Water is important to us in many ways.
About IrrigationNZ: IrrigationNZ represents over 3,500 members nationally, including irrigation schemes, individual irrigators, and the irrigation service sector. Our irrigator members include a wide range of farmers and growers – sheep and beef, dairy and cropping farmers, horticulturalists, and winegrowers. We represent over 120 irrigation service industry companies – manufacturers, distributors, irrigation design and install companies, and irrigation decision support services.
We are a voluntary-membership, not-for-profit incorporated society whose mission is to create an environment for the responsible use of water for food and fibre production.
As an organisation we actively promote best practice irrigation and carry out a range of training and education activities. Over the last five years we have trained over 3,000 irrigators on different aspects of irrigation best practice to improve water use efficiency and better manage environmental effects.
IrrigationNZ members share many of the same goals as other New Zealanders:
- to reduce their environmental footprints and see improvements in the health of our waterways;
- to contribute to the wellbeing of their communities; and
- to provide for a sustainable future for New Zealand.
There is so much that goes hand in hand with irrigation such as freshwater management, water policy, water storage, technology, training, and much more.
Our small team at IrrigationNZ made up of policy, business, and training experts, is across all of this, and has been since 2004. We are a not-for-profit membership organisation that proactively supports irrigators, irrigation schemes, irrigator user groups, and the irrigation service industry. As well as sharing the story of irrigation to the wider community.
The area of irrigated agricultural land in New Zealand almost doubled between 2002 and 2019, from 384,000 hectares to 735,000 hectares (91 percent increase), that is, 1.3 percent of New Zealand’s land area. *Stats NZ.
Now more than ever we need to encourage the best use of water for our land and the environment, all while meeting demand to grow great food and fibre. We are on a journey and we can't wait to have more people join us - explore our website and find out more and don't hesitate to get in touch!
WHAT WE DO FOR YOU?
IrrigationNZ proactively supports irrigators, irrigation schemes, irrigator user groups and the irrigation service industry. To do this we provide -
• Advocacy with central government - to protect your rights and interests in irrigation and water use-related issues
• Media relations - to inform the public of the irrigation story and its significance to NZ
• Practical knowledge and training - to help you achieve good management practice irrigation expectations
• Regular information - to keep you up to date on all things irrigation
• Industry standards, codes of practice and guidelines - to ensure we control our own destiny
• Networks with other irrigators, schemes, user groups and service providers - to help you learn and exchange ideas
• Technical assistance - if we can’t help you we always know someone who can!