With summer on the way, now is an ideal time to take stock of your water reserves.
Agriculture Victoria Land Management Extension Officer Clem Sturmfels recommends that farmers consider the following questions:
• what is the condition of dams on my farm?
• how many are full, how many are yet to recover from the drought?
• how do they compare to the same time last year?
• are water levels rising or falling?
• how do my stock numbers compare?
“It’s important farmers have a good understanding of how much water is left in their dams, make plans and take timely action.
“Our dams, rivers, streams and springs have become less reliable after a lack of cool-season rainfall, together with warmer average temperatures.
“Taking a stocktake of water reserves and livestock needs and reviewing your drought plan is important this time of the year.
“Measuring the water level in a dam can be a difficult task unless you have installed a permanent marker, like that used on some road crossings, or have an electronic water level monitoring device.
“A simple way to measure water depth is with the use of the Dam deep device, a tool made from a hand fishing line, a float, sinker and beads,” he said.
A video of how to make this device can be found on the Agriculture Victoria website.
Mr Sturmfels said farmers should take photos of their key dams at this time of the year as an easy way to track dam performance.
“While some are forecasting a wet finish to the year, this is unlikely to have much impact on dam levels unless a high-intensity rainfall event occurs.”
Agriculture Victoria has several tools to help farmers calculate dam volumes based on shape, length, width and depth, including the Farm Water Calculator and the Summer Water Calculator.
The Summer Water Calculator also helps to calculate how long the remaining water may last.
The Farm Drought Support Grants provide eligible farmers up to $5,000, and up to $10,000 in south west Victoria, as a co-contribution grant to support activities like water infrastructure upgrades (pipes, tanks, troughs and dams), plus other activities.
Find more information about drought support at www.agriculture.vic.gov.au/drought or call 136 186.
