Natural Heritage - Number 27
The Journal of the Natural Heritage Trust
Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Australia
Department of the Environment and Heritage, Autumn 2006
ISSN 1440-7256
PDF file
About this document
Australian farmers provide not only for our own population but also some 50 million people in other countries.
This edition of Natural Heritage showcases Australia’s sustainable farming practices, which help meet our current needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.
Sound farming practices are vital if we are to sustain our strong exports, solid economy and contribution to the world’s food supply.
In years past, dust storms were a common feature in Australia. But today, due to sustainable farming practices such as stubble retention and minimum till or no-till, we have reduced dust storm days from 200 a year in the 1960s to fewer than 20.
Sustainable agriculture is pivotal to the $3 billion Natural Heritage Trust and the $1.4 billion National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality. Substantial funding is being sown from these two major programmes, with some $517 million being invested in natural resource management in regional areas. We are now reaping the rewards with more than 9,000 hectares of agricultural land improved through planting perennial pastures, which combats dryland salinity and acid soils.
More sustainable irrigation systems are now in place on more than 5,500 hectares of land and almost 4.5 million hectares of land has been managed for pest plants and animals.
The Australian Government continues to promote the sensible use of our precious natural resources – such as soil, nutrients and water – so that they are not used up at a rate faster than they are replenished.
With soil being the very foundation of agricultural production, the Natural Heritage Trust is investing $5 million over the next four years to the Healthy Soils for Sustainable Farms program, an initiative that holds great promise for increased productivity.
The program is about farmers, soil scientists and agronomists working together to improve soil health and agricultural production. Under the program, farmers will increasingly use practices like crop rotations, nitrogen-fixing crops, raisedbed farming, remote sensing and radiometrics.
In North Queensland, a group of sugar cane farmers near Ayr are monitoring water quality and installing irrigation recycling pits to help minimise nutrient and chemical run-off into natural drainage systems and the Great Barrier Reef.
In south-west Western Australia the National Action Plan is supporting the jointly-funded $30 million Collie River Salinity Recovery Project, which aims to get the Wellington Dam healthy again and make water suitable for drinking by 2015.
The mighty River Murray is getting a helping hand from salt interception schemes are preventing more than 1000 tonnes of salt from entering the River Murray system every day.
As owners and managers of 60 per cent of Australia’s land, farmers are leading the way in adopting sustainable agricultural practices. Farmers are using improved technology, controlling erosion, changing stock grazing practices, protecting native vegetation and undertaking sustainable water and soil management practices.
The Australian Government commends farmers for their steadfast dedication and supports them completely in their quest for a sustainable and prosperous agricultural industry.
Senator Ian Campbell
Australian Minister for the Environment and Heritage
Peter McGauran
Australian Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
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