Irrigated land area
Increasing reliability for irrigated areas requires progress to be made in water management at farm and scheme level. The goals for irrigated area and reliability will be refined through:
- the regional storage plan and zone implementation programmes
- more definite location-specific knowledge on the potential for efficiency improvements
- testing infrastructure proposals against the fundamental principles
- setting environmental limits
- refining financial viability and funding mechanisms.
Here's how things are progressing against 2025 goals. View information on:
Land area reliability
By 2025: Improved reliability of supply for at least 65% of irrigated land.
Has the goal been met?
Reliability improvements are being progressed across Canterbury through development of storage and piping of new and existing schemes and other improvements.
A 2025 survey of nine large Canterbury irrigation schemes reports that reliability has been improved on 49% (134,500 ha of 275,500 ha total irrigated area) of their irrigated land.
- 2025 survey results from nine large Canterbury irrigation schemes reports that reliability has been improved on 49% of their irrigated land.
- Irrigation schemes throughout Canterbury continue to work towards improving reliability through storage and greater efficiency of delivery. Amuri Irrigation Company (AIC), Rangitata Diversion Race Management Limited, Central Plains Water Limited, Opuha Water Limited, and Waimakariri Irrigation Limited.
- Canterbury irrigation schemes and individual irrigators will continue to progress actions to improve efficiency and reliability of irrigation.
- Irrigation users and schemes will continue to seek improvements in energy efficiency of existing and new infrastructure.
Infrastructure
By 2025: Reviewed regional infrastructure needs (including storage and distribution) based on revised supply and demand factors (including climate change) to meet 2040 goals with a focus on reliability.
Has this goal been met?
To date, no regional review of infrastructure needs with a focus on reliability has been undertaken.
2025 survey results from nine large Canterbury irrigation schemes indicate that individual schemes are taking actions to address future reliability needs by investing in new water storage facilities, more reliable intakes, additional distribution pipelines, new fish screens, automated control gates, (in scheme) water metering and improvements to existing large irrigation storage.
Irrigation schemes throughout Canterbury continue to work towards improving reliability through storage and greater efficiency of delivery. They include Amuri Irrigation Company (AIC), Rangitata Diversion Race Management Limited, Central Plains Water Limited, Opuha Water Limited, and Waimakariri Irrigation Limited.
- Canterbury irrigation schemes and individual irrigators will continue to progress actions to improve efficiency and reliability of irrigation.
- Irrigation users and schemes will continue to seek improvements in energy efficiency of existing and new infrastructure.
By 2025: Establish a "reliability of supply" metric methodology for economic and environmental outcomes of this strategy.
Has the goal been met?
There is no agreed “reliability of supply” metric methodology for economic and environmental outcomes for irrigation in the Canterbury region.
2025 survey results from nine large Canterbury irrigation schemes noted differing approaches to water supply reliability methodologies. Additionally, environmental outcomes (related to minimum flow regimes for river and streams) are set according to individual assessments as part of the Resource Management Act (RMA) planning process, which is not standardised across councils.
No highlights to date.
The need for a “reliability of supply” metric methodology has not emerged from work on economic or environmental outcomes. Work on the reliability needs of both for economic and environmental is expected to continue.
By 2025: Reviewed progress on the funding of infrastructure development and/or the reconfiguration of existing consents that aligns with the principles and targets of this strategy.
Has the goal been met?
2025 survey results from nine large Canterbury irrigation schemes report that infrastructure improvements have been funded by a mixture of debt funding, equity from share sales, share levies and company reserves as schemes are required to find funding options that are acceptable to their shareholders.
No highlights to date.
Infrastructure development and need for reconfiguration of consents will continue to be an ongoing process as options must be acceptable to participants and shareholders.
By 2025: Reviewed progress on infrastructure development and/or the reconfiguration of existing consents that facilitatesreliability improvements and is linked into the regional storage plan.
Has the goal been met?
There is currently no Canterbury-wide storage plan in place for irrigation, however, individual schemes have undertaken considerable work to achieve reliability improvements.
2025 survey results from nine large Canterbury irrigation schemes indicate progress on improved reliability since 2010 through pipeline replacements for canals, buffer ponds, interconnections between schemes, scheme scale storage ponds, on-farm storage ponds, access to hydropower storage, automation of controls and improved fish screen facilities.
Several irrigation schemes throughout Canterbury continue to work towards improving reliability through storage and greater efficiency of delivery. They include Amuri Irrigation Company (AIC), Rangitata Diversion Race Management Limited, Central Plains Water Limited, Opuha Water Limited, and Waimakariri Irrigation Limited.
Individual irrigation schemes will continue to seek improvements in reliability through new or improved infrastructure via their regular business planning programmes.
By 2025: Progress made in construction of integrated infrastructure, as identified in zone implementation programmes (integrated - both irrigation and environmental).
Has the goal been met?
Both economic and environmental infrastructure, as recommended in Zone Implementation Programmes (ZIPs) and Zone Implementation Programme Addendums (ZIPAs), has progressed where there has been a business case, or a positive public good case developed. Examples of completed works to date include infrastructure to support water storage, flood protection and river management.
- Several irrigation schemes throughout Canterbury continue to work towards improving reliability through storage and greater efficiency of delivery through infrastructure development. They include Amuri Irrigation Company (AIC), Rangitata Diversion Race Management Limited, Central Plains Water Limited, Opuha Water Limited, and Waimakariri Irrigation Limited.
- A number of wetland restoration projects across the region have been completed, or are underway, including a trial establishment of macrophyte beds and artificial habitat creation at Te Waihora/Lake Ellesmere.
- Environment Canterbury has recently completed a fish passage remediation project to improve instream structures like flood gates, culverts and weirs across the region.
- Drinking water and wastewater infrastructure improvements are currently in progress across the region, including the Darfield and Kirwee Wastewater Pipeline Project.
- Stormwater Management Plans have been created as a component of global stormwater consents issued to territorial authorities.
- Flood protection works have been carried out, including the Ōtākaro Avon River Corridor (OARC) project, to restore urban floodplain function.
- Hydroelectric infrastructure has been progressed, including at Lake Coleridge and eight power stations from Lake Tekapo to Lake Waitaki.
Works will continue at the local and national level to support water storage, flood protection and river management.