Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in Australia
Australia: Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture was 66.9% in 2022. ▼ Falling
Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in Australia, 1993–2022
Source: AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in % of total freshwater withdrawal.
Analysis
The most recent figure for annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in Australia is 66.9%, measured in 2022.
The figure is up 1.1% on the previous year and up 11.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in Australia peaked at 70.7% in 2018 and was at its lowest, 52.0%, in 2009.
Australia ranks 80th of 180 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 30 years of available data.
Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in Australia, year by year
| Year | % of total freshwater withdrawal | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1993 | 65.4% | — |
| 1994 | 69.5% | +6.2% |
| 1995 | 67.0% | -3.7% |
| 1996 | 69.9% | +4.3% |
| 1997 | 69.7% | -0.2% |
| 1998 | 69.6% | -0.2% |
| 1999 | 69.5% | -0.2% |
| 2000 | 69.4% | -0.2% |
| 2001 | 69.3% | -0.2% |
| 2002 | 68.4% | -1.3% |
| 2003 | 67.4% | -1.4% |
| 2004 | 66.4% | -1.5% |
| 2005 | 65.2% | -1.7% |
| 2006 | 62.6% | -4.0% |
| 2007 | 59.6% | -4.8% |
| 2008 | 56.1% | -5.9% |
| 2009 | 52.0% | -7.3% |
| 2010 | 53.8% | +3.5% |
| 2011 | 55.1% | +2.4% |
| 2012 | 59.8% | +8.6% |
| 2013 | 65.7% | +9.7% |
| 2014 | 63.4% | -3.5% |
| 2015 | 54.2% | -14.4% |
| 2016 | 65.5% | +20.8% |
| 2017 | 69.4% | +5.9% |
| 2018 | 70.7% | +1.8% |
| 2019 | 66.6% | -5.7% |
| 2020 | 62.3% | -6.5% |
| 2021 | 66.1% | +6.1% |
| 2022 | 66.9% | +1.1% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 66.9% is above the median for high income countries, which is 28.8%, 2.3× the median. (59 countries reporting)
- Australia's 66.9% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 66.8%, 1.0× the median. (20 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 68.7% | 65.4% | 69.9% | 7 |
| 2000s | 63.6% | 52.0% | 69.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 62.4% | 53.8% | 70.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 65.1% | 62.3% | 66.9% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More agriculture & rural data for Australia
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 13.97 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0227 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 1,476 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.5855 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.1228 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 2.3% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 2.3% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.7% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.5% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in Australia?
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture in Australia was 66.9% in 2022, according to AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
- What is the highest annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 70.7% in 2018.
- What is the lowest annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 52.0% in 2009.
- How does Australia rank for annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture?
- Australia ranks 80th out of 180 countries with data for 2022.
- Is annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from AQUASTAT - FAO's Global Information System on Water and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), published as part of Annual freshwater withdrawals, agriculture (% of total freshwater withdrawal). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 30 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Annual freshwater withdrawals refer to total water withdrawals, not counting evaporation losses from storage basins. Withdrawals also include water from desalination plants in countries where they are a significant source. Withdrawals can exceed 100 percent of total renewable resources where extraction from nonrenewable aquifers or desalination plants is considerable or where there is significant water reuse. Withdrawals for agriculture are total withdrawals for irrigation and livestock production. Data are for the most recent year available for 1987-2002.