Water management

The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development supports dryland and irrigated industries by providing information on best practice water management in dryland and irrigated farming systems. This includes information on rainfall-runoff capture, storage and use, and management systems to prevent land degradation.

Support and knowledge on practices for irrigation as well as planning and design tools, to support farmers manage water in a changing climate, are being continually updated. Our work complements the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation’s Rural Water Planning Program, which offers incentive schemes, grants, planning and technical services, emergency water arrangements, and information on best practice water supply improvements.

Articles

  • This page and attached reports are part of the assessments for expansion of Ord River Irrigation in Western Australia’s Kimberley region: the 6000 hectares of red loamy soils – the Cockatoo Sands –

  • Tropical agriculture on the Ord River in Western Australia's Kimberley region began in 1941.

  • The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) is planning for the future of irrigated agriculture development in the Pilbara

  • Irrigation design and management affects performance, yield and quality of crops.  Irrigation design determines the efficiency and effectiveness of water use, and therefore influences the profitabi

  • IrrigateWA is an irrigation app that will assist with the implementation of correct irrigation scheduling for a variety of crops, regions and soil types in Western Australia.

  • Water movement patterns on the soil surface may not be a good guide to what is happening below the surface and can lead to inefficient irrigation.