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SCIENCE TO PRACTICE WORKSHOP - MANJIMUP 8 JUNE 2023

In support of this year’s Science to Practice Forum, the SW WA Hub will host an in-person workshop at Manjimup on June 8, supported by Southern Forests Food Council and the South West Catchments Council.

Check out the program here.

This free event will showcase outcomes from projects supported by the Future Drought Fund and how they can be put into practice on WA farms. With dual themes of precision agtech and water management, the event will provide applicable and practical outcomes for producers.

Register here https://bit.ly/41Guc6u

ONGOING DROUGHT HUB PROJECTS

DROUGHT RESILIENCE SELF ASSESSMENT TOOL (DR.SAT)

The Drought Resilience Self-Assessment Tool (DR.SAT) is a free tool that enables farmers to assess their resilience against climate change including drought and other climate risks. Resilience assessments include financial, personal & social, and environmental indicators. Based on farmers’ individual assessments, the tool provides tailored options and resources to support farmers to build resilience.

CLIMATE SERVICES FOR AGRICULTURE

Jointly developed by CSIRO and the Bureau of Meteorology to deliver tailored weather data and projections to producers.
The CSA platform helps you understand the historical, seasonal and future climate at your location to help inform decisions for your business. It provides you with historical data (1961-most recent year gone by), seasonal forecasts (1-3 months) as well as future climate projections based on the 15 years before and after 2030, 2050 and 2070, for a given location.

RELATED PROJECTS

INTEGRATED TREES ON FARM

On 31 May the SFFC attended the Integrated Trees On Farm information session organised by the South West Timber Hub and Warren Catchment Council.

The session included information for producers wanting to integrate more tree plantings on their farm or who may be interested in larger tree farming opportunities via WAPRES or Wespine.

An easy tool for assessing if your property may be viable for a project is the Decision Tree, available online. Simply map out the area you think may be suitable and FULLCAM plus satellite data can calculate a projected yield, growth rate and carbon storage based on location and weather data.

 

Key takeaways from the day:

  • Tree plantings can provide many benefits like stock shelter, reduce erosion, aesthetics, potential income when harvested, potential carbon credits for projects over 20ha

  • All tree plantings require ongoing maintenance and pruning to increase quality of saw logs, reduce fire risk, provide stock shelter, reduce damage to surrounding fencing or infrastructure and prevent a costly cleanup bill for a 30 yr old unmanaged forest

  • Insurance for large scale tree plantings is becoming harder to secure. Wespine are looking to self-insure via pooling funding with project holders to avoid external insurance brokers

  • Tree cover on up to 20% of a farm can increase yields even to horticulture crops and provide multiple co-benefits. Over the 20% threshold can see opportunity cost for productive land

  • Demand for softwood will grow over next 20 years with current supply unable to keep up. As land values rise, profit sharing arrangements will be more generous for landowners than in the past

SW WA DROUGHT RESILIENCE ADOPTION AND INNOVATION HUB
REGIONAL NODE - MANJIMUP ZONE

The South-West WA Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub (SW WA Hub) is harnessing the power of collaboration to enhance drought and climate resilient practices and accelerate innovation and adoption.

The SW WA Hub is set to transform the way farmers and communities prepare for and respond to drought. It has strong support from all segments of the WA supply chain and SW WA Hub partners are providing significant co-contributions. 

The SW WA Hub has appointed Regional Node Leads, which will provide guidance on priority issues impacting the drought and climate resilience of farming systems, their industries and communities.

 

Through nominated managers, the Regional Node Leads will help link the Hub to end users by gathering and sharing knowledge, coordinating local activities and support Hub activities. Node Lead positions are aligned with Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development office locations.

Regional Node Leads include:

  • Merredin and Districts Farm Improvement Group (MADFIG) – Merredin

  • South East Premium Wheat Growers Association – Esperance

  • Facey Group – Narrogin

  • Stirlings to Coast Farmers – Albany

  • Southern Forests Food Council – Manjimup

  • South West Catchments Council – Bunbury

  • Northern Agricultural Catchments Council – Geraldton

  • Rangelands NRM Co-ordinating Group – Carnarvon

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The Manjimup Regional Node Lead is engaged through the Southern Forests Food Council and supported by the South-West WA Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub, through funding from the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund.

Contact Manjimup Regional Node Leader - Jennifer Riseley on marketing@southernforestsfood.com or 08 9772 4180.

The SW WA Hub has developed a Situation Analysis for the South West region to provide baseline knowledge of drought-related agricultural initiatives that have occurred in recent years and to identify ‘gaps’ where new opportunities could enhance outcomes in a hotter, drier climate.

A workshop was held with the South West Regional Advisory Committee in August 2022 to agree on priority projects to be developed for the Future Drought Fund bid. The intended outcomes of the workshop was that:

•    Priority projects meet FDF guidelines
•    Regional and industry need is clearly described
•    Targeted consultation and scientific rigour underpins each project
 

We now ask for industry feedback on the South West priorities which can be found at the links below.

To provide feedback on the above, please contact Regional Node Leader Jennifer Riseley on marketing@southernforestsfood.com or 9772 4180.

PRIORITY PROJECTS

FUTURE DROUGHT FUND

Australia’s Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hubs are part of the Australian Government’s $5 billion Future Drought Fund. They will provide networks for researchers, primary producers, community groups and others to work together to enhance drought resilient practices within their region. This focus on collaboration will make agricultural research useful and accessible, increasing innovation and commercialisation opportunities.

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