- Author CRCNA and Charles Darwin University research partners
- Publish date 23 May 2024
- Type Fact sheet
- Documents
- Water Security program
- Water
Summary
The Ord River Irrigation Area (ORIA) is one of the four nodes in the Water Security for Northern Australia program.
The ORIA supports a broad array of agriculture including melons, mangos and broad acre cropping. The ORIA is presently in Stage 2 of development, with farms to the east of Kununurra, towards the NT border, with Stage 3 farms proposed for the NT.
Much of the project focuses on the Keep River catchment, which is habitat to EPBC listed species, including sawfish. Two of the projects seek to ensure that surface water quality is maintained to protect these important species and a third seeks to understand stakeholder views on how water is valued in the system, and how water could be managed during dry years.
Projects
Water Security for Northern Australia program: Implementation phase
The Water Security for Northern Australia Program is a collaborative partnership between the CRCNA and the Northern Australia Universities Alliance (NAUA), delivering targeted research to support sustainable water resource development across northern Australia. Building on the co-design project that identified key challenges affecting water security, agricultural development and equitable water use across four focal nodes: the Gilbert catchment in north Queensland, Lower Fitzroy catchment in central Queensland, the Daly catchment in the Northern Territory, and the Ord River Irrigation Area in Western Australia. Through stakeholder-led co-design, 15 priority research projects were identified to address region-specific and cross-cutting challenges related to water availability, environmental management, agricultural productivity, supply chains and Indigenous access to water resources. These projects are grouped into four interconnected work packages spanning cross-regional research, water quality and environmental outcomes, water availability, cropping systems and alternative economic opportunities. The program is generating practical knowledge to improve water planning, development assessment and environmental management, while identifying opportunities to increase the economic value of water use across northern Australia. Research outcomes are intended to support more informed decision-making, reduce uncertainty and monitoring costs, improve water use efficiency, strengthen supply chain understanding and expand opportunities for Indigenous participation and benefit. Beyond the research itself, the program is building stronger connections between universities, industry, government, Traditional Owners and regional communities. This collaborative approach is helping to strengthen research capability, improve communication between stakeholder groups and support more effective, less contested water resource decision-making across northern Australia. Visit the Northern Australia Universities Alliance page: https://naua.edu.au/projects/water-security-alliance/
Water Security for Northern Australia program: Ord River Irrigation Area
The Ord River Irrigation Area (ORIA) is one of four focal nodes within the Water Security for Northern Australia (WSNA) program and supports a diverse and expanding agricultural sector, including melons, mangoes, cotton and broadacre cropping. With continued development occurring across the East Kimberley and proposed expansion into the Northern Territory, the project is focused on balancing agricultural growth with environmental sustainability, water quality protection and long-term water security. The project is centred on the Keep River catchment, an environmentally significant system that provides habitat for threatened species including the Northern River Shark and Largetooth Sawfish. Research activities are investigating tropical catchment management approaches, agricultural runoff and water quality impacts, and strategies to improve monitoring and management of surface water in the region. The work draws on lessons from tropical catchments across northern Australia and the Great Barrier Reef to inform future planning and sustainable development in the ORIA. In parallel, the project is exploring the social and economic value of water in the Ord River system, including how water is allocated and managed during dry years and under future climate scenarios. Researchers are working with industry, government and local stakeholders to better understand competing water demands, emerging industries such as green hydrogen, and opportunities to support resilient and adaptable water management frameworks for the region. Node contact: Dr Dylan Irvine, Outstanding Future Researcher – Northern Water Futures, Charles Darwin University, email: dylan.irvine@cdu.edu.au Background: This Water Security for Northern Australia (WSNA) program is being delivered through a partnership between the CRCNA and the Northern Australia Universities Alliance. The WSNA program will develop and implement a series of research projects which address problematic issues which are constraining sustainable water resource utilisation in four key precincts or focal nodes across Northern Australia. These focal nodes are (Gilbert catchment (QLD), Daly River (NT), Ord River Irrigation Area (WA) and Lower Fitzroy catchment (QLD)). These focal nodes were selected by the CRCNA based on prior assessments and consultation indicating they are likely locations of further water resource development pressure. In order to develop such a series of research projects, it was first required that the relevant stakeholders in each focal node be engaged in a co-design process. The four focal nodes were developed through a 5-month engagement phase and now report to regional stakeholder advisory groups: Co-design phase of the Water Security for Northern Australia.