Highlights of 2008/09

• The Indigenous Pastoral Employment Review was submitted to Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) and the Indigenous Land Corporation (ILC). Initial findings were presented by Mr Mark Ashley to an MLA employment forum in Brisbane, and the full report was presented to the Northern Beef Research Advisory Committee. The final reports of evaluation of the Northern Territory Indigenous Pastoral Program and the Western Australian Kimberley Indigenous Management Support Service were submitted to the ILC and the Department of Agriculture WA.
• Mr Andy Bubb visited the Western Australian Indigenous Pastoral Group to present project findings and to identify future opportunities for collaboration and research on Aboriginal land. The level of development of the Aboriginal pastoral businesses in the Kimberley is high, and many of the findings of the project are directly applicable.
• The remote livestock management system (RLMS), which consists of the walk-over weighing, auto-drafter, radiofrequency tag reader and telemetry control system, was developed and demonstrated to producers. Prototype II of an automatic drafter for cattle showed 93% drafting accuracy. Mr Tim Driver of CAWD Engineering relocated to Napperby Station, accelerating development.
• Demonstrations of the RLMS were made at the Alice Springs and Tennant Creek shows. The utilising technology project also featured in a story on the ABC TV program Landline, resulting in increased interest in the project through the website and direct contact from the public. Representatives of University of Queensland, University of Southern Queensland, Bengalla Agribusiness, RPM Rural and Queensland South West NRM visited Napperby to view the RLMS and view opportunities for collaboration.
• Dr Craig James, Tim Driver (CAWD) and Mr Roy Chisholm (Napperby Station) attended the biannual Del Campo al Plato (‘From Field to Plate’) conference in Uruguay to outline the work with the RLMS and precision pastoralism. Andy Bubb presented a paper outlining the findings of the WaterSmart Pastoralism™ at the Australian Rangelands Conference. Andy and Mark Ashley met with pastoral managers at the North Australian Beef Research Council’s meeting in Alice Springs. The team showcased their work at Beef Australia 2009 in Rockhampton, Queensland.
• The WaterSmart Pastoralism™ project drew to a close, following a successful three-year research program. It delivered considerable benefits to the pastoral industry by highlighting cost-effective solutions for pastoral managers: the telemetry systems evaluated within the project achieved a cost reduction for water supply and maintenance of 30–50% per station ($25 000–73 000) and had a payback period of 6–24 months. Widespread engagement with the pastoral industry saw over 500 people attending the field days held at the research properties. We estimate that people came to these field days from a combined area of 280 000 km².