Natural resources bulletins

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Land systems, soils and vegetation of the southern Goldfields and Great Western Woodlands of Western Australia - Volume 1

Peter-Jon A. Waddell and Paul Galloway

This technical bulletin defines and maps the land resources of the southern Goldfields region of Western Australia (WA). The southern Goldfields region, as featured in this bulletin, covers 151,753 km². The western and eastern borders are variable because they align with various cadastral boundaries. The ... Read more
Land systems, soils and vegetation of the southern Goldfields and Great Western Woodlands of Western Australia - Volume 2

Peter-Jon A. Waddell and Paul Galloway

This technical bulletin defines and maps the land resources of the southern Goldfields region of Western Australia (WA). The southern Goldfields region, as featured in this bulletin, covers 151,753 km². The western and eastern borders are variable because they align with various cadastral boundaries. The ... Read more
Pasture condition guides for the southern rangelands, including the Gascoyne, Murchison and Goldfields-Nullarbor

Peter-Jon A. Waddell, Philip WE Thomas, Wayne J. Fletcher, Kath Ryan, Joshua E. Foster, John K. Stretch, and Jim S. Addison

These guides address a recognised gap in readily applicable and easily accessible information on southern rangelands pasture condition and management.

These guides provide descriptions and images for southern rangelands pastures with similar management requirements for the grazing of native pastures by livestock. Therefore, the focus ... Read more
Environmental weed risk assessment protocol for growing non-indigenous plants in the Western Australian rangelands

Geoff A. Moore Mr, Christine Munday Ms, and Papori Barua Dr

This bulletin is a post-border environmental weed risk assessment (WRA) protocol which is based on the Environmental WRA Protocol developed for the Future Farm Industries Co-operative Research Centre (FFI CRC), but with some changes to reflect the different environment and objectives.

The WRA protocol was ... Read more
Geology, soils and climate of Western Australia's wine regions

Peter J. Tille, Angela Stuart-Street, and Peter S. Gardiner
This bulletin details what is special and unique about the geology, soil and climate of the south-west of Western Australia (WA), an area that encompasses the state’s 9 wine regions.

We have arranged the information into 2 parts:
- In Part 1, we broadly describe ... Read more
Mosaic agriculture: a guide to irrigated crop and forage production in northern WA

Geoff A. Moore Mr, Clinton K. Revell Dr, Christopher Schelfhout Dr, Christopher Ham Mr, and Samuel Crouch Mr

The Bulletin is a comprehensive guide for pastoralists, agronomists, agribusiness and the broader community on the growing of irrigated crops and pastures within a rangeland pastoral setting.

Dispersed irrigation developments on stations throughout the northern rangelands (sometimes referred to as mosaic agriculture) has created opportunities ... Read more
Renewable chemicals and bioproducts: a potential for agricultural diversification and economic development

Henry Brockman

Renewable chemicals are a new category of novel products: building blocks and ingredients for the production of chemicals produced from renewable feedstock and sustainable advanced manufacturing processes, leaving a smaller environmental footprint than traditional petrochemicals. Biologically based products are mainly non-food products derived from biomass.
... Read more
Comparative assessment of crops to use potential additional water resources in the Warren–Donnelly catchments

James Dee and Ananda Ghose

Through the Royalties for Regions funded Southern Forests Water Futures Project, the Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia undertook a study to understand the economic benefits of developing new water resources in the Warren–Donnelly catchments in the south-west of Western Australia.

The Warren–Donnelly catchments ... Read more
Climate in the Pilbara

Robert Sudmeyer
The Pilbara is characterised by very hot summers, mild winters and low and variable rainfall. It is classified as hot desert in northern and inland areas and hot grasslands in the north-west. The Pilbara claims a number of climate records:
- seven of Western Australia’s ... Read more
Climate-ready agriculture: a situation statement for Western Australia

Robert Anthony Sudmeyer, Anne Bennett, and Melanie Strawbridge

Projected future changes in the state’s climate will present new challenges for our producers. The Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia (DAFWA) continues to work with agricultural industries to lay solid foundations for an agricultural sector that has a range of response options.

This ... Read more
Climate change: impacts and adaptation for agriculture in Western Australia

Robert Anthony Sudmeyer, Alexandra Edward, Vic Fazakerley, Leigh Simpkin, and Ian Foster

This bulletin reviews the latest scientific information relating to climate change and agriculture (broadacre, livestock, horticulture, pastoral industries) in Western Australia.
Bioenergy and carbon farming opportunities in the Pilbara

Robert Sudmeyer, Kim Brooksbank, and David Rogers

The Pilbara region covers 270 000 square kilometres of north-west Western Australia. Its main agricultural land use is pastoralism, with beef cattle grazing native pastures. Currently, only 24km² is under irrigation, with irrigated fodder the principal crop, but this could expand to 100km². This expansion ... Read more
Biomass scoping study: opportunities for agriculture in Western Australia

Kim Brooksbank, Mitchell Lever, Harriet Paterson, and Melissa Weybury

This 2014 report aims to provide a summary of national and international activity in the use of agricultural by-products for the production of bioenergy and biofuels. The summary is primarily an internal report for the Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia (DAFWA), but will ... Read more
Soil acidity : a guide for WA farmers and consultants.

