Water check - improving irrigation efficiencies in the Queensland sugar industry

The first stage of the Water Check project was completed in June 1997. One of the main aims of the irrigation extension project was to improve the water use efficiency (WUE) of 25% of Queensland cane growers using irrigation by one tonne of cane per megalitre (ML). This was achieved by using grower groups in on-farm demonstrations and trials, especially in the Burdekin and Bundaberg districts. Action-learning principles were used with growers involved at all levels of the project. In Bundaberg during the Water Check project, there was an increase in WUE over the whole district of 0.9 t/ML. Irrigation scheduling with evaporation minipans in the Burdekin increased the WUE on at least 400 farms by 0.4 t/ML. Changing furrow shape from a wide U-shape to a narrow V -shape and reducing tillage has also increased the WUE on Burdekin Delta farms with freely draining soils. The success of Water Check was due to good research data available for extension, the use of simple tools such as the minipan, and the participatory action-learning extension method used.