case of Es, water can be wasted through application that is too deep and incorrect timing of irrigation. It is the combination of the two irrigation efficiencies that determines the overall efficiency of the irrigation water applied.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

WATER RESTRICTIONS PROMPT IRRIGATION MAKEOVER

Central control features in a stand alone decoder controller

Frank Nocera, Netafim Australia

That’s intelligent.

In 2004 Brenden Lennon from Lennon’s Grass Courts in Merindie in SA started converting some of his grass tennis courts from pop-up sprinkler watering systems to subsurface drip. His aim in doing this was to reduce the amount of water required to keep the courts in top playing condition. In most situations, a green lawn can be achieved with drip using about 30% less water than above-ground methods. By installing SDI in a situation like this, i.e. a tennis court which has also been replanted with a warm season grass (couch) and managed correctly, water savings of about 40% are possible. According to Brenden, this was the case with his courts, and initial results were very encouraging. The drip system ensured that water was applied directly to the plant's root zone and there was no overspray or wind-drift, so all of the water applied to the lawn went directly to the root zone.

Water restrictions prompt system redesign The introduction of Stage 3 water restrictions in Adelaide in 2007 meant that pop-up sprinklers couldn’t be used to water lawn and garden areas, including most of the grass courts that Brenden maintained. As a result he started converting most of his grass courts over to SDI, which was compliant with Stage 3 water restrictions. So far he has converted over 55 of his grass courts to SDI. Stage 3 water restrictions also presented some other irrigation challenges. The amount of time and number of days that watering was permitted per week were simply not enough to meet minimum plant water requirements, especially on properties with larger, more extensive gardens. The only way to increase irrigation and still comply with the water restrictions was to source an alternative, non-potable (non mains) water supply. Brenden conducted a water audit on one site to gauge how much storm water could be captured. By multiplying the total roof area by the minimum rainfall amount (based on

Compacted excavation ready for the water tank to be built under one of the tennis courts

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

l d tro tan on a s er l c n ll ra s i tro nt re on Ce atu e c fe lon a

FEATURE: WATER EFFICIENT URBAN LANDSCAPES

Components of the headworks assembly, which was installed above ground, are easy to access and maintain. dry year data) it was calculated that up to 450,000 L could be captured. It was then decided that captured rain water would be directed and stored on site in an in-ground tank for irrigation. The construction of the tank provided Brenden with several concerns: size of excavation, construction of the tank on-site and an arborist report to the local council to ensure that there would be no damage to any of the significant trees around the excavated area. He also had to be careful to ensure that the excavation was properly compacted to stop base and wall collapse and subsidence. When he had sorted these issues out, the tank was built on site with concrete poured into a demountable mould. Once the tank was built all the necessary plumbing was connected to it. Provisions were made so in extended dry weather water could be supplied to the tank from an alternative water source. Brenden can buy spring water or treated waste water and truck it to and fill the tank (the fill up point is located at the front of the property). The tank has also been fitted with a connection to mains water so that when water restrictions permit, mains water can be used to supplement rainwater in the tank. Soil surrounding and covering the tank was compacted to allow the construction of the tennis court above it. A pressure pump takes water from the tank to a central head works comprising master valve, back-flow prevention device, flow meter, disc filter, techfilter, fertiliser injector, controller with rain sensor and solenoid valves. The headworks assembly is installed above ground and supported on a unistrut system, allowing easy access to all components for installation and ongoing maintenance. Existing pop-up sprinkler systems are usually retained when a SDI system is installed into the tennis court. The pop-up sprinkler system is used for the first couple of weeks to help with initial turf establishment (ideal for new turf) and for ongoing use with turf maintenance (i.e. application of turf chemicals and fertilisers). Brenden has found that existing turf areas usually don’t require any additional overhead watering and they usually respond to SDI immediately. > 12

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FEATURE: WATER EFFICIENT URBAN LANDSCAPES < 10 The main irrigation for the tennis court is SDI using 1.6 L/hr emitters at 0.3 m, installed at 30 cm lateral spacings. This spacing allows about 18 mm/hr of water to be applied to the turf area. The pressure compensating and anti siphon mechanisms in the Techline AS ensure that water is applied evenly over the full length of the dripperline. They also stop dirt or debris being sucked back into the drippers or dripperline on system shut down. Ensuring an even application of water and reliable dripper operation is paramount to success in a SDI system. To install the dripperline, it was pulled into the soil with a vibratory plough to a uniform depth 10 mm below the surface. This allows water to feed directly into the root zone and ensures that it is deep enough to stop any potential damage by aeration and coring machines. Brenden uses a 75 mm tine on his coring machine to ensure that coring does not damage the dripperline. Instant turf (couch) is then laid over the levelled surface, rolled and watered in. Turf establishment is relatively quick. Overhead watering takes place for a couple weeks and is then switched over to SDI encouraging roots to grow down deeper into the soil than with pop-up sprinklers alone. An irrigation of 10 mm a week is applied to the lawn area and adjusted according to weather and site conditions. Watering is usually done once a week in one long application. By saturating the soil a larger wetting pattern is achieved resulting in a more even turf colour and cover. Pulse irrigation has been trialled but found to create a much smaller wetting pattern. Brenden has had his clients comment that their SDI systems achieve a more dense, compact turf cover than previously achieved with sprinklers. Even though water restrictions have, for now, been lifted in the Adelaide metropolitan area, most of his clients will continue to irrigate with SDI. The increasing cost of water will also ensure that his clients continue to enjoy the benefits of SDI.

These two photos show how the newly installed turf (top) with SDI quickly grows to establish a uniform cover suitable for even the most competitive of tennis matches

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FEATURE: WATER EFFICIENT URBAN LANDSCAPES

IPOS HELPS REVIVE SCHOOL SOCCER PITCH Improved responses to applications of water and nutrients have meant a greener and more even soccer pitch at St Columba College in SA. Important in reviving the pitch have been modifying irrigation applications by following the code of practice for irrigated public open space (IPOS) along with identifying a non-responsive soil profile, building soil structure and encouraging root development. The college’s buildings and grounds manager, Kerrin Thom, explained that there was good intention when the 14-year-old facility was originally laid out by architects as a key component of the Andrews Farm residential development. “Sandy loam was spread over the heavy clay in the hope of creating a better base for the ten hectares of school grounds, of which four hectares are green surfaces,” he said. “Without good soil structure, however, there was not much capacity

for roots to extend and weak turf can easily suffer under the normal wear and tear of sport. First signs were a tired and motley looking soccer pitch. “The pitch was probably unsafe too, with excessive thatch in some areas and holes in others, while undulations were obvious and clearly affecting play.” When seeking a solution the college, which caters for 1500 students, had budget constraints and wanted something that didn’t have to be “an Adelaide Oval”, rather was fit for purpose. Using specialised machinery from Sustainable Turf Renovations & Equipment the area was topdressed. This low-cost but effective approach involved incorporating shaving and treatment of thatch, aeration and applying compost. Also, among treatments to restore root health and turf strength were applications of prescription fertiliser, a wetting agent, a pre-emergent herbicide to reduce competition from summer weeds and a chemical to control beetles.

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Kerrin Thom has learnt a lot from the irrigated public open space (IPOS) code of practice. A more even surface and improved conditions for players are among the gains from improving irrigation management and the responsiveness of the soil. The project merges well with Kerrin Thom’s approach to the economy of playing surfaces, which includes the view that it makes sense to identify limiting factors and, in this case, get better results from each unit of input (whether nutrients or water).

Lessons from IPOS

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Kerrin said he has learned a lot from SA Water’s principles and the code of practice for Irrigated Public Open Space (IPOS). “We had to turn to mains water when access to aquifer water was stopped during a period when new works were underway in the wetland. “Being more accountable for water use and following IPOS provided a better understanding of the water needs and resilience of turf, enabling us to save 25% on our allowance,” he explained. Now that there is a more responsive soil profile and a more efficient soil/ water/plant relationship, care is taken to preserve the quality of the soccer pitch. This extends to stopping vehicles taking short cuts across the pitch, moving the goals for practice to give high use areas a rest, and marking the lines with paint rather than herbicide.

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FEATURE: ENERGY AND IRRIGATION

ENERGY FOR IRRIGATION – HOW EFFICIENT ARE WE? Peter Smith, Industry & Investment NSW, Tamworth Energy is becoming a big factor in all productive enterprises in Australia, including irrigation. Where recent decades have seen a strong focus on improving water efficiency and productivity, attention is now shifting to energy use and carbon footprints. Energy is used in the irrigation sector to produce system components (e.g. pipes, sprinklers, control structures), to prepare the land (e.g. clearing, earthmoving and landforming), and to operate the system (e.g. pumping, vehicle movements). It is also used in the production and application of fertilisers and pesticides. In the 2010 report Challenges at Energy-Water-Carbon Intersections, Australia’s chief scientist observed that “because energy, water and carbon are so tightly linked, attempts to address a problem in one area without regard for its implications elsewhere can have unintended consequences that will often make matters worse overall.” So the push for improved irrigation efficiency has other implications, particularly for energy use and the attendant costs. This is especially the case for irrigated agriculture.

Life cycle important when comparing energy use One study compared the energy required for border check, centre pivot and sub surface drip systems over their productive life. Border check GJ/ha/yr

Centre pivot GJ/ha/yr

Sub surface drip GJ/ ha/yr

Initial embodied energy

2.312

1.985

5.964

Recurring embodied energy

0.116

0.099

0.089

Operational energy

2.157

3.920

3.722

Decommissioning energy

0.023

0.159

0.716

Total

4.608

6.163

10.492

Source: Jacobs, SC (2006), Comparison of Life Cycle Energy Consumption of Alternative Irrigation Systems.

The first thing to notice is the break up of the energy input into four components, of which operational (mostly pumping) energy is just one. If we are to consider energy for irrigation properly, we need to take a life-cycle view. Surface irrigation, border check in this case, is usually considered to be less water efficient than centre pivot or subsurface drip. But in terms of energy consumption, it is much better than the two potentially more water efficient systems, especially for operational energy. Findings like this raise questions over the recent singular focus on water efficiency and prompt an examination of energy use as well. Common measures of productivity over the last decade have added yield per ML to the traditional yield per hectare – should we now also include yield per GJ? The chief scientist casts the challenge very broadly: “The

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

fundamental energy-water-carbon challenge for Australia is to find pathways which combine a low-carbon economy, the ability to thrive under water limitation, social wellbeing and economic sufficiency—all in the presence of global uncertainties and shocks.” This is pointing to an optimum compromise between the three limiting parameters rather than trying to maximise only one. This seems the right way to go, but it is perhaps too far-reaching for the irrigation industry to engage immediately. On-farm or on-site energy use, however, is one aspect that can be addressed now.

Irrigation in the future The chief scientist offers a view of how irrigated agriculture might look: “Smart networks that connect soil, atmospheric and plant sensors to systems that control water delivery to improve the energy efficiency of water supply, reduce river operating water losses and maximise economic water productivity.” These outcomes would be achieved: • by ensuring stable pressures in piped systems and appropriate water levels in channel systems • through more accurate forecasts of demand and more responsive operation of reservoir releases • by supplying water to irrigated crops at the right times and in the right quantities for optimum growth. This sounds like the ideal set up we would all like to see. Technology currently exists, and in some cases is already being used, that can achieve these things, at least to some degree. A question the industry should be asking now is this the right time to try to push this concept so that our industry might be leading the effort to address the current and growing issue of energy?

ON-FARM PUMP TESTING FOR ENERGY EFFICIENCY Merv Jessen, IAL IDO, Queensland With electricity and diesel costs continuing to spiral, many irrigators are seeing the benefits of having a pump performance test carried out on their irrigation pumps. The results of field tests have yielded many surprises and have shown there is a large variation in pumping costs and pump efficiencies across the various sectors of Queensland’s irrigated industries. And there is no reason to assume that this situation is not the same across Australia, unfortunately. On-farm pump performance evaluations started around ten years ago as part of the Queensland state government funded Rural Water Use Efficiency Initiative. The project found that poor irrigation system performance was often traced to poor pump performance, and that’s what sparked the interest in evaluating pump performance and analysing energy consumption and pumping costs.

Recently, the issue of energy use in irrigation has taken on a whole new emphasis, especially in light of the current drive for energy efficiency and the drive to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Peak power demand issues are also a challenge to electricity supply authorities, as they grapple with an ever increasing demand at peak times throughout the daily demand cycle.

Why are these issues important? Worldwide it has been estimated that across all industries over 10% of the world’s total energy consumption is used in pumping. Of this total energy use, agriculture is a significant user, and any mechanisms for reducing this huge energy consumption will pay dividends for both irrigators and the environment. While careful attention may be paid to repairing and maintaining general farm equipment, irrigation pumps are often overlooked or taken for granted, and performance and efficiency can slowly decline until there is a major pump

failure. In other cases, poor initial pump selection may be the cause of ongoing inefficiency, and although all may appear to be going well, the costs of pressurising and moving water may be well in excess of what is necessary. The table below shows some of the variations in pumping costs and efficiencies identified during a series of pump checks carried out as part of the RWUEI program in Queensland. It is interesting to note that the poor result shown for pump no. 2 was the result of a new pump being installed in the wrong situation and therefore performing very poorly. Pump no. 3 was old and worn out and was being used as part of a dual pumping system. The tests revealed that this pump was using a lot of electricity and contributing very little to the system flow and pressure requirements. More generally, the results from over 180 pump evaluation tests performed recently in Queensland showed that many pumps were operating inefficiently,

Table. Pumping inefficiencies identified in three on-farm pump evaluations. Pump type

Pump no. 1 Centrifugal

Pump no. 2 Centrifugal

Pump no. 3 Centrifugal

Operating pressure at pump

770 kPa

942 kPa

439 kPa

TDH (total dynamic head) suction and pressure

81.6 m

99.1 m

47.8 m

Flow rate

28.9 L/sec

11.9 L/sec

4 L/sec

kWh per ML

369 kWh

805 kWh

761 kWh

Total cost to pump 1 ML

$55.35

$120.75

$114.15

Don't forget to mark your diaries

Calculated pump efficiency

73%

41%

23%

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA CONFERENCE 2011

kWh/m head/ML

4.52 kWh

8.12 kWh

15.92 kWh

Comments

This pump was operating 34 ezyshift (bike shift) sprinklers at 345 kPa. The system was performing to specifications.

This pump was operating a travelling irrigator with a 1 inch taper bore nozzle. Operating pressure 34 psi (234 kPa) at the gun nozzle. This is well below system requirements.

This pump was operating a hand shift system. Two pumps were being run together, with this pump contributing very little to the system’s pressure and flow requirements.

Information PMSEIC (2010). Challenges at Energy-Water-Carbon Intersection. Prime Minister’s Science, Engineering and Innovation Council, Canberra, Australia www.chiefscientist. gov.au/wp-content/uploads/FINAL_EnergyWaterCarbon_for_ WEB.pdf .

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*Pumping costs based on an electricity cost of 15c/kWhr.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

FEATURE: ENERGY AND IRRIGATION

Not all poor pump performance is due to worn or damaged pumps; however, it can be a major cause. A section of this centrifugal pump impeller has been removed to show the severe damage that can occur as a result of cavitation. The impeller had been replaced only 14 months earlier.

with some returning field test efficiencies as low as 23%. This can have a huge impact on both irrigation system performance and pumping costs; in extreme cases these costs can be around two and a half times the accepted benchmark figure. The average level of efficiency measured in the field was around 48%, which indicates that there is considerable room for improvement when it comes to pump performance and reducing energy consumption and pumping costs.

FEATURE: ENERGY AND IRRIGATION

Pump flows can be measured in a number of ways, including the use of strap-on portable ultrasonic flow meters. Measuring power consumption Where electricity is being used to power the pump, energy consumption is relatively easy to obtain. Electricity is measured in kilowatt hours (kWh), and for the length of the test the total kWh are recorded. For diesel powered pumps, the amount of fuel consumed per hour is needed. Once this data is collected, how much water is being pumped and how much it is costing to pump the water at current electricity or diesel prices can be calculated.

Evaluating pump performance Evaluating pump performance in the field is not too hard. While it is not possible to achieve the same accuracy as in a proper testing facility it can allow us to get a reasonable picture of what is happening under actual conditions. Good quality, reliable equipment is essential and care must be taken to ensure that the pump is operating in its normal mode during the tests.

