New South Wales Primary Industries is looking to move forward on a $180 million land and water buying scheme.

Cultural and ecological studies in NSW’s Lowbidgee region will start soon as the Nimmie Caira project steams ahead.

The project has seen the purchase of land and water entitlements from nearly a dozen properties in the area, and will help the NSW government meet its commitment to the Murray Darling Basin Plan.

Primary Industries Minister Katrina Hodgkinson says the state has been buying up assets already, and will soon be ready to release masses of water to Commonwealth supplies.

“Over the next two months, the government will be inviting tenders for ecological and cultural heritage work in that area, finalising short term competitive commercial use of the land for after July 1 this year, and also seeking the advice of the community advisory committee on a public access policy for short term and future land management arrangements,” she told the reporters this week.

“It's all systems go.”

“Since the committees have been established the state government's successfully acquired the land and water assets from those property owners, we've established occupancy licences on a commercial basis with the former owners up until June of this year... we've also initiated the transfer of 381,000 units of Murrumbidgee supplementary water entitlement to the Commonwealth.”

Important funding for irrigation efficiency projects has been delayed while early Nimmie Caira negotiations were going on, but Ms Hodkinson says that money will be available soon.

New South Wales became entitled to $80 million in funding over eight years for infrastructure projects, when it signed on to the Murray Darling Basin Plan.

“Look, it does take time to work through these things,” she said.

“The Office of Water is doing a great job in liaising with the Commonwealth bureaucrats in relation to this.

“The agreement's only just been signed.

“The ink is almost still wet, but we will work through as quickly as we can to secure those funds and get them into projects.”