A project based on hill-country irrigation has secured about $250,000 from the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry's sustainable farming fund.
Funding has been approved for 71 new grants, totalling $9.5 million over three years, to support grassroots action by farmers, growers and foresters.
Irrigation NZ chief executive Andrew Curtis, who described it as a "stunning little project", said there were unique challenges that existed in hill-country irrigation.
The project will collate existing information for hill country farmer irrigators, identify knowledge gaps and explore new solutions, ultimately providing a comprehensive design and management guide. It will also work alongside existing and developing Lower Waitaki schemes.
The funding, which is spread over three years, would enable some "really useful stuff" to be done. The project would start about July, Mr Curtis said.
The fund was set up in 2000 to fund projects that contributed to the economic, environmental and social wellbeing of New Zealand's land-based primary industries.