Measuring flow rates Accurately measuring the pump flow rate can be a challenge. Where there is no water meter installed, it may be necessary to use a portable flow meter. Portable ultrasonic flow meters can be used for this purpose, and they have the added advantage of being non intrusive and can be strapped to the outside of a pipe, provided the mounting location meets the recommended requirements. The flow rate is recorded in litres a second. It is always good to back up the flow readings by using an alternative method, such as measuring the output of the field emitters and using these figures to calculate the total flow rate.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

us to calculate the total dynamic head (TDH) of the pump, expressed in metres head (m head). The operating efficiency of the pump can be determined once drive factors and motor efficiency figures are applied. Once the TDH and the flow rate have been determined, the pump’s performance should be checked against the pump performance curve by plotting the ‘duty point’ on the chart. This is then checked to see where the pump is operating relative to its best efficiency point (BEP).

Power consumption can be measured by using a stopwatch (top) or, where digital power meters are installed, kWh can be determined from the cumulative total shown on the screen.

The importance of pump efficiency The goal is to select and operate a pump near its peak efficiency, resulting in more efficient use of electricity or diesel and reduced operating costs. When a pump has to operate well away from its BEP, efficiency levels may drop off sharply, and an imbalance of the radial forces within the pump can result in additional stress on its components. This can reduce the life of the pump and lead to premature failure of bearings, seals and shafts. Pump efficiency is also an important consideration in initial pump selection. It is worth noting that efficiency levels between various pumps vary a lot. Some new pumps can actually have quite low levels of efficiency because of various design and manufacturing limitations, while others are capable of much higher levels of efficiency. While a "rule of thumb" figure of 70% pump efficiency is often quoted as being desirable, some pumps cannot attain this level of efficiency, even when brand new; alternatively, there are pumps capable of 80% efficiencies or higher. When it is considered that over 80% of the cost of owning a pump over its life is attributed to the energy costs, the importance of selecting a suitable, high efficiency pump and motor combination becomes very obvious.

Determining total dynamic head

What of the future?

When evaluating a typical end suction centrifugal pump, a suction gauge should be installed close to the pump on the inlet side. A pressure gauge is also installed at a point downstream from the pump outlet. There are industry standards about where to position gauges to ensure a high level of accuracy. The gauges are used to record the suction and operating pressures while the pump is operating in its normal operating mode. These two measurements allow

I would like to see the testing of pumps and irrigation systems in general taken to a whole new level. While we may currently be experiencing a temporary reprieve from the water shortages experienced over the past decade, water and energy efficiency must remain high priority issues for our industry. An energy and water efficient irrigation industry is essential if we’re to take on the challenges of producing more food, fibre and renewable energy supplies for our future generations.

PUMPING EFFICIENCY: HOW MANY KWH PER ML? Rob Welke, Tallemenco Pty Ltd Pumps are one of the most expensive parts of operating an irrigation system in terms of energy use and cost, so anything you can do to improve efficiency will result in significant returns. In this article Rob Welke looks at pumping efficiency and identifies key elements. During Rob’s work with SA Water from the early '70s to the early '90s, he conducted over 1,000 site tests on pumps up to 5,000 kW. He critically examined kWh per ML (kilowatt hours per megalitre) for each installation and recommended maintenance regimes to minimise power consumption. Pumping efficiency is best described as the efficiency of the whole pumping system, from the pump suction to the irrigation emitters. It can be expressed in terms of energy consumption, or

Note: η is the symbol for efficiency %

Contrary to popular belief, flow rate is not a consideration in assessing kWh/ML, unless you need to determine pump η from a site test. So, let’s look at these parameters and their impact on kWh/ML.

Metres head pumped Minimising the total head is the secret to minimising kWh/ML, and consists of the sum of the following: • elevation (fixed) • pipeline friction (variable) • filter losses (variable) • control valve losses (variable) • emitter requirements (variable). Elevation is usually not negotiable on any site. However, taking advantage of slope on sites can offset pipe friction losses resulting in more even pressure throughout the whole system. Pipeline friction is expressed as Head loss α (water velocity)1.85 or very nearly Head loss α m/sec2. Pipeline losses can be divided into three categories: Main line (rising main) losses. Usually a fixed diameter pipe is

used to get water from its source to the irrigation interface. A larger diameter pipe reduces water velocity, reducing head loss. The optimum pipe diameter is best determined by economic optimisation. Distribution pipe losses. Usually a reducing diameter pipe is selected to serve reducing flow needs along an irrigation mainline, lateral or a centre pivot. The diameter and length of each section affects head differential loss between the start and end of the lateral or centre pivot. Since the pumping head is determined by all friction losses up to the end of the lateral, this differential head needs to be minimised to reduce kWh/ML. Determine pipeline performance deterioration. Pipe friction increases over time, depending on water source. With recycled water, expect up to 10% friction increase in the first year (from experience). This needs to be compensated for in pipeline system design. Pipeline performance can be restored through pigging (forcing a foam cylinder through the pipe) or chemical treatment or both. Filter losses. Sizing the filter to the worst case water quality will reduce filter head losses. This usually means selecting a larger filter, so it does come at a cost. If VFDs (variable frequency drives) are controlling the pumped head, locating the pressure sensor downstream of the filter will offset at least 2.5 total metres head loss (a quick action pressure relief valve must be installed between pump and filter). Control valves. There are two types of control valves - pressure sustaining valves (PSV) and pressure regulating valves (PRV). For PSVs it is important to note that each valve has approximate 1.5 m head loss if sized correctly. If the valve is required for system fill, locate the PSV on a bypass and use it only as required. Consider the need for PSVs carefully; are they really required? Some lifestyle turf PRVs require 10 m operating head (plus 3 m margin) and centre pivot PRVs, 15 psi plus 5 psi margin (that’s 20 psi

Minimising the number of pressure sustaining valves (PSVs) will reduce pumping head and therefore operating costs. This pump station has four PSVs. The PSVs on each pump are not necessary. Photo: R Welke

or 14 m head!). Typically, that’s 25% of total pumping operating costs. Are they really needed, or are they just a shortcut to design effort? Emitter requirements. Energy efficiency is about selecting the lowest operating pressure emitter that will do the job. This may involve changing brand names to achieve the best result.

Pump efficiency An economic analysis of power requirements over a 15-year life will determine the best choice of pump in terms of efficiency. Table 1 over the page is a guide to pump types and their efficiency. This is a guide only and any decision about pump types should be made based on each situation.

Pump performance Pump performance will have a big impact on system efficiency as it deteriorates over time. Over a 15-year life, expect a minimum 15% reduction in pump efficiency as a result of both wear rings and corrosion. Painting the internal surface of pumps with a high metallic content paint reduces friction and increases operating life. It is best applied when pumps are new.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

FEATURE: ENERGY AND IRRIGATION

FEATURE: ENERGY AND IRRIGATION Table I. Summary of pump types and their efficiency. Pump type

Efficiency

Small pumps

Notoriously inefficient, but since the power cost is not high, pump efficiency is not a major consideration

Pumps above 22 kW

Higher power consumption category and so deserve special pump efficiency consideration.

System pumping efficiency Table 3 compares various types of irrigation and their typical pumping efficiency in terms of kWh/ML (based on 70% pump η, 90% motor η). Table 3. A comparison of pumping efficiency for different irrigation systems. System

Operating head (m)

kWh/ ML

River lift to channel

4.3

Vertical multistage pumps with stainless steel radial impellers

Very efficient, typically 80%, and a good choice.

Under tree irrigation

108

4.3

CP/LM at centre

150

4.3

Single stage end suction pumps

Average for efficiency, typically 75%. Specifying them with double volutes will improve efficiency over a wider flow range, albeit with a slightly lower BEP (best efficiency point) efficiency

CP/LM + lift e.g. from river + transfer pipe losses, typical

260

4.3

Lifestyle turf irrigation, e.g. playing fields, golf courses

325

4.3

Single stage pumps with double suction impellers

The best solution for large, single stage pumps. Efficiency is typically 10% higher than the best end suction impellers. They are more expensive but this is offset by lower power costs.

Submersible pumps

While most have stainless steel components, they are about 5% less efficient than single stage pumps and up to 10% less efficient than their vertical multistage brothers. Assign only the minimum pumping for these units and supplement the remaining lift with higher efficiency surface pumps.

Components of the headworks assembly, which was installed above ground, are easy to access and maintain.

Specific power consumption (kWh/ML/m) There is a trend in some states to encourage energy efficiency of irrigation systems, particularly centre pivots and lateral moves, by defining kWh/ML/m limits. The last column in Table 3 shows kWh/ML/m values for all types of irrigation systems. Note that all of their values are 4.3 kWh /ML/m. This is because the formula for establishing kWh /ML/m eliminates m head, and therefore does not reflect the pumped head. The only variables which affect kWh/ML/m are pump and motor efficiency. In fact, the formula for kWh/ML/m is 2.73/(pump η x motor η). Go to www.talle.biz/data.html to see how this is derived. For example, to achieve a 4 kWh/ML/m limit will require a pump efficiency of 72.6% and similarly, a 5 kWh/ML/m limit will require a pump efficiency of 58%, based on a motor efficiency of 93%. While this concept is a very good approach to limiting minimum pump efficiency, it does not address the biggest variable for energy efficiency in an irrigation system, pumped head, which apart from elevation and emitter duty, is influenced almost solely by pipeline head loss. While kWh/ML is based principally on pumped head, it is not practical to limit energy efficiency of irrigation schemes with a kWh/ML limit, because of greatly varying methods of supplying water to the irrigation interface. However, the head loss component can best be dealt with through a ‘pipe velocity limit’ National Standard for the irrigation industry.

Information For more information on pumping and efficiencies, go to www. talle.biz/pumptest.html or contact Rob at rob@talle.biz

Motor efficiency

Calculating the cost of operating pumps

Table 2. Guide to efficiency of different motor types.

Motors above 22kW

Most standard electric motors for above ground pumps >22 kW are typically 90 to 94% efficient. The MEPS (Minimum Energy Performance Standards) High Efficiency Motor Standards typically favour low kW motors (<22 kW) and do not offer good value to larger kW irrigation plant unless pumping every day, all day.

To establish pump operating cost, multiply kWh/ML by the cents/kWh tariff from your electrical supplier. For example, if kWh/ML is 325, and c/kWh is 12 c, then the cost for, say, 100 ML a year pumped = 325 x 100 x 0.12 = $3,900. Increase or decrease this according to ML a year pumped. Tallemenco has produced a quick reference chart for reading kWh/L for various heads and pump efficiencies without the need for a calculator. Go to www.talle.biz/data. html for a free downloadable colour A4 copy.

Submersible motors

Typically 10% less efficient compared to the same kW surface motor. Therefore, assign only the minimum pumping for these units and supplement the remaining lift with higher efficiency above ground pump motors.

Pump data chart. This is a look-up chart which calculates $/ML pumping costs for you, knowing pumped head, pump η and motor η.

Efficiency

Small motors

Notoriously inefficient, but since the power cost is not high, motor efficiency is not a major consideration.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

Craig Baillie, National Centre for Engineering in Agriculture, University of Southern Queensland Agricultural producers are currently aware of increasing energy costs. Within highly mechanised agricultural productions systems direct energy inputs (i.e. diesel and electricity) represent a major cost to irrigators and potentially contribute a significant proportion of total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Currently, the National Centre for Engineering in Agriculture (NCEA) is studying direct energy use on farm using a number of case study cotton farms to understand the range, costs and contributions of energy use to cotton production and GHG emissions. In the cropping sector a number of practice changes and technology developments have been or are being adopted which can be expected to reduce fuel/energy use or energy use intensity. NCEA work had shown the main energy uses on the average irrigated cotton farm were from pumping irrigation water, heavy tillage operations and harvesting. In some of the work done in the cotton and other industries, pumping water in particular (i.e. sourcing and distributing water around the farm or using pressurised irrigation systems) consumes a lot of energy. Results so far show that energy use varies depending on the cropping enterprise and the farming system and that there are significant opportunities to reduce energy and costs. Good places to start would be looking at how to improve energy use through irrigation management and pumping systems. Energy use from irrigation in previous work has been observed to be as high as 60 to 70% of the total energy use and is generally the highest energy use on farm. In a wider context, agriculture contributes about 20% of Australia’s GHG emissions, but if you look at irrigated agriculture, direct energy use may contribute as much GHG emissions as that generated by nitrogen fertilisers. This means that improving on-farm energy use would appear to be as important as improving nitrogen efficiency in highly mechanised, irrigated farming systems.

Measuring energy use on the farm

Table 2 is a guide to efficiency of motor types.

Motor type

IRRIGATION, ENERGY AND GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS

There are a number of different approaches to measure on-farm energy use – from the simple to the detailed. The NCEA is currently developing a methodology and supporting software (EnergyCalc) for conducting on-farm energy assessments. The concept involves three levels of assessment, as follows: Level 1 (preliminary audit). Collation of total on-farm energy, using total fuel and total electricity consumed. Level 2 (standard audit). Desktop study of the energy breakdown or itemised account of energy use across the farm; supported by bowser and electricity meter-box measurements and specific “spot” measurements. Level 3 (detailed assessment audit). A detailed analysis of energy use concentrating on specific aspects or a single process (i.e. irrigation and pumping). The detailed assessment can focus on an area identified from a level 2 assessment or an area of key interest and involve sensors and data loggers to measure performance.

The irrigator may decide on any level of audit or start with a Level 1 audit and use these results to inform further progression. EnergyCalc assesses direct on-farm energy use, costs and GHG emissions associated with diesel, petrol, LPG and electricity consumption. It also examines energy use for key processes in a production system and can be used to evaluate energy use and improvements as a whole-of-system approach.

Figure. EnergyCalc screen capture Once irrigators have basic measures on where most of their energy is going, there are several places to start saving energy and costs. Potential strategies can include fuel switching, tariff negotiation and managing energy demands (efficiency). Given the significance of irrigation in the onfarm energy equation, practical measures such as checking pump performance and improving water use efficiency have new meaning. Other practical (low cost) measures include modifying how tractors are operated to achieve savings.

Accessing EnergyCalc EnergyCalc is housed on the NCEA’s Knowledge Management System for Irrigation website (http://www.kmsi.ncea.biz/). It is password protected because it maintains a database of energy assessments that are confidential to the user. The software not only calculates energy use on farm but it stores this data and automatically generates a report that can be handed back to the irrigator. The software is still undergoing development, however, it is fairly advanced and has the current features: • users can print out a personalised data collection sheet for field work • analysis of energy use, costs and greenhouse gas emissions relating to direct energy use • printed PDF report for feedback • ability to export data into Excel. We envisage this tool will be used by service providers to offer an on-farm energy assessment service. Our plan is to licence the software at a nominal fee which will cover the costs of administration and maintenance of the software and database. We are also considering a lite version that won’t record any data or have the reporting functionality but will be provided free.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

IRRIGATION RESEARCH

TRAINING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

IRRIGATION RESEARCH HOW DO MAJOR FLOODS AFFECT AQUIFER RECHARGE? Dr Wendy Timms, UNSW and National Centre for Groundwater Research and Training While major floods can cause terrible damage and losses, they can also recharge groundwater supplies in aquifers. Recharge of groundwater helps ensure sustainability of water resources for town water supplies, agriculture and industry. Topping up aquifers during floods is also important for driving groundwater seepage into rivers, which sustains surface water flow during dry periods. In this article Wendy Timms describes research being done in northwest NSW to find more about how major floods affect aquifer recharge. In 2010, real-time groundwater level data was made available for the first time in NSW for monitoring key bores on the internet at the Waterinfo website, www. waterinfo.nsw.gov.au. Collected at 15-minute intervals, data for groundwater levels is available continuously on the Waterinfo site in graph format, and can also be downloaded. This data, recorded at high-frequency intervals, is superior to previously available datasets obtained from manual measurements taken every 2 to 3 months. This new web-based telemetry service was initiated by the NSW Government with funding from the National Water Commission (NWC). Irrigators can access the data for instant information on local groundwater levels and rivers. Water managers and hydrogeologists can use the data to help estimate recharge rates. Research students can use the data to study processes such as surface-groundwater connectivity.

