The day he turned the taps off, dairy farmer JR Williams of Torrumbarry near Echuaca, got an idea. He had been unable to irrigate his pastures for his dairy herd and so he decided to raise awareness of the struggles of his region through music. And so this gifted songwriter-farmer put his passion for music into words with a song called “WHO GIVES A STUFF ABOUT THE FARMER”. JR believes the song which was released nationally in Australia in December 2007 when the water crisis hit hardest will help spread the message about what is really going on in Australia’s bush lands. His song expresses the region’s frustration of seeing water run to waste in the south of Australia as the government decided to pipe water out of the struggling northern irrigation system to supply the cities int he south. JR is also concerned about the social implications of young people on the land being forced to leave rural areas and move to the cities in order to feed their families.

“We need to work together to find positive long term answers for our irrigators along the Murray Darling River System.”