In southern NSW, irrigation areas and districts extend over 1,371,319 ha.
Produce includes rice, wheat, corn, soybeans, oranges, grapes and vegetables.
Over half the annual production value of irrigated agricultural areas comes from the southern irrigation areas. Map 3 shows the height of the watertable around the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area. The death of deep rooted trees in depressions or ephemeral wetlands can be an indication of high water tables. Stormwater run-off and tail water from irrigated paddocks contribute contaminants to receiving waters which may degrade downstream environments. Table 7 shows the quality of drainage from the Berriquin irrigation district and Murrumbidgee irrigation area.