What does the data show? A preliminary assessment of recent data obtained in January 2011 shows groundwater levels rise in response to high river levels in a catchment. The readings, taken from two sites in the Namoi catchment of the north-eastern Murray Darling Basin located near Gunnedah (with the nearest telemetered bore up the Namoi River at Carrol) and at the Breeza Gap where there is a shallow monitoring bore next to the Mooki River, also show how the magnitude of groundwater level rise is much less than the river level rise, because of the storage properties of aquifers. For example, at Breeza, the river rose by 2.7 m over a period of hours and the groundwater by 0.9 m over about a day. While groundwater levels can increase with each successive high river event, they can decrease as groundwater slowly seeps back to the river, is pumped

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

from bores or is used by vegetation such as river red gums. New telemetry data will be assessed by staff and research students at the UNSW Connected Waters Initiative working on NCGRT projects that will use highresolution data from a number of sources. Our team is currently measuring leakage and aquifer mixing to a depth of 40 m at the Breeza agricultural station with collaborators from the NSW Department of Investment and Industry. We are focusing on how much water leaks through clay-rich sediments called aquitards that contain the groundwater. We have recently found that recharge might be more episodic than previously thought, and that it depends greatly on the spatial variability of soil permeability. Leakage of flood waters occurs through river banks and beds while rain can also infiltrate directly through soil in flatter areas. Aquifers are well connected if there are permeable pathways of sandy material. Associate Professor Bryce Kelly has been developing new 3D hydrogeological mapping technology as part of this work. This work has produced 3D mapping of flood recharge pathways for the Lower Namoi area for the winter flood of August 1998. Long-term hydrograph readings from the Wee Waa area record a number of flood events since the 1970s. The data shows recharge to the shallow and deep aquifers occurred mainly during these major floods. Recent work by Dr Martin Andersen, Andrew McCallum and the CWI team, has found that major flow events can temporarily increase the permeability of the river bed. This can occur during flood when flow becomes strong enough to

3D map showing recharge pathways for the Lower Namoi area for the winter flood of 1998. Source: Presentation, “3D Spatial Analysis of Bore Hydrograph Data in the Lower Namoi” by Cynthia The, IAH-NSW, October 2008

erode the streambed, stripping out fine particles of clay, silt and organic material that reduce permeability. Consequently, the streambed becomes more permeable, allowing river water to leak into the underlying aquifer at a higher rate. When the flood is over, fine material will settle into the streambed over time, reducing permeability, although this may take many months.

What does it all mean? What does this research mean for other catchments and aquifers? Major floods are very important recharge sources for aquifers in sediments along river valleys. While research on bed permeability following flooding focused on the Namoi, a similar process is likely to occur in other rivers and channels with periodic high flows. It is possible that recharge during flooding could have been underestimated in many areas. Keeping a close eye on both river and groundwater levels has been shown to be a huge boost to understanding and managing water resources that can be closely connected. Real-time, web-based water data, including groundwater, is fast becoming best practice. In addition, 3D data analysis of subsurface flow pathways offers a new paradigm for visualising resources across the nation that have been out of sight and out of mind for too long.

Installing a multi level chemical sampler. Chemical sampling is one method being used to assess the disconnection between groundwater and losing streams. The rate of surface water loss is measured using river flow gauging, and relationships between loss rate and surface water and groundwater levels explored using modelling and hydraulic, chemical and tracer approaches.

TRAINING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IAL DEVELOPING TRAINING SCHEDULE FOR JULY – DECEMBER

To help businesses and individuals plan their training activities for the second half of 2011, Mark Quayle (South-East Queensland IDO) and Deb Atkins are working on a schedule of training and events delivered by IAL. Deb previously organised training for the CRC for Irrigation Futures and has been contracted to work for IAL on a part-time basis. They will be putting out a complete schedule at the end of May but there are already a number of events that Mark says you can put into your diary. Irrigation Efficiency Course. Dates and venues for this 2-day course are Perth - 14 & 15 June and Brisbane - 22 & 23 June. To find out more or to register, go to the Training and Certification page on the IAL website, www.irrigation. org.au. Certified Irrigation Designer exams. CID exam dates for 2011 are 18 August and 10 November. For more information about the CID program go to the Training and Certification page on the IAL website, www.irrigation.org.au. Rural Metering Course. Mark Quayle is examining dates for running a 2-day Rural Metering Course in Queensland, possibly in Toowoomba. If you are interested in finding out more or registering your interest, you can contact Mark, phone 0400 580 147, email mark.quayle@irrigation.org.au

Irrigation training for professionals in southern QLD. The Queensland Dept of Environment and Resources (DERM) is supporting provision of training and RPL for the IAL certification program (Irrigation Agronomist, Irrigation Designer, Irrigation Manager, Irrigation Operator, Irrigation Contractor and Irrigation Installer) as part of the Healthy HeadWaters project. For information and to register interest, contact Rosie Hannah, phone 07 4688 1413, email rosalie. hannah@derm.qld.gov.au.

WA TO RUN INTRODUCTION TO IRRIGATION COURSE A new course being run in WA later in the year is a 2-day Introduction to Irrigation course. The course has been developed to help in the education and training of newcomers to the irrigation industry. IAL will be assessing the course with a view to introducing it more widely for people who don’t have a background in irrigation. The presenter is Trevor Guest, a previous IAL Board director who has more than 30 years experience in the irrigation industry. He will take participants through the principles of irrigation. Topics the course will cover include: the irrigation industry; government agencies; standards, terms, units and formulas; water resources; irrigation efficiency; soil, water, plant relationship; irrigation systems; management and maintenance. Locations are Bunbury July 2011; Perth August 2011 and Geraldton September 2011. To register contact Tracy Martin, phone 08 9474 9089 or email tracy.martin@irrigation.org.au

GETTING THE BEST OUT OF CENTRE PIVOTS AND LATERAL MOVES While centre pivot and lateral move systems have significant potential to apply irrigation water efficiently, it’s an open secret in the industry that many machines perform inadequately, partly as a result of poor installation, maintenance and operation. A workshop developed by Growcom and the Queensland Department of Education, Economic Development and Innovation (DEEDI) is designed for irrigators and farm managers who are considering buying or who have already bought centre pivot and lateral move irrigation systems and want to know more about them. The aim of the workshop is to help people ensure that their systems are operating efficiently. In the last couple of years, Growcom have run the workshops around Queensland, as well as interstate. According to Scott Wallace from Growcom and who presents the workshop, it is invaluable for all irrigators looking to or who have already invested in centre pivots or lateral moves.

Irrigator Andrew Mullins (l) with Scott Wallace, presenter of the centre pivot and lateral move workshop that was held in March in Gatton. The training is designed to help irrigators understand design aspects and crop requirements which are critical decisions in buying these systems. “Irrigator comments from previous workshops are all positive, with several irrigators hurrying home to change design aspects of machines they have recently ordered,” said Scott. Growcom also offers a service where it assesses machines.“We continue to find issues with performance of both new and old machines. Through this training we are able to raise awareness to both irrigator and supplier in the hope that

these will be minimised, although this is yet to be seen,” explained Scott. As a way of making sure newly installed machines are installed and working properly, Growcom recommends to irrigators that when they are commissioning a system, a percentage of payment be withheld subject to an independent audit assessment. “Only when the system meets or exceeds specification should the final payment be made,” said Scott. Topics covered in the workshop include general characteristics of the equipment, planning considerations, systems performance, design considerations, sprinkler packages, practical issues and fertigation and moisture monitoring equipment. It also looks at planning and design issues for people considering buying systems; skills needed to calculate the costs of operating overhead systems compared to furrow, drip, gun; how to calculate water requirements of crops and measure performance of systems; maintenance information from experienced users; and how to achieve more effective management of water and more efficient crop production.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

TRAINING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

IAL NEWS

DERM PROGRAM ENCOURAGES IAL CERTIFICATION While it got off to a bit of a slow start, a partnership between IAL and the Queensland Department of Environment and Resource Management (DERM) under the Healthy HeadWaters Program is starting to gather pace as irrigation professionals see the benefit for them. The first phase of the $115 million Healthy HeadWaters Program commits to irrigation planning and on-farm infrastructure in the Queensland section of the Murray-Darling Basin. It will help irrigators invest in more efficient irrigation systems and technologies that reduce water loss, deliver longterm economic benefits, and return a share of water savings to the basin’s rivers, wetlands and floodplains. Under the program, DERM requires consultants working on its Water Use Efficiency Project to be Certified Irrigation Agronomists (CIAg) and Certified Irrigation Designers (CID). Acting CEO Trevor LeBreton said that this is in recognition of IAL’s certification program. “What IAL and DERM have agreed is that DERM will provide funding for individuals who want to obtain IAL certifications as Irrigation Agronomist, Irrigation Designer, Irrigation Manager, Irrigation Operator, Irrigation Contractor and Irrigation Installer. “This is a great opportunity for members in the area to get their certification and become involved in the Healthy HeadWaters Program,” said Trevor. Presentations about the program and how irrigation professionals can get involved were held in Toowoomba and Goondiwindi in March.

Rosie Hannah from Queensland Department of Environment and Resource Management discussing the aims of the Healthy HeadWaters Program at a meeting with irrigation professionals at Toowoomba in March.

As a result of the Healthy HeadWaters presentation, a number of participants have followed up and registered their interest in being involved. Pictured (l to r) are Russell Anderton (Water Dynamics, Toowoomba); Mark Quayle (IAL industry development officer); Evan Peffer (Evan’s Rural Contracting); Wayne Browne (Queensland Water Engineering); and Rob Welke (Tallemenco Pty Ltd), who attended the Toowoomba presentation. If you are interested in finding out more contact Rosie Hannah, email HHWUE@derm.qld.gov.au, phone 07 4688 1185.

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IAL NEWS IAL PRESENTS RESPONSE TO BASIN PLAN In March this year, IAL Chairman, Peter Toome, and acting CEO, Trevor LeBreton, were among a host of irrigation industry representatives who travelled to Canberra to make their submissions to the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Regional Australia. The committee, which is chaired by independent Member of the House of Representatives, Tony Windsor, is examining the impact of the MurrayDarling Basin plan on regional Australia, in particular, its socio-economic impact. Peter and Trevor emphasised that IAL was not representing irrigators. They explained that the association serviced the whole value chain making up the industry - from researchers to manufacturers, designers, retailers and installers - and that its mission was to provide technology and practices that support sustainable irrigation through these sectors. This perspective was a different one for the committee and prompted one of its members, Sid Sidebottom, MP for Braddon in north-west Tasmania, to say that he found the IAL submission “very informative” and that it raised a number of issues he had not considered before. One of the issues Peter and Trevor took up was that of taking a whole-ofindustry approach when looking at water management. This involves all sectors in the solution, from researchers being supported to continue the high quality research Australia is renowned for, to manufacturers providing innovative products, to the service sector working with irrigators to install and operate irrigation systems to best practice.

This prompted the committee to ask whether there were “league tables” on irrigation areas and what would be considered “bad” irrigation practice. Peter and Trevor made the point that it isn’t possible to develop league tables, rather all areas have great examples of good practice, but it will also be possible to find poor practice, e.g. over irrigation, salinisation and leaching of nutrients into groundwater. In this context Peter queried whether spending on on-farm infrastructure is the best way of delivering water savings. There is a huge body of R&D that hasn’t been fully taken up by irrigators, and Peter suggested that we should be concentrating on helping them take up some of this information. “It may be better to invest an amount of money on farm advisers, on agronomists and consultants, who then are embedded and work in those local communities, and take growers through the process of modernisation. If that means infrastructure spending on that farm, then it would be better to have that on-farm infrastructure spending justified and paid for by the farmer who is going to get the end benefit, in the full knowledge that that spend achieves a good outcome,” he explained. Another issue taken up with the committee was that of metering. Peter made the point that the metering reform process was now running about 18 months behind schedule. The key issue is a delay with accrediting testing laboratories that can test flow meters for non urban applications in line with the new meter standards. This, in turn, has resulted in delays for manufacturers looking to have meters approved under the standard, and is exacerbated by the fact that, under current rules, only test reports that are completed in Australia are accepted. The committee is due to report back to Parliament by the end of May.

Terms of Reference The standing committee is to report on the socio-economic impact of the proposed Murray-Darling Basin Authority's 'Guide to the Proposed Basin Plan' (the Proposed Basin Plan) on regional communities, with particular reference to: • The direct and indirect impact of the Proposed Basin Plan on regional communities, including agricultural industries, local business activity and community wellbeing • Options for water-saving measures or water return on a region-byregion basis with consideration given to an analysis of actual usage versus licence entitlement over the preceding fifteen years • The role of governments, the agricultural industry and the research sector in developing and delivering infrastructure and technologies aimed at supporting water efficiency within the MurrayDarling Basin. The committee will also consider community views on: • Measures to increase water efficiency and reduce consumption and their relative cost effectiveness • Opportunities for economic growth and diversification within regional communities • Previous relevant reform and structural adjustment programs and the impact on communities and regions. This will include consultation with local government, Regional Development Australia, community groups and individual stakeholders to better understand the local and community issues raised by the proposed basin plan.

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IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

IAL NEWS

YOU’RE INVITED COME TO LAUNCESTON AND EXPLORE NEW HORIZONS IN IRRIGATION It’s been 17 years since the then IAA held its regional conference in Tasmania. That was a great event and we are looking to repeat that success in August. It’s an exciting time to come and look at what is happening with irrigation in Tasmania. The Federal and state governments have invested significant funds into irrigation efficiency projects, and four significant projects are now being built and there are others in the final stages of planning and approval. Not only do these projects feature the latest in irrigation technology from supply to the farm, but planners have had to ensure that they deliver across the triple bottom line. Many of those involved in planning and delivering these projects will be at the conference and are keen to share their experiences and learnings with delegates. This is a rare opportunity - one IAL is encouraging members and industry participants to take advantage of - to hear keynote speakers such as John Lord, chair of the Tasmanian Irrigation Development Board and director of the RuralCo

board, as well as presenters from around Australia and New Zealand. The exhibition will also have a distinct Tasmanian flavour and will showcase the capabilities being used in the Tasmanian development. The conference isn’t stopping as Tasmania for new horizons and fresh ideas about irrigation. As part of an exciting program there will be presenters from around Australia and New Zealand. The program has been designed to appeal to all sectors of the irrigation industry and will cover a diverse range of irrigation and water management topics from catchments to irrigation schemes and onto farms. We will hear from leading practitioners, researchers, engineers, policy and catchment management presenters over the two days of both seminar and workshop formats. The conference will end with our very own Q&A session which proved so popular in Sydney. This year will see the introduction of audience voting to get even greater participation. IAL board chair, Peter Toome, and conference organising committee chair,

Chris Thompson, particularly encourage people who are new to the irrigation industry to attend. The conference and expo offer a great opportunity to come along and see for yourself, not just the new technologies and practices under development, but how Irrigation Australia unites the diverse range of people, professions, companies and topics which make up the irrigation industry. The event also provides an opportunity to meet and exchange ideas with your peers in the industry. If experiences of past attendees are repeated, you will be more than amply rewarded by the experience.

Conference program The program has an exciting mix of plenary keynote speakers to start each day, up to four specialist streams each day covering a broad range of topics, an interactive poster session, and an enjoyable, interactive Q&A session. In addition to the conference there will be an exhibition with a Tasmanian flavour, a networking program and optional field trips.

