Water issues continue to dominate

Despite the wettest April in NSW in more than 50 years, water supply issues are a major concern for many growers and retailers around the country.

Nursery & Garden Industry Australia (NGIA) CEO Robert Prince recently attended the Horticultural Water Initiative Steering Committee meeting in Melbourne and a workshop on crop water requirements which looked at how industries and crops have been impacted by reduced water inputs.

Many growers of a range of crops have made the difficult decision to stop producing. Some have actually made more money selling their water allocations than they did from production.

NGINA (Nursery & Garden Industry NSW & ACT) Industry Development Officer (IDO) Michael Danelon attended the Water Summit in Sydney at the same time, and made valuable contacts in his role as IDO responsible for the National Water Program.

NGIA is continuing to remain in close contact with Nursery & Garden Industry South Australia (NGISA) regarding the predicament that the State is in regarding critical water supplies into Adelaide.