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Attendees at the Monkira Field Day inspect a dam liner that
prevents water seepage.
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The 21st Century Pastoralism™ project aims to
increase the economic viability of desert pastoral enterprises by
solving key industry challenges. Research priorities in
21st Century Pastoralism™ are based on extensive
consultation with pastoralists, industry bodies and researchers,
and build on work from an earlier phase of DKCRC projects. These
earlier projects include: understanding the
pros and cons of buffel grass1; incentive payments
to value pastoralists as environmental stewards2;
wind erosion forecasting and land condition management3;
and rotational grazing systems4.
Outcomes
- Pastoralists using new technologies that allow them to remotely
monitor and manage cattle and sheep, thereby reducing their cost of
production.
- More Aboriginal people actively working in the pastoral
industry and having more controlling interests.
- More pastoralists aware of and adopting off-the-shelf solutions
for better water storage, reticulation and monitoring, thereby
reducing costs and increasing productivity.
- Pastoralists more aware of the pros and cons of rotational
grazing and intensification options for arid rangeland pastoral
properties.
Project components
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Max Brady of Darling Downs Tarpaulins explains the
Evap-Cap: a dam cover that prevents evaporation. In the foreground
is the Observant telemetry system. The solar panels supply power to
the computer (under the panels). The computer gathers information
from the tipping bucket rain gauge and the dam, and sends it back
to the station.
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This project meshes telemetry and automated systems to allow
remote monitoring and management of infrastructure (e.g. water
pumps) and stock (e.g. automatic drafting gates) to lower pastoral
production costs and increase the precision of animal and herd
management decisions.
Evaluating current approaches to Aboriginal pastoral development
to improve the economic, social and environmental impacts for both
Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal pastoralists. Reports on this
consultative research include an
Indigenous Pastoral Employment Review, an evaluation of the
Kimberley Indigenous Management Support Service and the Indigenous
Pastoral Program. This research is funded by Meat and Livestock
Australia, Indigenous Land Corporation and the Government of
Western Australia.
This project is complementary to the ‘Remote management
technologies’ project and is aimed at demonstrating and
promoting holistic water monitoring and management through
techniques such as off-the-shelf telemetry systems, evaporation and
leakage control, solar pumps and best-practice information
brokering. The project is funded by the Natural Heritage Trust.
More detailed information is found at: www.desertknowledgecrc.com.au/watersmart
4. Grazing systems project
This project developed a national perspective on rotational
grazing and intensification options for rangelands pastoralists. It
did this by establishing commercial-scale trials of rotation
systems, by developing a network of producers testing similar ideas
and collating their successes and problems, and by supporting this
network by providing management options that deliver relevant
materials through training processes. This project was funded
through the National Landcare Program, and case studies that were
completed for 13 different grazing systems can be found on the
working
papers page or at the bottom of this page (working papers
49–61).
Project leader and partners:
Andrew Bubb is a project leader in the DKCRC. He manages a
national team of researchers working on a range of diverse projects
that aim to make desert pastoral enterprises more sustainable and
profitable now and into the future.
The project’s particpants are:
(www.desertknowledgecrc.com.au/watersmart)
Telemetry Cost Recovery Calculator
Use this tool to
work out the rough costs and savings of installing a telemetry
network on your property. The results might surprise you.
Remote Management field day
The 21st Century Pastoralism project held a Remote Management
field day at Napperby station on the 19th-20th of October 2007.
Please follow the FAQ link
for more information.
For program details and further information, download the
handbook.
Notes
1. Friedel
M et al. 2006. Buffel grass: both friend and foe. An evaluation of
the advantages and disadvantages of buffel grass use and
recommendations for future research. DKCRC Research Report 17,
Desert Knowledge CRC, Alice Springs.
2. Smyth A
et al. 2007. Enabling the market: incentives for biodiversity in
the rangelands: report to the Australian Government Department of
the Environment and Water Resources by the Desert Knowledge
Cooperative Research Centre. DKCRC Research Report 18, Desert
Knowledge CRC, Alice Springs.
3. McTainsh G et al. 2008. Wind erosion risk management for more
environmentally sustainable primary production. DKCRC Research
Report 24, Desert Knowledge CRC, Alice Springs.
4. Cain, A et al. 2008. Rangelands grazing management strategies
for improved economics and resource sustainability in central
Australia. DKCRC Research Report, Desert Knowledge CRC, Alice
Springs.
