Tasmanian Irrigation has welcomed the launch of an updated Charter for Working on Private Land which sets out the rights and responsibilities of all parties when businesses are required to access and work on private farms.

The revised Charter is the result of collaboration between the Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania and signatories including Tasmanian Irrigation, TasFarmers, Aurora Energy, TasWater, and TasNetworks. The original Charter, to which Tasmanian Irrigation was a signatory, has been in effect since 2019.

Tasmanian Irrigation Chief Executive Officer Mike Sylvester said adopting the Charter is part of a continuing commitment to work collaboratively and respectfully with private landowners.

“As we build new irrigation schemes and manage operational schemes, we require access to private land. Whether it’s design and planning for new projects, or asset maintenance on operational schemes, access to private land is essential to the work we do to deliver our promise to customers.

“We know that farms are workplaces, and they are often homes too. That’s why we work collaboratively with landowners from the early stages of a project to ensure minimum disruption and work around their on-farm operational requirements.”

Mr Sylvester said the next steps are to ensure that Tasmanian Irrigation’s systems and processes are refined to align with the updated Charter.

“Our commitment to respectful engagement is unwavering. Updating our processes is an important step to ensure that what happens on the ground is always consistent with that commitment.

“Private landowners have a right to expect that we will engage with them in a way that meets their business needs, and in return the Charter sets out the expectation that landowners will provide safe access to their land for workers carrying out their duties.

“We congratulate the Tasmanian Government for facilitating adoption of the revised Charter by the parties and we look forward to being part of its successful implementation.”

For more information, contact:

Samantha Meyer, General Manager Stakeholder Relations and Communications

samantha.meyer@tasirrigation.com.au 0438 210 468