Program themes. New Horizons, Fresh Ideas sessions will have a mix of practitioner/industry and research papers and case studies across the themes of: • industry outlook • greenfield development – opportunities and challenges • sustainable irrigation - environmental, social and economic assessment • irrigation and catchment management • modernising and managing water delivery systems • energy and water – co-generation • surface - groundwater connections and implications • water accounting – measuring to manage • metering • advances in automation technology • increasing crop water productivity • precision irrigation • extension – it’s all about the people! • improved irrigation profitability case studies • developments in irrigation training • urban irrigation • rainwater harvesting • advances in turf irrigation • alternative water sources

Information To find out more about the conference and exhibition, how to register and accommodation options, go to website http://online.saneevent.com.au/ ial2011/

YOUR IAL BOARD MEMBERS Chairman Peter Toome Adcon Telemetry Australia Pty Ltd PROSPECT SA 5082 P (08) 8342-5343 M 0438 813 678 E p.toome@adcon.at Deputy Chairman Tom Vanderbyl SunWater Limited BRISBANE QLD 4002 P (07) 3120-0105 M 0411 066 793 E tom.vanderbyl@sunwater. com.au Scott Barber State Water Corporation DUBBO NSW 2830 P (02) 6841-2052 M 0428 245 485 E scott.barber@statewater.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

MY VIEW On a recent trip to Far North Queensland, I caught up over a cup of coffee with IAL member Fabian Gallo, from Hydrotech Monitoring. Fabian started his career in irrigation working on the Queensland Rural Water Use Effficiency Project through BSES and Growcom, and moved on to start his own business in 2005. He is an enthusiastic supporter of IAL and has some firm views about how the association could improve its services and value to members. Hydrotech Monitoring is based in Atherton in Far North Queensland, and Fabian’s views in part come from his close involvement with growers of a huge diversity of horticultural and agricultural crops – from sugarcane to bananas, coffee, mangoes and more. Certification is one of the things that IAL does that needs to be reassessed, according to Fabian, who is a certified irrigation agronomist. He has no doubt that the program itself is a valuable one, but it needs to be better promoted to irrigators and other clients so that more people are aware of it. “Certification should mean something,” he said. “This means it should be promoted and behind it should be a standard of performance and a code of conduct.”

com.au Ann-Maree Boland RM Consulting Group CAMBERWELL VIC 3124 P (03) 9882-2670 M 0427 679 042 E anne-mareeb@rmcg.com.au

E vcostelow@typac.com.au Ian Moorehouse Goulburn-Murray Water TATURA VIC 3616 P (03) 5833-5515 M 0409 438 323 E ianm@g-mwater.com.au

Colin Campbell Hydro Plan Pty Ltd BENTLEY WA 6983 P (08) 9470-2233 M 0412 513 886 E cjc@hydroplan.com.au

Karen Murday Department of Natural Resources & Water BRISBANE QLD 4001 P (07) 3247-4405 M 0414 607 716 E karen.murday@nrw.qld.gov.au

Simon Cowland-Cooper Broadwater Consultants LABRADOR QLD 4215 P (07) 5591 5353 M 0415 733 431 E simon@simoncooperassoc.com.au Vern Costelow Water Dynamics PACKENHAM VIC 3810 P (03) 9874-6655 M 0417 356 694

Peter Smith Department of Primary Industries TAMWORTH NSW 2340 P (02) 6763-1262 M 0411 128 437 E peter.smith@industry.nsw. gov.au

Fabian added that while a code of conduct is a good thing, it would only work if it is enforced and its costs “weren’t unreasonable”. Another important aspect of certification he identified is that it should combine recognition of theoretical and practical knowledge based on experience. “It’s no good someone having theoretical knowledge but being useless in the field. It’s important for the industry that certified professionals dealing with irrigators have the knowledge and experience to be able to make sound recommendations on equipment and technology. “If IAL could do these things it would quickly increase the value and standing of certification. People would choose a certified professional because they would know there is something behind the certification,” he explained. Another area IAL could work on is information. While the journal has good information in it, he believes it suffers from the fact that too few irrigators know that it is published. A couple of suggestions he made, which we will be looking at, were being able to make single articles available to people like Fabian who want to reproduce them for their clients, and making complementary copies of the journal available through outlets such as member retailers. Fabian realises that IAL members need to be proactive too and that making more people aware of its services isn’t just up to the staff in head office and the industry development officers. He is keen to help rejuvenate the Far North Queensland regional committee and has been talking with other members about getting some activities going and “waking up the north”. With Fabian’s energy and commitment to the industry and the association and support from other members in the north, it looks like irrigators and other members in FNQ can look forward to a lot more activity in future.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

IAL NEWS

Every System Integrated.

IRRIGATION INFO LET THE IAL WEBSITE SEARCH FOR YOU If you are looking for irrigation information then the best place to start is at the Irrigation Essentials webpage, on the IAL website. Irrigation Essentials was initiated by the Cotton Research Development Corporation (CRDC ) and the National Programme for Sustainable Irrigation (NPSI ) to preserve the valuable information from the Irrigation Futures CRC which was wound up last year, as well as research information generated since 1993 through NPSI and its predecessors, the National Program for Irrigation Research and Development and the National Irrigation Research Fund. In recognition of the IAL’s standing as a source of knowledge and information about irrigation, it was decided to house this work on its website through a page called Irrigation Essentials. According to Adrian Davis managing director at FarmPlus Info, the company that has worked to aggregrate the information, the portal, which is up and running now, is a world first.

“It incorporates state-of-the-art search technologies that help you to quickly find any information you require on irrigation. And because the page has been hand-built to include only information of direct relevance to the irrigation industry, unlike a search engine, it won’t give 95,000 hits of dubious benefit,” he explained. As well as information from the CRCIF, the page will search hundreds of other irrigation sites nationally through an easy-to-use knowledge portal. This means that users can find information to do with irrigation and water management quickly and easily. It also contains information about irrigation research, product and supply information, as well as information about events and local activities. “To access this world of irrigation information, you simply type your query into the search box and Irrigation Essentials finds your information within seconds. “And you don’t have to worry about whether the information is up to date. Irrigation Essentials is constantly updated.

It connects straight through to the web and trawls selected sites daily to find new updates to access, so the latest information on any one topic is always available,” said Adrian. To access Irrigation Essentials, go to the RESOURCES tab on the IAL website (www.irrigation.org.au) and choose the Irrigation Essentials Search Engine option on the dropdown menu. Then you just enter your search term and it does the work for you.

The Irrigation Essentials web portal on the IAL website puts an end to trawling through site after site to find that crucial bit of irrigation information. Now it’s just a keystroke away. Enter your search term and the engine does all the work for you.

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IRRIGATION INSIGHTS

IRRIGATION INSIGHTS IRRIGATION RESEARCH SECURES A PRODUCTIVE FUTURE Collaborative irrigation research has already strengthened the nation’s rural base in economic as well as sustainability terms and is now seen as vital for securing Australia’s food and fibre production capacity for the future. Horticulture Australia Limited, along with a number of other rural research and development corporations (including those serving sugar, cotton and grains), is a partner in the National Program for Sustainable Irrigation. Being part of the collaborative effort means irrigated horticultural enterprises can benefit from knowledge and experience gained by other industries. A project in SA’s Riverland and the Sunraysia district, which straddles the River Murray and takes in major irrigation areas of Victoria and NSW, is showing how horticultural businesses can survive and prosper. The project is an extension of a drought response and water restriction initiative of the SA Government which started four years ago with an initial focus on grapes and citrus. In the last two years HAL has extended the scope of the work and included other crops like almonds and avocados. The work involves two key elements. The first is based on trial sites with technologies that generate data that will provide valuable information about the effects of restricted irrigation and the critical points at which a perennial crop can be productive, decline temporarily or pass the point at which production can be recovered. Both short- and longterm stresses brought about by limited water are being examined. The second aspect of the work has a human dimension. It considers real life circumstances and aspirations. It acknowledges different approaches taken to the future, with some participants anxious to leave irrigated production and others keen to adjust and find a more positive future. About 300 sites and 100 properties in the Riverland and Sunraysia are involved in providing information on a voluntary basis.

Learning to do with less water Mark Skewes, Loxton-based SARDI scientist and a key figure in the drought response research team, identified different behaviours based on water

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

availability. Several years ago when water allocations first began to be controlled there was a tendency for allowances to be relatively high at the start of the “irrigation season”, which may have been followed by tighter controls later. Recently the first announcements of restrictions have been more conservative. “There has been a learning experience from government-controlled allocations based on dam storages in major catchments, with growers knowing they must have a water budget that considers critical periods for adequate moisture like flowering and fruitset,” he said. “Part of the learning has been observation of the yield, quality and economic effects of distributing less water. “This has been demonstrated at individual and enterprise level. For example, producers with a mix of crops have learnt to how best allocate available water to grapes, stonefruit, almonds or citrus. Those with all grapes have had to consider which varieties and at which time water is best applied and whether ‘mothballing’ of some patches makes sense. “At an individual crop level we have seen large scale almond enterprises decide, from experience, that it is false economy to restrict water below adequate levels, leading to a commitment to purchase water each year if necessary. “For some grape growers, on the other hand, low and uncertain prices have tended to make growers reluctant to spend a lot on purchasing water,” Mark explained.

Understanding irrigator decisions Growers involved in the second part of the project are providing valuable information about intentions and also benefit from the sharing of information through workshops and field days. The first, research, component has gained from the unusually wet spring and summer in 2010-11. It has meant not only full or near full restoration of allocations but also the infiltration of fresh water through rainfall. Data collection sites are now able to paint a picture of recovery after a long period of drought and water restrictions. The average annual rainfall in the Riverland, for instance, is 250 mm and yet there were two 100 mm events just a couple of weeks apart in December 2010-January 2011. Of course, growers see unusual events for what they are and know that the future will continue to have a series of very dry years.

They do not see the dryness necessarily as a disadvantage. It means lower disease incidence (and lower operating costs as a result) than can be expected in wetter regions. And irrigation provides scope for controlling the development of crops (e.g. citrus generally requires 1000 mm, so gets most water-driven growth from irrigation). Growers would just like to see a better balance and more years with adequate moisture.

Citrus grower makes changes for the better One grower who accepts dry phases will continue yet has a positive outlook is Bill Ruediger of Loxton. He is using the best available research information, a close eye on market prospects for different citrus varieties and systems technology like Primary Industries and Resources SA’s IRES (Irrigation Recording and Evaluation System) package for recording and planning aspects of irrigation. In addition to daily management of irrigation, IRES can reveal opportunities for improving efficiency and calculate yields per megalitre applied. The sharing arrangements for supply connection to his property between Berri and Loxton do not make drip irrigation possible at present, which would have been his favoured method. But his low level sprinklers do not wet the entire block, as with old sprinkler methods, restricting application to a 1.9 m radius from citrus trees. This cuts the surface area for evaporation and directs limited water supplies closer to the rootzone. Other measures he has taken with the advent of water restrictions have included reducing the size of some trees and reworking others.

Researcher Mark Skewes (l), and grower Bill Ruediger see value in irrigation research and good planning for dry times.

These Valencia orange trees have been reduced in size but are giving better returns. “Cutting back the volume of old trees by as much as 70%, reducing them to almost skeletons, meant no crop for one season and even after three years they are not back into full production,” Bill said. “But it means better use of limited water, reduction in the amount of wind rub on fruit that would have occurred on trees with a lot of dead wood brought about by lack of water, overall better quality of fruit and easier and lower cost harvesting. “Importantly, we are getting better returns for our fruit.” Also improving water use and production efficiency has been his decision to buy a mulcher for the cut wood, enabling a layer of evaporation-reducing material to be spread around trees. He is satisfied cutting back the size of trees has been better than the other options of allowing large, old trees to suffer under restricted irrigation, producing small and often poor quality fruit; or the slower process of pulling out trees and replanting. Topworking other trees to replacement varieties has been partly motivated by market demand and the benefits of extending the production period (among varieties topworked are Hutton late navels and Afourer mandarins). There was also an immediate reduction in water demand because the effective leaf area was smaller at a time of severe restrictions.

Topworking on the Ruediger orchard. Orange trees have been converted to production of a popular mandarin variety. Radical cutting back of tree volume or topworking is always most successful when trees are reasonably healthy, which means timing of decisions is important. Mark Skewes said the irrigation research plus recording and sharing of grower experiences will help decision making for the short and long term. Not everyone will follow the same path, for various reasons, but information and communication will inform those decisions.

More information For more information about this and other irrigation research visit the NPSI website www.npsi.com.au.

BUSINESS FEATURE

BUSINESS OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY – BEING PROACTIVE IS THE KEY Ben Urry, Lawyer, Kemp Strang Occupational health and safety laws are not a new concept with the states and territories having laws dealing with safety in the workplace for many years. However, with the spotlight increasingly on what happens at the workplace and with the national ‘harmonisation’ of occupational health and safety laws soon to be implemented, now is the time to ensure that you are doing all you can do to comply with your obligations. While this recommendation applies generally, it is especially relevant for agriculture, which is one of the worst industries in Australia for injuries and fatalities.

Harmonisation process On 1 July 2009 Safe Work Australia was established by the Federal Government to facilitate the harmonisation of OH&S laws across Australia. The aim of harmonisation is to reduce regulatory burden and create a “seamless” national economy by overcoming the myriad of different provisions which vary from state to state (and arguably hamper crossjurisdiction businesses). To date, the Workplace Relations Ministers Council (WRMC) has approved the Model Work Health and Safety Act (WHSA) and released the draft model Work Health and Safety Regulations (WHSR) and priority model Codes of Practice for public comment (public comment closed on 4 April 2011). Provided all goes to plan, it is expected that all states except WA will adopt the model laws from 1 January 2012. To date, some of the key elements of the WHSA include: • The primary duty of care has been widened so that people (individuals, partnerships or corporations) conducting a business or undertaking must ensure, so far as it is reasonably practicable, the health and safety of workers and other people, e.g. customers, contractors and visitors. • Potential penalties range up to $3 million for corporations and $600,000 and/or five years gaol for individuals (a significant increase on current standards). In addition, penalties for breaches of the WHSR range up to $30,000, with the potential for the

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

final laws to increase this amount to $60,000 for corporations. • An officer [as that term is defined in section 9 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)] of a body has a separate and independent duty to exercise due diligence to ensure that body complies with any duty or obligation it has under the WHSA. Importantly, this definition would include people who make, or participate in making, decisions that affect the whole, or a substantial part, of the business of the corporation or entity, e.g. managerial employees. Due diligence has been defined in the WHSA for the first time as including taking reasonable steps: • To acquire and keep up-to-date knowledge of work health and safety matters. • To gain an understanding of the nature of the operations of the business or undertaking of the person conducting the business or undertaking and generally of the hazards and risks associated with those operations. • To ensure that the person conducting the business or undertaking has available appropriate resources and processes to eliminate or minimise risks to health and safety from work carried out as part of the conduct of the business or undertaking. • To ensure that the person conducting the business or undertaking has appropriate processes for receiving and considering information about incidents, hazards and risks and responding in a timely way to that information. • To ensure that the person conducting the business or undertaking has, and implements, processes for complying with any duty or obligation of the person conducting the business or undertaking under the WHSA. • To verify the provision and use of the resources and processes referred to in the preceding three points.

What can be done? Although policies and procedures are the key, OH&S is an area that can’t simply be put in a drawer and forgotten. There needs to be constant review and updating to ensure that the employer and/or individual is doing everything

they can to ensure compliance with the high standards set down in law. So what can be done to prepare for the harmonised laws while still maintaining compliance with current laws?

Wherever your workplace is and whatever equipment you are working with it is important to get your OH&S spot on. And there is added impetus to ensure that you are doing all you can do to comply with your obligations with the national ‘harmonisation’ of occupational health and safety laws soon to be implemented. Develop clear OH&S policies and procedures. These should not just be paper systems but instead safety systems that are “alive”. Make your systems fluid enough to grow, develop and respond to changing conditions and circumstances. As an example, the safety of children and visitors to farms should be addressed in these policies, even where these people are only visiting a home on the farm. A working farm is a workplace. Injuries to visitors on their way to or from a home on the property, especially where the access roads are also used by farm vehicles, expose people to liability for OH&S breaches. Policies should also address people working alone, especially in remote locations. This is highlighted by a recent $30,000 fine issued to a labour hire company and a $50,000 fine for the host employer where a worker was

injured in an ATV crash and not found until the following day. Unfortunately the worker subsequently died from his injuries. Audit existing OH&S systems. OH&S laws and obligations are constantly evolving and your OH&S systems should evolve to keep pace. Updated risk assessments should be conducted as part of this audit as failure to conduct such assessments may create exposure to fines. This is exemplified in a recent Victorian case where an individual, trading as a business, was fined $60,000 for a breach of OH&S laws and placed on a good behaviour bond for, among other things, failing to conduct a risk assessment on a machine which ultimately cost a teenager his life. Train directors, officers, managers and employees. Failure to provide appropriate information, instruction and training is a major cause of OH&S prosecutions. Ensuring appropriate training may reduce the risk of prosecutions and injuries while improving productivity and profitability. Consult with employees. Speaking with those at the coal face is often the best way to discover where there are OH&S risks. In fact, consultation is a requirement under OH&S laws, both current and harmonised.

Safety statistics • The agriculture, forestry and fishing industry is considered the most hazardous sector for OH&S incidents, even above the construction industry. Although recent figures show that the number of deaths in this industry is falling (though still high, with 326 deaths between 2003 and 2006 according to a report by the Australian Centre for Agricultural Health and Safety titled “Farm Injury Related Deaths in Australia 2003 – 2006”), incidents involving children and tractors/quad bikes still feature heavily in injury and death statistics (of the 326 deaths, about 8.5% involved children under 15 and 8.5% children under 5). • It has been reported that drowning in dams and other water bodies is the main cause of child related fatalities on farms, not only for children of workers on the properties but also visitors’ children. • In 2007-08 alone there were 12,610 accepted workers’ compensation claims in the retail industry. • In 2009 a golf club was fined $44,000 after an untrained worker partially amputated their foot in a ride-on mower accident. With simple measures available to be put in place in many cases to prevent accidents and fatalities, inaction is no excuse and can have drastic consequences, both emotionally and financially. Reporting processes. The best OH&S systems in the world are useless without user friendly ways of reporting near misses and injuries. Ensure any processes also include follow up and signoff obligations. Seek advice. OH&S may seem like a daunting area, so if you need help, ask for it. When an injury or accident occurs obviously ensure the injured person receives immediate medical treatment and follow your emergency procedure.

