Author(s)

J. Edwards, H. Bjornlund & B. Cheers

Abstract

The introduction of water markets has caused widespread concern within irrigation communities both among irrigators and among other community members. There are two main areas of community concern. The first is associated with the export of water out of a certain location and the second is associated with the consolidation of water into larger corporate entities. This paper investigates the second area of concern. The analyses are based on extensive interviews with key informants within a community in South Australia dominated by the wine and other horticultural industries. Following the introduction of water markets this area has seen the emergence of a large number of new corporate entities or substantial expansion of existing family operations evolving into large family corporations. Keywords: water market, water trading, community impact, socioeconomic impact, corporate farming.

Keywords

water market, water trading, community impact, socioeconomic impact, corporate farming