Atherton Tablelands farmers to benefit from completed Mareeba-Dimbulah water project

Growers in the Atherton Tablelands are set to benefit from up to 8,306 megalitres of extra water due to the completion of the Mareeba-Dimbulah Efficiency Improvement Project.

Jointly funded by the Australian ($11.6 million) and Queensland Governments ($20.94 million), the $32.54 million efficiency project will deliver water to 17,000 hectares of farmland in far north Queensland.

It’s anticipated that agricultural production in the Mareeba-Dimbulah region will grow by about $20 million per year with larger yields in sugar cane, bananas, mangoes, avocadoes, coffee, tea trees and vegetables.

During construction, 14 kilometres of pipeline was upgraded – with sections either replaced or new sections built. 125 automated control gates were also installed in irrigation channels and 157 water offtakes were upgraded.

The new automated channel gates measure and regulate water flow, which will subsequently improve the supply scheme’s ability to meet grower demand, as well as make more water available.

Read more in the Deputy Prime Minister’s media release.