However, as a priority you should also call your legal adviser as soon as practicable to establish legal professional privilege and to discuss where to go from there. Although injuries and accidents can never be totally prevented in all circumstances, by implementing the above you would be well on your way to reduce OH&S liability and ensuring a safe and happy workplace for workers and visitors.

THE BIG ISSUE

CONTRACTORS CORNER

WATER EFFICIENCY IN AUSTRALIA AT THE CROSSROADS

CP/LM DESIGN - BALANCE ENERGY AND CAPITAL COSTS

Edgar Johnson, engineer, GHD

Pat Daley, Daley’s Water Service Pty Ltd, Clifton, Queensland

In this article Edgar Johnson raises the prospect of Australia’s policy makers losing the motivation to continue with water reform after a summer of floods in eastern and southern Australia. Edgar explains why this is a big issue for the industry. Widespread flooding across Australia has the potential to push back hard fought water efficiency gains made over the past decade. It’s of concern to think that the devastating floods may have shifted the water management mindset in Australia and effectively masked what still is a critical water challenge for communities across the entire nation. The danger is that the floods have taken people’s attention (including decision makers in communities) off the critical water supply issues we still face and will increasingly face in the future. Australia’s water management challenges are alive and well. Supply solutions such as desalination plants are just one part of the puzzle. Just as important is what lies beneath the surface.

Out of sight shouldn’t mean out of mind When above ground is flooded it can be easy to dismiss the enormous amounts of water lost underground. However, leakage from pipes due to high water pressures and ageing assets continue to impact heavily both in terms of economic and environmental cost. The challenges can stem from a range of issues including pipeline pressure, water leakage management, measurement discrepancies and metering inefficiency. If these are addressed adequately, we can go a long way towards waterproofing our cities and regional areas - saving money and helping to protect the environment. If left unchecked, we may never know the full extent of our water crisis until it’s too late.

Demand management Water demand management is the adoption and implementation of a strategy by a water authority or consumer to influence water demand and use. Water demand management can include public education, water

CONTRACTORS CORNER

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

rationing and restrictions, plumbing codes and bylaws, metering, tariff structures, pressure reduction, leak detection and repair, and industrial and commercial re-use/recycling. While water rationing and restrictions are reactive measures and indicative of a breakdown in water management, the other measures previously mentioned can be implemented as part of proactive water efficiency strategies. These proactive efficiency measures have the following advantages: • they provide additional water from existing resources to meet demand increases due to economic growth and for environmental purposes • they are generally more cost effective in augmenting water supply than developing new sources • it is ethically and environmentally responsible to reduce water wastage • when incorporating pressure management as part of network systems operations, leakage from the network is reduced and the life of the water asset is extended. Measuring the quantities of water in various parts of the water supply and distribution system is an important component in this approach.

Some time ago I was asked to evaluate a design that had been done to install a centre pivot for sugar cane production in north Queensland. For this article, I will call the grower “Bob”.

There can be both real loss (such as leakage) and apparent water loss (due to flow measurement errors) within a water supply and distribution system. In well managed systems, most real losses are caused by background leaks, long running reported leaks and reported leaks where repair has been delayed for a particular reason. Australian authorities implemented numerous water efficiency projects in response to the prolonged drought between 1996 and 2007. These projects provide an opportunity to assess efficiency measures. This requires taking into account the various types of meter measurement errors and their interactions in the determination of water imbalances. However, without adequately investigating how to account for and report the ‘apparent’ losses, they can be incorrectly interpreted as real losses, which can have significant implications now and into the future in terms of water management design and implementation.

Metering efficiencies Water data forms an integral part of the data set required to plan, design, implement, operate and maintain water supply and distribution systems. To efficiently and effectively manage water supply and distribution systems requires the measurement of water volumes supplied into, within and out of a water network. Comparing the volume of water entering a specific discreet area through a large meter, with the volume registered by customer meters, is an initial important step in the management of water demand, losses and wastage. Measurement accuracy, however, remains difficult. It is a vexing issue facing the global water industry and reflects the topic of papers I have presented to the Australian Water Association’s (AWA) water efficiency conference in Melbourne and the International Water Association (IWA) Specialist Conference on Efficient Use and Management of Water in Jordan, both held in March this year.

Risk of diving in head first Any responsible water management strategy needs to work from the ground up by first establishing a true and accurate picture of the current water efficiency and losses. Unless this is done, there is a real risk that the resulting programs and capital works aren’t addressing a key source of the water woes. Errors in or omissions from the water data adversely affect the communication, comprehension and decision-making processes. Ultimately, these data errors will affect decisions about the adequacy or inadequacy of the investments in the associated capital works required to reduce water losses. The real danger is that during a period of flooding, these important details can become lost in the wash.

Information For more information contact Edgar Johnson, at GHD, email edgar.johnson@ ghd.com

Bob’s farm was set up in the late ‘70s to operate 4 ½” soft hose travelling irrigators with 400 m (20 chain) runs with a lane spacing of 80 m. In its day this design was considered very efficient as the emphasis then was on the drill lengths being more efficient for cultivating and harvesting.

System capacity and energy savings Some of the existing farm infrastructure, such as mainline pipe sizes, lengths, material and pumping system, was going to be used with the new system, a centre pivot, and about 10 m of connecting mainline. Bob rang me, concerned about the energy saving that he hoped to achieve by changing systems. He told me about the existing system infrastructure and the water supply. Bob knew there was more to consider with this new equipment but was not sure what. We established that by using the existing mainline his required system capacity could not be achieved at peak demand without irrigating during peak power cost. Bob was not happy about using power at peak cost and was eager to do what was needed to get it right. System capacity is very important and in calculating it we should consider the power tariffs, water availability on controlled systems, mainline delivery systems and pump suitability. Here are some calculated scenarios that had to be considered on this 22 ha block where we established that a 9 mm per day capacity was our target. Case one: using existing system. Bob would need to run his traveller for 18.5 hours a day delivering 30 L/sec for about six weeks at peak demand. With a pump efficiency of 67% BEP, his pumping cost for Off Peak for 462 hours @ $0.12 kWh would be $2,326.81; and for Peak for 315 hours @ $0.22 kWh, $2,908.52. This meant the total cost to irrigate 22 ha would be $5,235.33. Case two: Bob’s new design. Using existing infrastructure and running the pivot for 14 hours per day @ 40 L/sec reduced the pump efficiency well below the BEP (best efficiency point), to 40%. Bob’s pumping cost for Off Peak for 462 hours @ $0.12 kWh would be $2,761.46; for Peak for 126 hours @ $0.22 kWh, $1,380.73. This is a total of $4,142.19 to irrigate the 22 ha. The down side to this is that the application efficiency of the centre pivot has been compromised as it will have a very high instantaneous application rate at the end of the machine, thereby exceeding soil infiltration rates. In some cases you may be able to negotiate with your energy suppler for a low rate between peak and off peak that allows you to run the system longer. Case three: Upgrading the pump system. In this case, the pump system would be upgraded to match the duty with a Constant Use tariff of $0.17 per kWh. The existing pump would be replaced with one that could achieve a high efficiency at the duty point of 75%, in this case, a 100 x 65-200 ISO coupled to a 22 kW motor. Running the pivot for 22 hours per day @25 L/sec, Bob’s pumping cost at the rate of $0.17 per kWh would be reduced to a total of $2,505.42 to irrigate the 22 ha.

(l to r) Pat Daley (Daley’s Water Service), Trevor Parker (Northern Gulf Resource Management Group) and Fabian Gallo (Hydrotech Monitoring) evaluating the in-field performance of an existing system to determine both energy and water use efficiency. Photo – Merv Jessen As well, the application efficiency of the centre pivot has been improved as it can now match soil infiltration rates. When it was explained to Bob that if he applied 7 ML/ha over the 22 ha (what he believed had been applied with the old system), this would prove to be a good investment.

The bottom line Case three results in a saving of about $3,234 a year in energy costs alone. Bob said the pump cost him around $6,800 by the time the power panel was upgraded for the smaller motor. Not bad over a typical life expectancy of 15 years - around $450 a year capital investment to save $3,234. Bob said that he can’t believe that this little pump will run that centre pivot after using the old 75 HP (55 kW) pump so long. “I suppose my power supplier won’t send a Christmas card this year!” he said. The next step is to fine tune Bob’s irrigation scheduling. Based on early data water savings of 1 ML/ha are possible. This will also save on energy, which will also save on energy cost. Bob says he wants to start working on another pivot install this year but has been financially drained by bad weather conditions and has mixed feelings about the value of this year’s harvest.

This tawny frogmouth owl was snapped by Merv Jessen during a pump evaluation on a property outside Mareeba in Far North Queensland. The owl sat quietly by observing the whole operation.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

SMART APPROVED WATERMARK

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SAWM has developed a rain tank calculator as an iphone application. The app helps calculate how much water can be collected from the roof and how much town water can be saved by using this rain water in the garden, laundry and toilets.

EXPERT PANEL MEETS IN JUNE The independent Technical Expert Panel will next meet in June to assess applications to use the Smart WaterMark label. The closing date for submissions is 3 June. For more information including application guidelines and online application form visit www.smartwatermark.info

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IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

PRODUCT OF THE YEAR AWARD Finalists in the Smart WaterMark national Product of the Year Awards recognising Australia’s outstanding water saving products have been announced. The awards were created to recognise innovation in water conservation. The independent Technical Expert Panel selected the finalists from products certified by Smart WaterMark over the last year. Judging by Expert Panel members involved scoring each of the shortlisted products against four criteria: Innovation – is the product an innovative solution to water conservation, and is it the first to market in its category? Design – is the product easy to use, install and well designed? Marketability – what is the price point, affordability and packaging of the product? Sustainability – what is the carbon footprint of the product? As all the products have already been approved by the scheme, water-saving properties are assumed and were not scored. “The awards are an important way to raise the profile of outstanding products designed and proven to saver water. This year we created a new industrial and commercial category to reflect the growing range of products certified to use the Smart WaterMark label,” said Julian. The finalists in the commercial and industrial category are: Geosentinal Washbox; Macaferri’s Eco Rain; Rain Bird’s ESPLX Modular and Mait Industries iNTELLiWEB. The consumer product finalists are ezyGrow, a recycling garden planter and Eco Skim, a self-levelling pool skimmer. “New types of water saving products continue to be certified each year and always raise the bar not only in water saving, but innovation,” Chair of the Expert Panel, Jeremy Cape, said.

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IAA-5/2011

Smart WaterMark has developed iSaveH2O, Australia’s first mobile rain tank calculator, as the latest addition to the successful Every Bucket Counts campaign. The free iPhone application helps you calculate how much water can be collected from the roof and how much town water you can then save using this rain water in the garden, laundry and toilets. iSaveH2O is based on the online rain tank calculator available through the smartwatermark.org website. The app has been designed to be easy to use and will give you a calculation within three minutes.

“Contractors asked if they could use our Every Bucket Counts online rain tank calculator when out on-site, so we created the iSave H2O phone app,” said Smart WaterMark CEO, Julian Gray. Behind the simple-to-use interface is a two gigabite Bureau of Meteorology database including daily rainfall, evaporation and temperature data for the whole of Australia for the last 10 years, cookie-cut to every Australian postcode. This online tool, developed with the Institute for Sustainable Futures, means that rainwater harvesting calculations are both accurate and relevant to your local climate. “We’ve also included a live listing of all Smart WaterMark approvals to give access to information on water saving products when out in the hardware store or garden centre,” said Julian. The live online database contains information on over 240 water saving products and services certified by Smart WaterMark, Australia’s water conservation label. The iSaveH2O app is available for free download from the iTunes store.

AUSTRALIAN DESIGNED FULL FLOW BALL VALVES

STANDARDS

RAISING STANDARDS STANDARDS FOR SENSORS

Important attributes of soil water sensors

Jeremy Cape, CapeAbility Pty Ltd The Spanish delegation to the International Standards Organisation committee, ISO TC23 SC18, has raised the possibility of developing a standard or standards to cover remote sensing equipment used in irrigation. Since Australia is a participating member of SC18 we have the opportunity to put our view on the value of starting work to prepare a standard in this area. There were two main reasons why it was thought that it was worthwhile investigating the development of a standard. Firstly, there was a significant increase in the number and type of remote sensing equipment available to service irrigation and secondly, there has been a large increase in the number of soil sensors, which, it was claimed, could be used for scheduling irrigation.

Is it time for a standard for soil moisture sensors? If it is, what are the elements that should be included? This article provides some suggestions. Photo – Merv Jessen

What equipment might be covered by such a standard?

Are soil water sensors a good starting point?

Real-time control of irrigation systems is now a reality. It is possible to build a system that consists of a control device, which might be a computer or a dedicated controller, connected to a large number of remote sensors. The management of the irrigation system is controlled on the basis of the data collected by the sensors. Sensors are available which can gather data on a very wide range of hydraulic and agronomic parameters, including for example, pressure and flow at various parts of the system, soil data, plant growth data and many different types of environmental data such as solar radiation, temperature and humidity. Many other parameters can also be measured. Given Australia’s recent experience in developing standards for non urban water meters it is reasonable to argue that “remote sensing and sensors” is too large a subject to tackle in a standardisation process. It is perhaps more sensible to try and indentify one or two “priority” pieces of equipment for which standards could be developed. Such an investigation should ask the question whether the development of a standard would lead to users of such equipment being more confident that the equipment will deliver what is claimed, and ultimately having access to more reliable and effective equipment.

Many detailed publications have been written about soil moisture sensors. The National Program for Irrigation Research and Development published one of the first comprehensive reviews of soil water monitoring in 2000, Irrigation Insights Number 1, Soil Water Monitoring, by Phillip Charlesworth. There is a large body of work which describes and characterises the performance of different soil water sensors. An earlier piece of NPIRD funded work published in 1997 and written by me, Development of a value selection method for choosing between alternative soil moisture sensors, also identified the most important attributes to be used when selecting soil water sensors. Even though there is a lot of information available about soil water sensors, it is possible that if equipment was subjected to a series of “standard” tests, users might be in a better position to judge the relative value of the equipment to their enterprise.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

What are standards for? The main reason for a standard is to ensure that equipment complying with a standard is fit for purpose. The standards that apply to pipes used in irrigation are a good example. Someone buying a Class 9 uPVC pipe knows that the pipe has certain characteristics and

• Range. The range of moisture status of which the device can measure. As an example some sensors can measure from soil suctions of -10kPa to -40kPa and others over a greater range. • Accuracy. The ability of the sensor to register a value close to the true value of the soil moisture parameter being measured. • Soil types/spatiality reliability. Ability of the sensor to be used across a wide range of soil types from light sands to heavy clay soils. Related to this is the ability of the sensor to measure over a particular volume of soil. • Frequency of use. Some sensors need to be reset before they can be used again to record soil water characteristics. Other sensors enable sampling of soil water every few minutes or possibly even more often. • Data handling. The ability of the sensor to be read remotely, to store and transmit data is seen as important. • Communication. Some sensors only talk to specific other pieces of equipment while other sensors can communicate with a wide range of devices using mobile and fixed phone lines and wireless technologies.

therefore how they should use such pipe in an irrigation system. Could this be applied to soil water sensors, or any other sensors?

What might a soil water sensor standard look like? There are some key clauses that could be included in a soil water sensor standard. • A description of the device and its method of operation; is it a capacitance probe or a tension measuring device? • A description of the soil water characteristics the sensor is manufactured to measure, e.g. soil tension and conductivity. • Tests that measure the performance of the device under a range of laboratory conditions. Such tests could include a range of soil textures and soil water status.

• Method of collecting and communicating data might be characterised and tested. The text box on page 38 includes a list of all the important characteristics of soil moisture sensors that research has identified as being important. This could provide the framework for developing tests for a standard.

Where to from here? The next ISO SC18 committee will be held in October 2011. If Australia is to make a contribution to this discussion a position paper detailing the views of the Australian industry should be prepared for tabling at that meeting. If you are interested in contributing and being part of the development of such a paper please indicate your interest to Irrigation Australia’s standards committee by contacting Jeremy Cape jeremy@capeability.biz or ph 0410307444.

