Media Releases

Sustainability Specialist joins Northern Australia Irrigation Futures Project

The Northern Australia Irrigation Futures (NAIF) Project has appointed Mr Jeff Camkin as Sustainability Specialist.

“Mr Camkin brings valuable experience and skills to the team” said NAIF project leader Dr Keith Bristow.

“This includes excellent knowledge of key natural resource management issues facing northern Australia and extensive experience in government processes and in developing public policy.”

“His expertise will help the project deliver to governments, community groups and other organisations an improved understanding of tropical water systems and a sound base on which to engage in debate and decision making regarding irrigation in northern Australia”.

The NAIF project was established to provide the knowledge, tools, and processes needed to help governments and communities decide the sustainable future of Northern Australia, and whether this will involve irrigated agriculture.

“There is increasing pressure on water resources in Australia’s north, where tropical rivers discharge some 70 per cent of the nation’s fresh water,” Dr Bristow said. “To maintain the integrity of this region’s unique and diverse ecological systems, it is widely recognised that any decisions about the future extraction of water must be based on the best knowledge available.”

Mr Camkin will work closely with the NAIF project team and stakeholders to ensure effective engagement and communication underpins development and delivery of a sustainability framework designed to support discussion and improved decisions about if and where to irrigate in tropical Australia; what tropical irrigation systems could look like; and how they should be managed to meet social, cultural, environmental and economic sustainability objectives.

”I am excited about the opportunity to work on such an important project addressing critical issues for the future sustainability of northern Australia,” said Mr Camkin, “and am looking forward to engaging with stakeholders across the country, and particularly across northern Australia”.

The NAIF project has widespread support from NRM regional bodies, local governments and communities across northern Australia, and is currently funded by Land & Water Australia’s National Program for Sustainable Irrigation, CRC for Irrigation Futures, CSIRO, and the Australian, WA, NT and QLD Governments.

Mr Jeff Camkin will be based at the CSIRO Land and Water Laboratory at Floreat Park in Perth, WA.

Further Information:
Dr Keith Bristow, CSIRO Land and Water 07 4753 8596 or 0408 468 941
Keith.Bristow@csiro.au

Mr Jeff Camkin, CSIRO Land and Water 08 9333 6000
Jeff.Camkin@csiro.au

Media Assistance:
Cris Kennedy, CSIRO Land and Water 02 6246 5850 or 0403 739 108
Cris.Kennedy@csiro.au

Visit the Northern Australia Irrigation Futures website at the link below

www.clw.csiro.au/naif/

Contacts:
Dr Keith Bristow