That's the total to June 30 this year.

Minister for Climate Change and Water, Senator Penny Wong, says that in the 2008-09 year alone, the purchase of more than 408 billion litres of water worth over $613 million was secured.

The Government’s biggest purchase was 240 gigalitres of entitlement from Twynam Agricultural Group.

Of the remaining purchases, 55 per cent of the irrigation entitlements purchased through the 2008-09 tenders were from Victoria compared with 44 per cent from irrigators in New South Wales.

"Around 90 percent of purchases were from catchments that scientists have assessed as having high priority needs for environmental water," Senator Wong said.

The purchases were made through tenders conducted under the Government’s Restoring the Balance in the Murray-Darling Basin program.

"To help meet the challenges posed by climate change, drought and over-allocation, the Government is investing $3.1 billion over 10 years in purchasing water to return to the Basin’s stressed rivers and wetlands," Senator Wong says.

"This is in addition to a significant investment in making irrigation infrastructure more efficient, including $3.7 billion already committed to specific state projects and $300 million to on-farm infrastructure projects."

Currently under preparation by the Murray-Darling Basin Authority, the new Basin Plan will be implemented from 2011.

It will include a new, sustainable, scientifically-based limit on water use in the Basin.

Senator Wong says the Government remains keen to see more action on irrigation infrastructure.

"The Rudd Government committed $3.7 billion towards Basin state priority irrigation projects over 12 months ago," she says.

"We look forward to receiving the States’ comprehensive proposals as soon as possible."

* Click here for more information on the outcomes of the 2008-09 water tender.