SMART OPERATION IN NSW STATE WATER PROJECT Seventy-one major dam, weir and regulator sites across regional NSW will have remote operation and monitoring capabilities as a result of the implementation of the first stage of State Water Corporation’s $13.2 million integrated surveillance, monitoring and remote telemetry (iSMART) program. The $3.8 million supervisory control and data access (SCADA) and network telemetry component of iSMART was recently launched at State Water’s Dubbo head office in central NSW. State Water CEO George Warne was given an introduction to the system, and opened a weir at Hay in southwestern NSW using iSMART using a secure wireless internet connection at the Dubbo launch. State Water iSMART Project Manager Andrew Lavelle said the SCADA upgrade would provide the technological foundation for the entire program. “iSMART is jointly funded by the NSW Government, Bureau of Meteorology and Water for Rivers and aims to reduce water losses and improve efficiency of water resource operations and asset management practices,” Andrew said.

IS A DRY SOUTH-WEST WA PERMANENT? The south-west region of WA has experienced a sustained sequence of low annual inflows to major water supply dams over the last 35 years. Until recently, the most common interpretation of this has been based on the existence of one or more sharp changes, with inflows fluctuating around relatively constant levels between these changes. In March this year Dr Bryson Bates from the CSIRO's Climate Adaptation Flagship program revisited this interpretation in the science seminar he gave at the National Water Commission. To understand the mechanisms behind the changes, CSIRO analysed daily precipitation series at multiple sites in the region. The team also analysed time series for several

“Aside from the SCADA upgrade, iSMART also includes new surveillance monitoring systems and upgrades to water delivery control systems such as storage release valves and weir gates.” The development of a more robust and reliable communications infrastructure across the organisation will also eventually eliminate the need for manual operations requiring staff to travel to operate and maintain assets. “With an operating footprint the size of NSW, we needed to develop a centralised, integrated system enabling remote monitoring, operation and control of our assets,” Andrew said. The project includes all of State Water’s operating structures from the Queensland border down to Hume Dam on the Victorian border, and as far west as Menindee Lakes on the Darling River. The application of new SCADA technologies will provide a ‘view anywhere’ strategy for water delivery and asset management which will assist State Water to improve service delivery and become a ‘digital firm’. It will allow near real-time operation of remote and complex control systems, improving water delivery to users and the environment to meet quantity, timing and quality requirements. Resultant water savings can be reassigned to the priorities of other water saving initiatives.

indices of regional atmospheric circulation that may be drivers of regional precipitation. The analysis focused on the winter half-year for the region (May to October) as up to 80% of annual rainfall occurs during this 'season'. When subject to rigorous statistical analysis the precipitation data clearly showed a decline over the last 20 years but there was no unambiguous evidence for the step changes in rainfall that have often been attributed to the data. The analysis of the regional atmospheric data showed a clear link between the reduction in rainfall and a southward shift in the jetstream in southwest Australia. The cause of this shift is not known but the dry spell currently being experienced in southwest Australia looks likely to continue for as long as the jetstream stays in its southward position.

SAGE Automation won the contract to develop the centralised SCADA system. The surveillance monitoring strategic initiative will enable remote monitoring, alarming, logging and trending of surveillance data and will be operational by March 2011 for priority sites. By integrating dam surveillance using telemetry and instrumentation, State Water’s dam safety group can remotely view the dams, monitor each asset and analyse the data in real time. According to Andrew, this will remove routine tasks which can be done with instrumentation and technology make people’s working lives easier, more productive and more satisfying.

Patrick Curley (l) from Sage Automation and Andrew Lavelle from State Water assist State Water CEO George Warne (front) to remotely operate a weir.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

ICID INSIGHTS

goings of members at the Central Office and contains notices of national committees. For instance, the April 2011 News Update contained messages from Iran, India, UK, Cyprus, Thailand, China, Nepal and Japan. As with ICID News, you can download the update from the ICID website.

GETTING THE ICID MESSAGE OUT Willem Vlotman, Vice President ICID and Chairman, Australian National Committee of ICID

Since 1995 the official peer reviewed journal, Irrigation and Drainage, has been important in disseminating the work by members and the scientific community at large. The ICID website, www.icid.org, was first developed in the mid nineties as a means of getting in touch with members and it also plays a vital part in disseminating ICID and scientific information. The functionality of the website is currently being improved to make access easier. Another means of communicating with members around the world is through ICID work bodies, which produce key documents that are published either through the central office in India or through other outlets such as FAO and the World Bank. Below I review some of the dissemination tools in use by ICID and point to certain sections of the ICID website where a wealth of knowledge is kept. You can access this information through the IAL website or directly at www.ICID.org.

Irrigation and Drainage Irrigation and Drainage is ICID’s official journal. Five issues are published each year, plus special issues. It is available electronically and free of charge to registered members of ICID work bodies, who can download full papers, while each ICID member country is entitled to ten hardcopies. The general public can download abstracts and buy a full paper download. Anyone can subscribe, and an annual subscription is US$ 640 plus applicable taxes (details on the ICID website or directly: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/ journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1531-0361). The journal started as the ICID Bulletin in 1952 and became the

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

current peer reviewed journal published by Wiley-Blackwell in 1995. While it is published by Wiley, Irrigation and Drainage is under full editorial responsibility of ICID (through work body: Editorial Board, EB-JOUR). The Journal’s 2010 impact factor is 1.108 up from 0.48 in 2008. What is the impact factor? It is a measure reflecting the average number of citations to articles published in Irrigation and Drainage. It is often used as a proxy for the relative importance of a journal in its field, with journals with higher impact factors deemed to be more important than those with lower ones. In a given year, the impact factor of a journal is the average number of citations received per paper published in that journal during the two preceding years. For example, if a journal has an impact factor of 3 in 2008, then its papers published in 2006 and 2007 received three citations each on average. Unfortunately, I could not trace the impact factors of other journals in the field at this stage and these will be subject of future “ICID Insights”. Irrigation and Drainage is very popular in the international scientific community and articles under review cover publication well into 2012.

ICID news ICID web guide

ICID News is a quarterly newsletter published by ICID head office in New Delhi to inform readers about the achievements of individual members on projects of interest to the ICID community. It contains selected articles from experts in the field of water resources, irrigation, drainage, flood management, besides other news items of interest to irrigation community across the world. It also keeps us up to date with deadlines for submissions to ICID about awards, papers, speakers, etc. It lists upcoming conferences in more detail. You can download the newsletter from the ICID website, www.icid.org/news.html

News update

News Update is published monthly by ICID in New Delhi and contains short messages about comings and

IMPORTANT DATES FOR YOUR DIARY Date

Place and Country

23 - 25 August 2011

Launceston, Tasmania, Special Interest Group meeting ICID-NCA scheduled. For final Australia details see the IAL2011 website. For suggesting topics for discussion contact the IAL office. Email: IAL2011@saneevent. com.au

15 - 23 October 2011

Tehran, Iran

The best place to start to access all information on the ICID website, www.icid.org, is with the panel on the lefthand side on the homepage. This contains links to various parts of the website. If you are a regular visitor, and after you remained on the home page long enough to go through the complete news scroll, I suggest you may want to click on Web Updates to see quickly what other updates have been put on the website since your last visit. Other handy links are “Databases” and “Text Delivery Service”. Databases is a store of historical data about ICID. It archives past conferences, their themes and declarations prepared at the end of conferences reflecting results. It also stores the text of the constitution, ICID

centres, and online educational and informational resources into a centrally managed environment for accessing the information. The software allows aggregating different databases via the Z39.50 server. “Z39.50" refers to the International Standard, ISO 23950: "Information Retrieval (Z39.50): Application Service Definition and Protocol Specification", and to ANSI/NISO Z39.50. The Library of Congress is the maintenance agency and registration authority for both standards, which are technically identical (though with minor editorial differences). Presently, ICID Central Office has established three databases to show the capabilities of this software: ICID Online Library, Library of Science ICID, and Library of Science1 ICID. The ICID Online Library is the main database and the remaining two are dummy prospective databases, which in the future could be used by other organisations. For instance, IAL may wish to consider that the CRC-IF library as well as the Land and Water Australia library could be stored permanently in this system.

Details

62nd IEC meeting of ICID 21st ICID Congress 8th International Micro-Irrigation Congress Deadline for papers. All deadlines have passed but do not hesitate to propose a paper or presentation for one of the work body meetings; even last-minute proposals will generally be entertained by the work body; please contact the chair person of the work body, found at www.icid.org

March 2012

Marseille, France

WWF6 6th World Water Forum www.worldwatercouncil.org/index.php?id=6th_forum_kick-off

24 - 30 June 2012

Adelaide, Australia

63rd IEC meeting of ICID 7th Asian Regional Conference IAL 2012 Conference and Exhibition Deadline for abstracts is November 2011 www.irrigation.org.au or email: IAL2012@saneevent.com.au

October 2013

Antalya, Turkey

64th IEC meeting of ICID 8th Asian Regional Conference E: tucid@dsi.gov.tr

October 2014

Seoul, Korea

65th IEC meeting of ICID 22nd ICID Congress www.icid2014.org

Choose a New Holland irrigation power unit for your farm

Select model the t best su hat your fa its rm

Now is the ideal time to visit your local New Holland dealer and select the appropriate New Holland irrigation power unit for your farm. Four models are available – SE240, S170, S110 and S85. All feature a covered front radiator that is surrounded by a protective shroud – as well as a side-mounted control panel that can easily be removed and remounted to meet your specific requirements – and a special intercooler which increases engine efficiency and saves on fuel consumption. With New Holland easy servicing and maintenance programmes this all translates into lower cost of ownership.

IEC – International Executive Council, annual ICID meeting ICID – International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage, New Delhi India IAL – Irrigation Australia Ltd, Sydney Australia

Visit www.newhollanddealers.com.au for the location of your nearest New Holland Dealer.

CNH8842B

With ICID membership spread all over the world, exchanging information on a regular basis is a continuing challenge. ICID has long relied on its annual meetings, special regional workshops, newsletters and journal and its website to achieve this goal.

by-laws and statistics on irrigated areas in the world. It also provides a link to the Text Delivery Service. Text Delivery Service (TDS) The objective of the TDS is to facilitate exchange of information on irrigation and drainage related literature among all professionals, students and ICID members. The database contains 20,000 references to Irrigation and Drainage literature. The service also includes access to the extensive ICID (hardcopy) library for online searching by keywords, author, ISBN, ISSN, publisher, UDC number, accession number, place of publication, etc. Full texts of papers presented at ICID congresses and conferences, as well as available grey literature have been uploaded under 'ARTICLES'. Where complete documents are available, they can be viewed and downloaded through RESOURCES AVAILABLE link at the end of the search results. If full text is not available online it can be requested via 'REQUEST FOR RESOURCES'. To make the TDS online function user friendly, ICID central office has acquired software that can integrate various libraries/information

AROUND INDUSTRY

WATER MARKET INFO CENTRE ON LINE

AROUND INDUSTRY TORO AUSTRALIA RESTRUCTURES Toro Australia, has announced that it has restructured its operations to further improve service for customers. Toro Australia’s Director, Tim Emery, said the changes consolidated Toro’s various commercial and domestic garden equipment and irrigation operations into two business units. The newly created Water business unit will incorporate professional irrigation products, garden power equipment and home gardening equipment, including the well-known Pope range of home garden products. The new Equipment business unit will market and distribute golf course, sports field and grounds, construction and consumer equipment. Laurence Bingham will manage the new Water business, while Cameron Russell will manage the Equipment business. Tim said the latest changes were part of Toro’s continuous improvement program and would further streamline the Toro business in Australia and provide a better overall service for dealers, suppliers and consumers. “Toro has been growing strongly in recent years and we feel the restructure comes at the right time to help consolidate and expand on this growth. “While our dealers and suppliers will begin to notice the impact of the changes almost immediately, for the end consumer, the changes will become apparent more gradually,” he said.

HYDROPLAN OPENS MELBOURNE OFFICE HydroPlan has opened up in Melbourne to service their growing client base in Victoria. Graham Palmer, who will lead the business, has 20 years of irrigation design and project management experience gained from the key technical roles with Aquafield, Irritech and, more recently, Water Dynamics. One of Graham’s first tasks will be working with HydroPlan’s consultants from Sydney and Adelaide to complete a detailed water management and irrigation plan for the Geelong Botanic Gardens. HydroPlan has helped Melbourne’s Royal Botanic Garden for almost two decades and will be using

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

experienced gained from there and elsewhere in Australia to protect the extremely valuable plant collection. HydroPlan is Australia’s largest firm of irrigation consultants, providing independent design and advisory services to clients. Formed over 25 years ago, HydroPlan also has offices in Perth, Adelaide, Sydney, Brisbane and Beijing. For more information about HydroPlan, go to website http:// hydroplan.com.au. Graham can be contacted at gp@hydroplan.com.au, phone 0418 174 059.

WIA APPOINTS INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT MANAGER The Water Industry Alliance (WIA) has appointed Andy Roberts to the position of industry development manager. Andy was former client and partner manager at water solutions company Optimatics, a world leader in the optimisation of water systems. Before this, he was technical manager for Europe at the company’s overseas office in Oxford. In his new role, Andy will be working closely with the WIA’s 250 member companies to help them get the most value from the services offered by the WIA. “Andy is one of the water industry’s young leaders and reflects the quality of people the sector is attracting,” Chief Executive Officer Joe Flynn said. “He is internationally experienced in cutting edge water technology, social media savvy and encompasses a strong client relationship approach to problem solving.” The WIA is a not-for-profit cluster of 250 water-related companies focused on growing the SA water industry.

POWER EQUIPMENT “BEST OF THE BEST” Power Equipment has won a prestigious business award, being declared the ‘best small business over the past 20 years’ at the Premier Regional Business Awards in Victoria in March. Power Equipment is the authorised Australian distributor for Yanmar diesel engines and JCB industrial diesel engines. The company recently relocated from Scoresby to their own purpose-built premises at Lynbrook as a result of strong and sustained growth. Over the past twenty years the Greater Dandenong Chamber of Commerce has staged the Premier Regional Business Awards. Power Equipment won the award for Best Small Business in 1997. For the twenty year anniversary awards night, the organisers hit upon the concept of a “Best of the Best” theme. This involved a thorough review of all award winners in each category over the past twenty years, and declaring one company as the best in each category. The judging criteria included factors such as honesty, integrity, expertise and passion. Power Equipment was first declared a finalist at the awards, a strong accolade indeed. But when the company name was read out at the gala ball as the winner, the Yanmar group were justifiably ecstatic. In his acceptance speech company MD, Allan Foster, paid tribute to the people who worked in Australia and New Zealand at Power Equipment. “The company is the sum of its people, and without excellent people we wouldn’t have the opportunity of being here tonight,” Allan said.

RAIN BIRD TOP FLIGHT AWARD Congratulations to Ben Chapman, from Water Equipment Technology (WET) in Brisbane, and chairman of the IAL Certification Committee. Ben was presented with a Rain Bird Top Flight Award at the International Golf Show held in Orlando, Florida in February this year. It was in recognition of being the first company to recommend and install the Rain Bird Integrated Control System anywhere in Australia.

The system was installed at the St Lucia Golf Links in Brisbane, which were flooded to a depth of several metres in January this year for some time. As soon as it was clear to do so, the WET team went onto the course to test the irrigation. They found the system to be undamaged and working efficiently, exactly as it was intended to. This was testimony in part to the installers from WET who worked closely with Rain Bird Australia to get all the specifications just right.

In April, Waterfind announced the release of its new Water Market Information Centre. In an Australian first, the system brings together water market prices, allocations, dam storage and meteorological information into one system. “The new Water Market Information Centre will provide growers with easy access to the extensive data that our market analysts have been using for years” stated CEO of Waterfind, Tom Rooney. Information in the new system includes prices from over 111,000 trades as well as 4 million rainfall points, 400,000 dam storage points and over 2,200 allocation announcements. “Information on market behaviour is essential to help further mature Australia’s water markets. We know that irrigators’ confidence in the market grows as pricing information in

particular becomes more transparent,” said Tom. Not only does the system bring together previously disparate data sets like price and climate, it automatically tailors information to a grower’s individual needs. This means that, for instance, if an irrigator has a licence in Deniliquin, they will see allocations relevant to Deniliquin. The system was designed in this way because customers wanted market information relevant to their area. The system also enables clients to overlay data sets and identify relationships between market influences and pricing. Irrigators will be able to see the clear relationship between low temporary prices and increased dam storages, information will help them quickly develop strategic water and risk management plans, enabling them to better plan their future buying or selling needs.

