Planning the Irrigation Leader Tour of New Zealand
Mel Brooks presents information to the Irrigation Leader tour group.
I
rrigation Leader’s recent tour of New Zealand was planned in part by Mel Brooks, the chief executive officer (CEO) of MHV Water, New Zealand’s largest irrigation scheme. MHV Water provides water to over 200 farmer-shareholders on the fertile Canterbury Plains area of New Zealand’s South Island. In this interview, Mel explains how she selected tour locations that would showcase New Zealand’s irrigation industry, culture, and people. Irrigation Leader: Please tell us about yourself and your position at MHV Water. Mel Brooks: I’m the CEO of MHV Water Limited, a farmer-owned irrigation district in the Mid Canterbury region of New Zealand that delivers water to over 130,000 acres of highly productive land. We are the largest irrigation scheme in New Zealand, and as well as owning the infrastructure that delivers the water, we manage environmental compliance for our farmers. Irrigation Leader: You helped design the itinerary for Irrigation Leader’s recent tour of the South Island of New Zealand. Can you tell us how you chose locations for the tour?
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Irrigation Leader: Were you looking for things that would be different from what U.S. irrigators would be used to, somewhat similar, or a mix of the two? Mel Brooks: The tour aimed to show a breadth of different practices and to highlight some of the different ways in which we operate. Often, even where there are similarities, there are also slightly different ways of doing things because of the way our farm systems or infrastructure have evolved. The aim for was for those differences to stimulate discussion and perhaps provide inspiration for a change that the tour participants could make in their own businesses. Irrigation Leader: What should our readers know about irrigation in New Zealand? Mel Brooks: New Zealand receives over 492 million acrefeet of rainfall a year, but because of where and when that water falls, our geography, and the nature of our soils, the majority of the country remains exposed to drought. In order to provide resilience for high-value crops, pasture, horticulture, viticulture, and farming in general, we are incredibly reliant on irrigation.
PHOTO COURTESY OF IRRIGATION LEADER.
Mel Brooks: A couple of years ago, I attended an Irrigation NZ tour of Colorado and Nebraska, which was supported by Irrigation Leader, and really enjoyed seeing a variety of irrigation infrastructure and farm systems, learning about research and innovation, and especially meeting the people, so I wanted to ensure that those components were part of the tour. The hardest part of planning a tour of this nature is prioritizing what to see, because there is so much and there are only so many hours in the day. Finding the balance of farm
systems, infrastructure, and current innovations to stimulate discussion; limiting the hours on the bus in any given day; and building in time to make connections with New Zealanders throughout the trip were critical. Kiwis (New Zealanders) are also really proud of our country, so I obviously needed to include a chance to discover the beauty of New Zealand and see some spots that are a little farther off the beaten track.