Chris Gazey, Stephen Davies, and Ron Master

Our first edition of Soil acidity: a guide for WA farmers and consultants in 2009 was a significant publication which brought together current knowledge on the management of soil acidity in WA in a user-friendly book. Three thousand printed copies were distributed and an interactive ... Read more
The agronomy jigsaw: Finding the pieces that maximise water use efficiency

David Hall; Paul Galloway; Jeremy Lemon; Ben Curtis; Andrew van Burgel; Kelly Kong; and Nigel Metz,

The Agronomy Jigsaw project is an initiative of the Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia (DAFWA) in collaboration with the South East Premium Wheat Growers Association (SEPWA) and Precision Agronomics Australia (PAA). The Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) funded the project under the ... Read more
Carbon farming in relation to Western Australian agriculture

Robert Sudmeyer, Jackson Parker, Tanmoy Nath, and Ananda Ghose

Carbon farming activities need to return multiple economic and environmental co-benefits to be attractive to land managers. This bulletin summarises concepts underlying carbon farming, how Australia accounts for greenhouse gas emissions and the potential for Western Australian land managers to participate in, and benefit from, ... Read more
Establishment guide for sub-tropical grasses : key steps to success

Geoff Allan Moore, Ronald J. Yates, Phil Barrett-Lennard, Phil Nichols, Brad Wintle, John Titterington, and Chris Loo

Sub-tropical perennial grasses are now widely sown in the Northern Agricultural region (NAR) and on the south coast of Western Australia (WA). Since 2000, more than 50 000 ha have been sown to perennial grasses in the NAR and about 150 000 ha on the ... Read more
Pasture condition guide for the Kimberley

Kathryn Ryan, Elizabeth Tierney, Paul Novelly, and Robert McCartney

This interactive guide has been produced as a tool for assessing pasture condition over a range of pasture types in the Kimberley. A pasture type is a distinctive mix of plant species, soil type and landscape position. For example, the Mitchell Grass Alluvial Plain Pasture ... Read more
Agricultural greenhouse gas emissions

Meredith Fairbanks, David Bowran, and Geraldine Pasqual

Agriculture contributes 15.5 per cent of Australia’s emissions (Figure 1), largely due to methane, from ruminant livestock digestion, nitrous oxide from soils and carbon dioxide from fossil fuel use (Australian National Greenhouse Accounts 2011; ABARES 2011).

This bulletin identifies current ways to reduce greenhouse gas ... Read more
Greener pastures 7 - A fresh look at nutrient losses from intensively managed pastures

Don Bennett, Bill Russell, Martin Staines, Richard Morris, Mike Bolland, and John Lucey

Dairy farmers in Western Australia have a long history of being concerned for the environment in which they live and work, from early involvement with Landcare District Committees through to participating in the various programs run in DairyCatch.

They have planted trees, organised soil testing ... Read more
Greener pastures 3 - Managing phosphorus in dairy pastures

Mike Bolland, Ian Guthridge, Bill Russell, Martin Staines, John Lucey, and Richard Morris

Between 1999 and 2009, soil testing was conducted in 48 dairy paddocks at Vasse Research Centre (VRC) in the south-west of Western Australia (WA). This study will be referred to as the VRC soil test study.

Phosphorus experiments were undertaken on partner farms of the ... Read more
Greener pastures 4 - Managing potassium in dairy pastures

Mike Bolland, Ian Guthridge, Bill Russell, Martin Staines, John Lucey, and Richard Morris

We undertook three studies into the potassium requirements of high rainfall pastures: 1. Between 1999 and 2009, soil testing was conducted in 48 dairy paddocks at Vasse Research Centre (VRC) in the south-west of Western Australia (WA). This study will be referred to as the ... Read more
Greener pastures 5 - Managing sulphur in dairy pastures

Mike Bolland, Ian Guthridge, Bill Russell, Martin Staines, John Lucey, and Richard Morris

During 1999-2009, soil testing for sulfur (S) was undertaken on 48 paddocks at the Vasse Research Centre (VRC) at Busselton, in the south-west of Western Australia (WA).

Paddocks had been grazed intensively by dairy cows and their young stock over a period of 10 years, ... Read more
Greener pastures 6 - Managing soil acidity in dairy pastures

Mike Bolland, Bill Russell, Martin Staines, Richard Morris, John Lucey, and D L. Bennett

During 1999-2009, soil testing for pH (in CaCl2) was used to determine lime application for 48 paddocks at the Vasse Research Centre at Busselton, in the south-west of Western Australia (WA).

Paddocks had been grazed intensively by dairy cows and their young stock over a ... Read more
Changing climate, changing business practices : lessons from innovative growers

David Gray, Nicole Baxter, Meredith Fairbanks, and Geraldine Pasqual

Climate change and increasing seasonal variability are challenging the production efforts of growers in lower rainfall environments of the Western Australian grain belt. Significantly less rainfall than the long-term average has fallen across southwest Western Australia during the past 30 years.

Seasonal rainfall has also ... Read more