STATE ROUNDUP NATIONAL WATER COMMISSION URGES ACTION ON URBAN WATER The Chair of the National Water Commission Chloe Munro has called for Australian governments to consider new directions to reinvigorate the way we manage water in our cities and towns. She made the call when releasing the commission’s latest report, Urban water in Australia: future directions “Even though drought has eased in many parts of the country, Australia's urban water industry still faces significant challenges including climate variability, population growth, rising costs, and ageing network infrastructure,” said Chloe. 'Now is the time for Australia's governments to step back from direct intervention in urban water and give the industry incentives and freedom to innovate. According to the commission, incentives are needed to encourage utilities to invest not only in securing water supply, but also in more innovative, cost-effective and fitfor-purpose services. This includes distribution networks and the treatment of water, wastewater and stormwater. It also says that Australia needs to reach an understanding about the water industry's role in creating more liveable

cities, and who pays for these broader community and environmental benefits. Another area for identified by the commission as being ripe for urgent reform is ensuring acceptable standards of water and sewerage services for customers in some regional areas. The Urban water in Australia: future directions report draws upon the experience and observations of more than 50 water experts in Australia and internationally.

TASMANIAN IRRIGATION SCHEME GETS GREEN LIGHT In April, Federal Environment Minister Tony Burke has given environmental approval for an $88 million irrigation scheme in Tasmania's Midlands. The Midlands Irrigation Scheme the biggest ever irrigation project in the state and will deliver water to about 500 farms in the Midlands area. Before the scheme could be given the green light, a strategic assessment had to be made, under national environmental law. Included is building a new off-river 6000 ML dam located at Miford Dam on cleared farmland to be connected to the Lower South Esk River by new pipeline. The Tasmanian Irrigation Development Board will begin detailed planning of the scheme which will deliver up to 47,500 ML of water with about 70,000 ha of irrigable land.

The next step is for farmers to sign up to the project. The scheme is being promoted as providing water surety for farmers to enable them to look at new opportunities, particularly in horticulture.

WATER PIPE UPGRADE FOR GASCOYNE In March this year the WA Government signed a contract to replace the Gascoyne Irrigation Pipeline. Under the contract, between Gascoyne Water Co-operative Limited (GWCL) and Pipe Fusions Australia (PFA), a new pipeline will be built to deliver water to service intensive agriculture development in the Carnarvon horticulture district. The WA Government sees the new pipeline as being a catalyst for increased production leading to major economic and social benefits to the Gascoyne region. The Carnarvon horticultural area is important to fruit and vegetable production in WA; it generates $81 million of produce a year. The pipeline will help provide reliable water supplies to growers. It will be able to provide irrigation across the entire 1,200 ha Carnarvon horticulture precinct and be capable of servicing a proposed 400 ha expansion. Works were expected to begin in May.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

LEGAL FEATURE

THE NSW WATER INDUSTRY COMPETITION ACT 2006

Where do you find Franklin Electric?

COMPETITIVE STRIDES IN THE WATER INDUSTRY Jenni Mattila, Mattila Lawyers The Water Industry Competition Act 2006 (NSW) (WICA) has dynamically changed the landscape of the water industry in NSW. Efficiency gains and greater competition have been key outcomes. This article explores its inception and issues arising since implementation. Background The enactment of WICA in 2006 was a culmination of two issues: • Sydney’s demand for water had continually exceeded supply since the late 1990s and made it an imperative to seek new commercial sources of water • the desire for private involvement in the water market. Before WICA, a clear framework was not in place for private sector involvement in the water industry in NSW.

requirements, as well as certain types of infrastructure, including: • those located on land on which one dwelling or dual occupancy is located and is solely used for the purpose of supplying water or sewerage services to the dwelling house or the dual occupancy • water infrastructure used to supply potable water or provide sewerage services to public water utilities or network licence holders • certain water industry infrastructure servicing land managed by Aboriginal corporations • any work that is solely used for stormwater drainage purposes. For a complete listing of the exemptions, refer to Schedule 3 of the WICA Regulations.

How do I apply for a licence? Why get involved? For many private entities, a WICA licence may provide a new revenue stream, such as recycled water or the provision of water infrastructure.

What is WICA about? WICA opens up the doors to competition in the NSW water industry by: • establishing a licensing regime for private sector entities • facilitating third party access to certain monopoly infrastructure • establishing a binding disputes resolution mechanism for sewer mining disputes.

Licensing regime - do I need a Licence? You will only need a licence if you are a non-government-owned corporation that wishes to: 1. supply water or provide sewerage services by means of water industry infrastructure (retail supplier’s licence) or 2. build, maintain or operate the water infrastructure (network operator’s licence). An entity may operate under both licences at the same time.

As of February 2011, fourteen licences had been issued under WICA, with a further 40 private projects applying for licensing in the next two years. Relevant licence application forms are available on the IPART website http:// www.ipart.nsw.gov.au/water/privatesector-licensing/application-forms.asp. The application fee is currently $2,500 for each application. IPART will conduct a high-level assessment of each application and consider submissions from the public. It will then provide a report to the NSW Minister for Finance and Services, including recommendations, and any suggested conditions. The minister will then make a decision on the application. The minister will only grant a licence if he or she is satisfied that the applicant: • has the technical, financial and organisational capacity to carry out the activities of the licence • can carry out those activities in a manner which does not present a risk to public health • has made arrangements for insurance • (in the case of an application for the supply of water) will obtain enough of water for supply from a source that is not a public water utility.

Who is exempt from needing a licence?

What else do I need to know?

Public entities and other statutory bodies are exempt from the licensing

For a retail supplier’s licence, a retail management plan is be required. The

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

plan must outline the events which could adversely affect the licensee’s ability to supply water and proposed measures to address those events. For a network operator’s licence the following plans are required: 1. Water quality plan consistent with the Australian Drinking and Water Guidelines;1 2. Infrastructure operating plan; and 3. Sewerage management plan. Licensees also will be subject to ongoing compliance audits by IPART. An audit will assess the licensee’s compliance with the licence conditions and its overall regulatory compliance.

Orange groves.

Golf courses.

Post-implementation issues Some entities sought to avoid the licensing requirement, by setting up elaborate structures designed to fall within the exemptions (which were primarily ‘location-based’ rather than ‘activity based’). WICA was amended to address the problems. Schemes which are not covered by the new exemptions have until 17 June 2012 to submit a new application to IPART. WICA currently lacks adequate “retailer of last resort” provisions. Sufficient retailer of last resort provisions are necessary to address issues where an entity steps in to supply water or provide sewerage services in instances where a licensed retail supplier terminates their services.

Dairy farms.

Conclusion WICA has undoubtedly changed the landscape of the water sector in NSW by opening the doors to competition and facilitating the development of new infrastructure. WICA appears to have generally been successful but it appears that some refinements are required. It remains to be seen whether the recent changes to WICA and the statutory review by NSW Office of Water later this year will result in increased private sector participation in the NSW water industry.

Centre pivot irrigation.

Submersible borehole pumps and motors

Now more than ever, you can find Franklin products in places you never thought to look. Above and below ground, Franklin has water systems products for all sorts of agricultural and irrigation applications. When it comes to water, you’ll find us everywhere you look.

Australian drinking water guidelines 6, 2004 / Australian Government National Health and Medical Research Council, Natural Resource Management Ministerial Council 1

FE469

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NEW PRODUCTS

FEATURE

ARDMONA GROWERS AIM HIGH WITH NEW ADVANCED PRODUCTION SYSTEM

NEW PRODUCTS Toro Australia introduces the Wheelmaster

Sam Birrell, Netafim Concern over the future direction of the Australian fruit industry has prompted Turnbull Bros Orchards Pty Ltd to move towards a new high production, high quality system for its Goulburn Valley enterprise based at Ardmona in Victoria. The Turnbull family is targeting consistent 80 t/ha yields and minimum 80% class 1 pack-out with their Cripps Pink and Rosy Glow apples, an enormous jump from current 55 t/ha yields and 60% pack-out. Brothers Alex, Philip and Chris are the fifth generation to own the orchard, which was established in 1892. They took over the orchard from their parents, Ross and Daphne. They grow apples, pears, peaches, cherries and nectarines, with 130 ha of the 220 ha property currently under orchard production, excluding young trees. Alex said speculation over the future of the industry, including the impact of imports as well as labour costs and water supply concerns, had led to the production change at the orchard to ensure a profitable business for the future. “We are battling imports that are produced where labour costs are very low compared to Australia. We need to supply a higher quality product with higher yields, and without raising production costs, to compete and be profitable,’’ Alex said. “There is a focus in the fresh industry that lower tonnages produce better quality, but we need challenge that.’’ A research trip by Alex and Chris to Washington State in the US, a region noted for its excellent orchard technologies and good water supply, was influential in the family’s new direction.

Irrigation system upgrade a key to high production and quality One of the keys to their move to the higher production, high quality system has been investment in a specialist Netafim drip irrigation system that is automatically controlled by the company’s NMC SingleNet unit. This also uses Netafim’s FertiKit fertiliser injection system for total nutrient application control.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

Sam Birrell (l) and Alex Turnbull look over the fertiliser injection system used for total nutrient application control on the Turnbull’s property. Before this the family was applying nutrients through their irrigation system and had previously broadcast fertilisers. Alex said four new production blocks, comprising 15 ha, were now being fed through the injection system and drip irrigation, while the drip system also had been installed on two existing blocks. An existing mini jet system is watering other areas. “We are changing over to drip irrigation. We will go drip with any new plantings and wherever we have the ability to do it,’’ explained Alex. “We like the low output drip line in terms of getting water use efficiencies. We use a pulse irrigation method to reduce soil compaction, improve capillary wetting and to achieve a continued supply of water to the tree – less water, more often. “We also plan to have overhead cooling and netting to improve fruit colour.’’ Alex estimates that they are saving 45 to 50% of their usual water application with the new system on the four new blocks. Together with the use of straw mulch, he says they are saving about 70%. And there are time savings too. They used to water for 46 hours a week, whereas with the new system this has been cut to 14 hours a week. He said the automation unit had improved irrigation management. “There is less involved in terms of management by an irrigator. Instead of paying someone to turn taps on and off and switch channels, they are

spending more time on crucial things,’’ explained Alex. The system waters from Saturday through to Friday night with low rates. The whole schedule is entered on the Friday afternoon and then the only checking necessary is to ensure it is turned on and the fertiliser is going in. The filters are checked every two weeks and the system is flushed four times a year. Systems that offer this new level of irrigation and nutrition control are being adopted by more growers. Fertiliser injection is crucial for growing high quality fruit, and drip irrigation works well in all systems to reduce water requirements and better control moisture in the profile. This is one reason most wine grapes are now irrigated by systems similar to this. Flow meters and pressure sensors can also be added to the systems.

Getting more out of fertiliser applications While the Turnbulls are not necessarily saving money on fertiliser, they recognise they are getting much better use out of the fertiliser applied. “We are using much more of the fertiliser that we are paying for. With broadcasting you know you are losing a significant amount,’’ Alex said. “In previous times we fertilised three times a year by dumping it in the irrigation pits and then sucking it through a pump in five seconds without knowing that it was getting spread through the

Sam and Alex among some of the young apple trees on one of the new production blocks established last winter at Turnbull Bros Orchards. The family is targeting 1 m of vertical growth with the trees over the growing season as part of their new high production, high quality system. They have passed 85 cm growth on average for the year already.

block evenly. We are now fertigating five days out of a week. “We are now pulsing so often – every four hours while it is hot – and so we are able to spread the fertiliser application out over a series of waterings. And we are putting it right where we need it around the root zone.” The brothers are applying 25-35 kg of fertiliser a week spread over ten applications of water. They are also watering when they are not fertigating. Alex said they are fertilising a lot because they are “pushing the hell out of the trees”, but they will slow this down. “We hope to see with this efficient system that we will be able to reduce the amount of fertiliser we need to use. It is about applying less, more often – applying a little bit all the time to optimise fruit size and colour, but being careful not to over-invigorate the trees.’’ With the young trees on the four new production blocks established last winter, the Turnbulls are targeting 1 metre of vertical growth over the growing season. While consultants told them this was too much, they have already passed 85 cm of growth on average for the year already. Tree density on the new blocks also has been increased, equating to 3000 trees/ha. Looking to the future, Alex said this was still too low and by spacing trees 1.2 m apart on 4 m row spacings, he could increase this to 4160 trees/ha.

Toro Australia has introduced a new generation of mini diggers to its Compact Utility Loader range. The Wheelmaster 320-D diesel and 323 petrol make do-it-yourself maintenance easier by allowing operators to efficiently dig, haul, plant and build in just about every environment and condition. Sally Wade, Toro Australia’s NSW, ACT and WA sales manager, said the Wheelmaster has been specifically designed for tough Australian conditions and was the most reliable compact utility loader on the market. Each wheel is individually controlled by 4-paw hydraulic traction to ensure effortless zero-turn maneuverability, regardless of whether the terrain is wet or dry. “The Wheelmaster has been built to deliver a high power-to-weight ratio, meaning that more can be achieved in less time. And with a single 15 L fuel tank, a fuel efficient liquid-cooled Kubota engine and sophisticated

internal hydraulic system, the mini diggers match or exceed the lifting capacity of its rivals,” said Sally. The Wheelmaster is also versatile. It has forty-five different attachments that can easily be interchanged to perform a wide variety of functions, ranging from a high speed trencher, leveler, soil cultivator to cement mixer. These have been designed to operate with the Wheelmaster and are not generic bolt-ons. It is suitable for operators of all experience levels. The non-skid platform, foam rubber covered hand grips and rubber valve control knobs ensure that the operator is comfortable over long periods of time. Sally said Toro provides customers with expert advice, customer care, essential technical support, servicing, maintenance and parts. An option to extend protection past the warranty period of two years or 1000 operating hours to five years and 5000 hours was also available as part of the Toro Protection Plus package. The Wheelmaster is available at Toro suppliers Australia wide.

Genuine Case IH irrigation power units deliver fuel efficiency and dependability The range of Case IH irrigation power units, now available from Case IH dealers throughout Australia, is designed, tested and manufactured by CNH, an original equipment manufacturer (OEM). Four models are available – PX240, P170, P110 and P85. All models feature the special intercooler which increases engine efficiency and saves on fuel consumption. A covered front radiator is surrounded by a protective shroud and the side-mounted control panel can easily be removed and re-mounted to meet farmer’s specific requirements. Each unit is painted with a factoryproven dry-coat finish which helps to protect against fading and damage from the harsh elements. And every Case IH irrigation power unit is designed, balanced and factory-tested before shipment - to give unparalleled fuel efficiency and dependability; ensuring optimum quality and performance.

All Case IH dealers in Australia provide the after-sales service and genuine Case IH parts necessary to maintain the unit in peak condition. All this guarantees lower cost of ownership over the life of each Case IH irrigation power unit. For information and the location of your nearest dealer go to website www. caseih.com.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

NEW PRODUCTS

Sentek Technologies announces new release of EnviroSCAN™ probe Sentek has just announced that it has refined its EnviroSCAN probe, encompassing a ground-breaking new top cap design. The new EnviroSCAN Flat Cap probe uses the same core sensing technology developed by Sentek and in commercial use since 1991. This sensing technology has yielded enormous benefits to global agricultural production through water savings, energy savings and improved yields and quality of production. The new EnviroSCAN Probe cap design allows for the probe to be fully buried so the cap sits flush with the surface. This will allow these same financial and environmental benefits achieved to date to be transferred to a range of new markets where management of water and salinity is critical, e.g. golf courses, playing fields, council landscapes, parks and gardens. The top cap design provides: • a discrete installation, placing the probe out of the way of traffic, animals and machinery • a completely water tight installation • full probe serviceability

Partners wanted for innovative audit service Aquatek Irrigation understands the importance of understanding irrigation systems to ensure that they are operating at an optimum level. There are four key elements that managers need to know about the irrigation systems: geographical layout, physical components, system performance and the irrigated environment. Collecting this information enables an audit to be carried out on the design, the installation layout, the operational performance and current state of the irrigation assets, especially the sprinklers. To gather this information Aquatek Irrigation uses accurate Global Positioning Systems (GPS) data collection systems. One of the key performance indicators we determine is the Application Variation Standard (AVS). Our patent pending Application Variation Standard (AVS) visually shows the application variation across an entire system which is of a much higher standard than the current IA best practice method of collecting water in catch cans across a representative station of the irrigation system. This example shows a 45 degree elevated view of two separate

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

• measurement of both soil water and salinity. Soil water/salinity sensors can be placed at multiple depths down the probe at 10 cm increments to measure at up to sixteen different depth levels on the one probe. This gives a complete picture of soil water

irrigation systems in 3D. The blue blocks are the sprinklers; the numbers are the calculated application rate. The colours and the peaks show the range of applications across the site. All the measurable variables are considered and processed through a set of algorithms to achieve the AVS. In this instance the bottom system was recommended to be replaced and the top system upgraded with new sprinklers and nozzles.

