Case studies
These case studies demonstrate how land management practices can improve the quality of water flowing to the Great Barrier Reef and provide environmental and economic benefits for landholders. They also profile some of the key activities underway as part of Reef Plan.
Sugarcane farmer of the year reducing run-off
Tully sugarcane grower Mario Raccanello is the 2011 Australian Sugarcane Grower of the Year (Individual Grower).
Mario was recognised for reducing losses of nutrients, chemicals and soil from his property by implementing sustainable farming practices. His 370 hectare property on the floodplains of the Tully River is predominantly sugarcane.
With funding received from the Australian Government’s Reef Rescue program, Mario has implemented nutrient, soil and weed management plans into a precision farm management system. Stage one involved installing GPS precision software to guide the application of fertiliser and pesticide. The GPS system also helps with record keeping.
Mario received a second round of funding to buy a dual row splitter fertiliser applicator with hydraulic GPS rate control. This means fertiliser is placed below the surface, delivering nutrients directly to the plant. The GPS software controls the rate of fertiliser applied, according to the soil type and recommended application rates based on his nutrient management plan. The rate and placement of nutrients is recorded by the GPS software for future planning and monitoring.
Mario has introduced a range of other practices, including controlled traffic, green cane trash blanketing and sediment traps, that reduce soil compaction and the amount of nutrients, pesticides and soil flowing downstream into the reef lagoon.
Mario says the changes have led to improvements including more accurate nutrient and pesticide placement, cost savings and quicker application. The use of GPS software and record keeping means the benefits can be monitored and improved over time.
Reef Rescue is a component of the Australian Government’s Caring for our Country program, designed to provide primarily financial incentive for farmers to adopt improved practices.
Mario said he would not have undertaken the work without Reef Rescue funding and he hopes the program continues.
“The best way to get people on your side is to work with them,” he said.
Mario was surprised by his win in the Sugarcane Grower of the Year event and said many other people were implementing innovative farming techniques on their properties.
“All the good work being done by everybody is making a difference . . . Farmers are the biggest conservationists of all.”
Banana farming for better water quality
Gaia Farms, a 95 hectare banana farm near South Johnstone south of Innisfail, has introduced environmentally sustainable farming practices to minimise nutrient, sediment and chemical run-off, maintain production efficiency and keep costs down.
They have implemented a range of practices including:
- cutting back on chemicals such as fungicides
- applying nutrients in a targeted way
- producing and applying compost to increase organic matter
- monitoring soil moisture and managing irrigation water
- reducing soil compaction and improving drainage
- maintaining soil cover with fallow crops and inter-row cover
- monitoring plant nutrition through soil and leaf analyses.
Benefits of the farm’s management practices include improved soil and plant health, reduced pests and disease, increased yields, reduced chemical costs and reduced runoff.
Recently Gaia Farms has constructed a 2.45 hectare wetland designed and built specifically to complement other farm management practices, to further improve the quality of water entering adjacent waterways. The wetland is also providing a habitat for wildlife and a focal point for the property. It was partially funded by the Queensland Wetlands Program and Terrain Natural Resource Management through the Australian Government’s Reef Rescue program and was supported by the Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation and Growcom. In addition, Gaia Farms has contributed over $100,000 in-kind to the wetland project in the form of planning, labour, machinery and equipment.
The wetland treats run-off from the banana production area and waste water from the banana packing shed. It replicates natural wetland filtering by slowing water flow to capture sediment and remove nutrients through the use of dense wetland vegetation.
Gaia Farms won the Agriculture and Food – From Paddock to Plate Sustainably category in the 2011 national Banksia Environmental Awards and won the ClimateSmart Rural Award in the Premier’s 2011 ClimateSmart Sustainability Awards.
Find out more about the value of wetlands and rural land management on the WetlandInfo website which includes a case study on Gaia Farms.
Learning the economics of land management
Cattle producers have learned a new tool to help them explore how to improve the profitability and sustainability of their grazing business. A series of Testing Management Options workshops have been presented by the Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation with funding from the Queensland Wetlands Program. Workshops have been held in Charters Towers, Collinsville, Mundubbera and Roma to assess the economics of different enterprise or land management changes. The scenarios show how better land condition can have significant benefits for a business’ bottom line. It makes for better pastures, which means better production and less erosion of soil into wetlands and waterways. For more information on Testing Management Options workshops or managing wetlands in agriculture, email Carla Wegscheidl.
Central Queensland grain growers implementing best practices
Central Queensland grain growers are earning more while sustainably managing natural resources as part of the Grains Best Management Practices project, a partnership involving growers, the Queensland Government, Fitzroy Basin Association Inc and AgForce, with backing from the Australian Government’s Reef Rescue initiative. Modified boom sprays and controlled traffic farming systems are just some of the practices helping to reduce potential runoff and subsequent erosion. A total of 87 farming businesses have taken part in the program. For more information, visit the Grains Best Management Practices website.
Queensland Government rolling out Reef Regulations
The Great Barrier Reef Protection Amendment Act 2009 introduced by the Queensland Government in October 2009 requires farmers in high risk catchments (Burdekin Dry Tropics, Wet Tropics and Mackay Whitsundays) and high risk industries (sugarcane and cattle grazing) to take all reasonable and practical steps to reduce the risk of nutrient, herbicide and sediment runoff from their land.
One aspect of the new legislation is the requirement for growers with sugarcane on more than 70 hectares in the Wet Tropics, and cattle graziers with cattle on more than 2000 hectares in the Burdekin Dry Tropics to prepare an Environmental Risk Management Plan. This is a property plan that specifies management actions aimed at reducing the risk of sediment, fertiliser and chemicals leaving properties and entering the waters of the Great Barrier Reef. Farmers are required to submit an annual report identifying how they have implemented the plan.
The Reef Protection package is also complemented by a significant research, extension and support program for landholders. For more information, visit the Reef Wise Farming website.