Commercial services Our current commercial services that all incorporate GPS “geo-tagging” are: • Precision Irrigation Engineering. Design and specifying or turnkey irrigation projects along with project management. We have integrated GPS positioning systems in all our engineering projects to ensure the irrigation system is built with the appropriate benchmarks and standards. The DGPS process

and salinity movement in the profile, with data being recorded on a nearcontinuous basis. Data from the EnviroSCAN Flat Cap can be accessed using a range of data loggers and telemetry devices, with a data retrieval solution available for virtually every situation. Information is viewed in Sentek’s IrriMAX software. Sentek’s co-founder Peter Buss says, “EnviroSCAN Flat Cap is a logical and innovative extension to the EnviroSCAN product range. The probe is non-obtrusive, but can be still installed agronomically correctly using the proven, direct soil fit installation technique. At the same time it presents a product that continues to be in-field serviceable and sensor reconfigurable for a multitude of exciting new markets including turf and dryland.” The EnviroSCAN Flat Cap is available through Sentek’s global network of trained distributors. For information contact Sentek Marketing Manager Susie Green on +61 8 8366 1900 or go to website www.sentek.com.au

streamlines the layout, captures variations or prevents them from occurring and produces geographic referenced documentation for “as constructed” along with creating a Net Present Value (NPV) for the system. • Irrigation System Evaluations. We have two current spatial products. One is WISE, which collects data about: controller location, current schedule/s, station (zone) information, some sprinkler locations may be corrected if spacing looks to be a problem, water meter or pump location, and comments - breaks, install issues, etc. The other is WISE Plus, which collects all the data collected by WISE, as well as information about the condition of every lawn pop-up sprinkler, location by location, and other ancillary items. These service are commercial ready, scalable, proven (over 7 years internal R&D) and provide a mechanism for professional servicing and alternate market channelling for quality products. We are currently looking for collaborative partners to work with to identify and implement the necessary change projects which are required across our industry. If you are interested in becoming an agent or distributor of these services or for further information please do not hesitate to contact Darren Ferber on 1 300 887 448 or 0408 087698 or email dferber@aquatekirrigation.com.au

Revolutionary K-Line irrigation system now available from Philmac The revolutionary K-Line Irrigation system is now available right across Australia thanks to a new distribution partnership with Philmac. As specialists in PE pipe connections, Philmac provides a complete range of compression fittings, ball valves and threaded fittings for use with an irrigation water management system that can now be complemented by the K-Line pod irrigation system. “The K-Line partnership represents a great fit for the Philmac brand, and we’re excited about being able to take this uniquely designed product to the next level in the Australian market,” Philmac General Manager Group Marketing Jason Mitchell said.

Mainly designed to irrigate pasture, K-Line features include: • simple installation so the system can be up and running in no time • high performance polypropylene pod design means that the pod is lightweight, easy to move and durable to suit a range of farm conditions • patented pod design ensures that the sprinkler offers full spray while being protected if the pod overturns during transportation adding an additional level of security and ease of use • uses highly efficient sprinkler methods enabling a lower rate of application which maximises absorption rates (also minimises run-off and means better water use) • lower running costs as a result of using lower running pressures, lower pressure pipes and lower pump requirements • more cost effective and easier to install than traditional irrigation methods, such as pivot irrigation

• can work around existing structures and layouts on the farm meaning lower capital expenditure with the use of a specifically designed flexible PE hose system. The K Line can be towed using simple farm machinery at a reasonable speed across a range of farm terrains. Additionally, the patented Pod design ensures a completely protected sprinkler that still allows full spray operation while protecting the sprinkler, keeping it upright and stopping external interference with the sprinkler action. The K-Line product range includes sprinklers, tapping saddles, tough protecting housing (pod) and specific flexible pipe made from PE which joins the pods together. To find out more call 1800 755 899 to speak to your local Philmac representative or visit website www.philmac.com.au

Continuous flow monitoring for irrigation channels SonTek Argonaut-SW Using SonTek’s proven pulsed acoustic Doppler

Features include:

technology, the Argonaut-SW is the superior

•

Unique “all-in-one” design

choice for accurate flow measurements in natural

•

Provides 10 cells of velocity profiling

streams, man-made channels, and pipes. Because

•

Internal data recorder

it is a “fast sampling” velocity profiler, the SW

•

Real time output (RS 232/422,

accounts for variations in the velocity field to make

SDI-12, Modbus, analogue)

the most accurate flow measurements possible.

•

External flow display

Typically mounted on the bottom of a channel or

•

Total volume output

pipe, the SW combines velocity and water level

•

Measures under ice

data with user-supplied channel geometry to compute total flow in real time. Its unique “all-in-one” transducer and electronics design features an internal recorder and requires no top-side processing.

1300-735-295 | www.thermofisher.com.au | InfoIndustrialAU@thermofisher.com

SonTek Argonaut-SW For more information on the Argonaut-SW please contact us on 1300-735-295 or email InfoIndustrialAU@thermofisher.com

NEW PRODUCTS

All the right connections with ICN’s water directory Industry Capability Network (ICN) has launched its new government-funded online tool specifically for the water sector. ICN is a not-for-profit organisation that helps Australian and New Zealand suppliers find new business both here and overseas. Over the past 25 years, ICN has helped local companies win more than $15 billion worth of contracts. The new ICN Water Directory is an online connection point for the Australian water industry, bringing together suppliers and procurement managers in one central location. Suppliers can list their company free of charge and buyers can search to find suppliers that exactly match their needs. ICN’s National Sector Manager Water, Kevin Payne said, ‘We know that Australian water suppliers have unique and innovative capabilities to offer the water sector and we aim to showcase these through our online directory’. Once listed, companies can search for new business and register expressions of interest against projects. Project managers can search for suppliers based on capabilities and list their current or upcoming projects. Through the Water Directory, ICN captures the key strengths and capabilities of organisations in the industry, which means suppliers can be better matched with opportunities and projects. ICN works to put suppliers in touch with projects through the ICN Water Directory in two ways. First, where a project team engages ICN to identify suppliers that are suitable, suppliers then can register their interest against that project on ICN Water Directory. Second, when ICN identifies an opportunity, it features the project on ICN Water Directory, allowing the supplier to deal directly with the contact listed. ‘We want to identify and build effective partnerships and we do this through our knowledge of dependable suppliers and by giving independent procurement advice’, Kevin said. ICN also has a national network of more than 100 technical consultants working behind the scenes who have the knowledge and expertise to identify local suppliers and link then with potential opportunities and projects. How can ICN Water Directory work for your company? When you register you can browse for new business opportunities and register your expression of interest against projects and work packages. With ICN Water Directory you can: • list your business free of charge • receive notification when ICN adds new projects and work packages • browse for local and overseas projects and associated work packages • register your company’s interest against specific work packages and projects. To register on the ICN Water Directory go to www.water.org. au or call your local ICN consultant on 1300 961 139. For more information about ICN go to www.icn.org.au.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

NEW PRODUCTS

Valmont Irrigation Announces the TouchPro™ Control Panel Valmont Irrigation has just introduced the TouchPro control panel with touch technology. The Valley TouchPro is designed to simplify control panel programming, while giving growers the option to personalise main screen controls to display irrigation information important to their operations. “The TouchPro control panel has naturally evolved from the current computerised panels,” said John Rasmus, Valmont irrigation product manager. The TouchPro has improved control features, including a graphical view of the center pivot, endgun positions, and wide boundary irrigation positions. The new interface helps growers make water management decisions more quickly and confidently. The TouchPro is compatible with the Valley BaseStation2-SM and Tracker™ product line. It is currently only available in English. The control panel is designed to handle harsh agricultural elements, including extreme temperatures, high humidity, and transient voltage requirements. These design specifications will provide growers with uninterrupted performance and years of trouble-free operation. For information go to website www.valleyirrigation.com

Grundfos launches PM Rain Grundfos Pumps Pty Ltd has just announced the launch of the Grundfos PM Rain. The Grundfos PM Rain is an interconnect device that allows your customers to use their harvested rainwater for toilet, laundry and garden applications, with the added benefit of mains water backup. The PM Rain can be used in conjunction with the Grundfos JP and JP Rain range of pressure pumps or the submersible Grundfos SB pump, making it an ideal solution for above- and below-ground tanks. The pump itself is only activated when rainwater is being drawn from the tank. It does not operate when the device has switched to a mains water source. The PM Rain automatically starts when a demand is sensed, e.g. a toilet flush or when a washing machine is filled, and will switch over to mains water when the tank is empty or in the case of an electrical failure. The PM Rain saves more than just potable water. The ‘floatless’ operating system allows for speedy installation with no holes to drill or cable to conduit. It is the easiest and fastest system of its type to install, helping make your business more efficient and profitable. The PM Rain comes complete features such as automatic changeover and water source indication lights, leakage detection (to prevent rapid cycling) and is fully certified to comply to the Australian and New Zealand standard for products in contact with drinking water - ATS/NZ 5200.030 and AS/NZS 4020. To further reduce the use of precious mains water the incoming pressure is reduced to 200k Pa. For information go to website www.grundfos.com

Toro Australia adds to its trencher range Toro Australia has added a new model with more capabilities to its revolutionary Trenchmaster range. The TRX26 Trenchmaster significantly simplifies the process of trenching for landscaping, irrigation, and electrical and plumbing needs, and can be used by just about anyone. Toro Australia’s National Sales Manager for Equipment, Robert Rein, said the TRX26 Trenchmaster maintained Toro’s reputation for producing top quality commercial equipment that is reliable, easy to use and good value. “The powerful Kawasaki twin-cylinder engine delivers plenty of power to bore easily into the most demanding ground conditions and dig up to 48 x 8 inch wide utility trenches with virtually no physical effort required from the operator,” Robert said. “People who purchase or hire the TRX26 Trenchmaster will be impressed with its efficiency, which enables them to save time, handle more jobs and, if working as a professional contractor, subsequently enhance profits.” The new model’s simple design provides ultimate operational performance. It features tracks instead of wheels, providing a larger footprint that evenly spreads the weight of the machine, offering increased traction and maneuverability. This makes it ideal for stable operation on the side of hills, in rugged terrain, loose sand and even mud, and operators are unlikely to damage existing turf and trench side walls. The risks of tyre ruts and flat tyres are also eliminated.

Toro’s exclusive easy-to-use control system enables people of all capabilities to operate the TRX26 Trenchmaster. Toro’s patented TX-Style control system has two userfriendly levers to operate all trenching and boom depth adjustments. As a result, operators experience less jerking motions than other trenchers with handle bar steering. A pivoting trencher head also provides the machine with a higher ground clearance to make moving in difficult terrain much easier. The TRX26 Trenchmaster comes with a two-year, 1500 hour commercial warranty. This can be extended to five years and 5000 hours by purchasing ‘Toro Protection Plus’. Toro’s extensive dealer and sales network is also able to offer customers finance for the initial purchase and service if

THE WORLD’S PREMIER PIVOT SPRINKLER Nelson’s R3000 Rotator® pivot sprinkler operates with a proven, patented drive principle and simplicity of design with only one moving part. You can expect the highest levels of reliability and long wear life under tough field conditions. The R3000 delivers greater throw radius, higher uniformity, reduced wind drift and evaporative loss, colour-coded nozzles, and a versatile modular design. For the full range of benefits, visit www.nelsonirrigation.com.au or call Nelson Australia on 1300 856 368.

NEW PRODUCTS

Land owners enjoy benefits of the digital water age Households and businesses using large volumes of water are beginning to discover the cost saving benefits of digital water technology to treat lime scale and rust in pipes and appliances. The German made Calmat and Vulcan systems emit high frequency electrical impulses which change the crystal formation of the calcium slowly sanitising the piping system. The resulting gentle reduction of scale deposits in the system helps to maximise the working life of machinery and equipment and provide increased savings through the more efficient use of energy for heating water. Installing the Calmat has proved a major bonus for a rural land owner in WA who was desperate to find a solution to the high costs of maintenance on his irrigation system. Rob Branson lives on 24 ha in Dunsborough, 260 km south of Perth and uses a lot of water for his stock and to irrigate his property and gardens. He installed a Calmat digital water system in October last year and within one month particles of scale and rust were beginning to dissolve and the irrigation system became virtually maintenance free. “Before installing a Calmat I was replacing the irrigation

filters every eight weeks. The filters have remained clean for the past six months. This unit has saved me an enormous amount of time, energy and money,” he said. The Calmat and Vulcan digital water systems, which are completely maintenance free, make use of the natural process of electrophoresis. The electronic impulses cause the particles to lose their ability to stick to surfaces without the use of chemicals and salt. The units, which come in a range of sizes, have been designed to provide solutions for all kinds of applications in light and heavy industries, agriculture, horticulture and domestic situations. The Calmat Plus has a maximum flow rate of up to 160 L a minute through an 80 mm diameter pipe, while the Vulcan starts at 1000 L an hour on a 25 mm diameter pipe extending to 500 cubic metres an hour through a 500 mm pipe. The Calmat and Vulcan systems are attached by winding the cables around the pipe and then simply connecting the plug. They are suitable for all pipe material including iron, copper, plastic, PVC and compound pipes. For more information contact Ken White at Southern’s Water Technology, a member of Irrigear Stores, phone 08 9721 3577 or email ken.white@southernswater.com.au

New Holland irrigation power units are a total package New Holland irrigation power units are a total package, offering a combination of quality, value, availability and warranty. They are designed, tested and manufactured by CNH, an original equipment manufacturer (OEM). Four models are available - SE240, S170, S110 and S85. All models feature a covered front radiator that is surrounded by a protective shroud, as well as a sidemounted control panel that can easily be removed and re-mounted to meet farmer’s specific requirements.

IRRIGATION AUSTRALIA

ISO 2858 Standard

ADVERTISERS INDEX Campbell Scientific Case IH

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Comdain Group

Cromford Group

Cummins South Pacific

Franklin Electric

Guyco 37 Hunter Industries

Industry Capable Network

Irrigear Stores ITT Fluid Technology John Deere Water

END SUCTION PUMPS From the Most Trusted Name in Australia’s Water Industry for 140 years APPLICATIONS Mining - Irrigation - Rural -Building Services Industry - Construction - Fire Protection Water Transfer - Municipal Water - Processing

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MAIT Industries

Nelson Irrigation

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ENGINEERED PUMPING SOLUTIONS

From bareshaft pumps to fully integrated turnkey water management solutions, Southern Cross engineers design and manufacture the most reliable End Suction Pumps to meet any pumping requirement or specification.

Philmac OBC Rainbird 11 Rubicon Systems

Thermo Fisher Scientific

Tyco Pumping Systems

IBC

Waterwell Solutions

Welling Crossley

A special intercooler increases engine efficiency and saves on fuel consumption. All New Holland irrigation power units are painted with a factory-proven dry-coat finish to protect against fading and damage from the harsh elements. They are designed, balanced and factory-tested before shipment to give unparalleled fuel efficiency and dependability. This process ensures optimum quality and performance. The national New Holland dealer network provides the after sales service and genuine New Holland spare parts necessary to maintain the units.

Go to website www.newholland.com for the location of your nearest New Holland dealer.

PUMP SPECIFICATIONS ● 32mm to 250mm discharge ● Flow rates to 250 litres per second ● Heads to 160 metres ● Extensive material selection including Cast Iron, Zinc Free Bronze, Stainless Steel and many more ● Versatile mounting options ● Mechanical seal or packed gland shaft sealing ● Sealed for life or regreasable bearings ● Optional wear rings ● Optional pump coatings

For further details call... 131 PUMP... or your Local Dealer

3 G

ME T R I C ™

Any way you look at it, 3G Metric is the perfect fit. ™

New nut material makes the action of tightening easier, and minimises nut damage when tightening with a wrench.

No loose components. Collet and seal remain captive in the body when the nut is removed.

3G Metric™ incorporates all the beneﬁts of Slide & Tighten® technology with 100% positive feedback as the nut is tightened. Compact, robust PN16 ﬁtting.

wdm22957

Philmac Rural, Metric & 3G Metric™ connection components are all interchangeable.

Connect with the Next Generation. To find out more about our new 3G Metric fitting, call Philmac customer service on 1800 755 899.

Easy disassembly. The ﬁtting has been designed so the collet is released as the nut is backed off.