SW SW Drought Resilience Adoption & Innovation Hub ~ Albany Node
SCF acts as a Regional Node Lead Organisation for the SW WA Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub, led by the Grower Group Alliance (GGA).
Funded by the Australian Government’s $5 billion Future Drought Fund (FDF), the SW WA Hub implements activities such as the collaborative $4 million WaterSmart Dams initiative, funded by the FDF and the State Government.
Led by the GGA, the Hub is utilising and leveraging the power of the GGA grower group network ‘hub and spoke’ model to facilitate greater innovation from ‘the ground up’. Grower groups are among the Hub’s more than 50 consortium partners, which represent all sectors of the WA agricultural supply chain and are providing cash and in-kind co-contributions. This focus on collaboration will enable the SW WA Hub to make agricultural research impactful and accessible, increasing innovation and commercialisation opportunities.
The Australian Government has expanded the remit of the SW WA Hub beyond drought resilience to agricultural innovation. However, drought resilience remains a core priority.
Vision
Thriving producers and communities adapting to our variable environment
Mission
Be a connected and trusted partner building pathways to accelerate innovation and adoption
Node mini projects in focus
Mapping summer weeds using drones to reduce on-farm water use, labour and chemical costs
This project, run by SCF, aims to test the efficiency and effectiveness of utilising drone imagery data for the targeted ground spraying of summer weeds. It also aims to quantify the potential saving in water use and labour efficiency and saving in costs of blanket spraying paddocks.
Results show that it is very possible to save both water and $ using targeted ground spraying of summer weeds based on drone imagery data (Table 1).
Table 1. Water requirements, chemical costs and area of weeds sprayed (as a % of paddock) for 4 different drone map models compared to blanket spraying the whole paddock.
Stay tuned for complete results in our case study, coming soon!
What’s happening in the region?
Improving the efficiency of farm dams
Katanning Landcare have recently completed a series of case studies on improving the efficiency of farm dams using a range of methodologies, including dam covers, roaded catchments, and dam enhancement. We share some of the key results from their dam cover case study below.
Why look at dam covers?
Annual rainfall in Katanning is approximately 400mm per year. Annual evaporation is approximately 1500-1600mm per year – four times more than rainfall! Reducing evaporation from dams could result in a huge saving of water stored in farm dams.
What is a dam cover?
Dam covers are physical barriers to evaporation which cover the surface of the water. There are a range of types available including floating mats, hexagonal disks, floating balls and fixed membranes.
Key results
Katanning Landcare trialled floating dam mats over the summers of 2022-23 (Year 1) and 2023-24 (Year 2), on two typical farm paddock dams each year. Covered dams in the trial consistently showed less daily water loss than their paired control dam (no cover) (Figure 1).
The covers, as trialled, were not yet sufficiently robust in construction for use in a ‘set & forget’ manner. The seams on the edging join tore on some panels. Three times during the study period, the covers bunched up after strong winds, all due to either tether ropes breaking (stronger rope needed) or eyelets pulling out. Feedback to the manufacturer was provided. The Katanning Landcare team believe improvements can be easily made for the future and noted that the main ‘bubble wrap’ material of the covers themselves had no noted issues.
Contact Ella Maesepp at Katanning Landcare, ella@katanninglandcare.org.au, 9821 4327 for further information.
Katanning Landcare has produced a series of case studies on methods to improve farm dam efficiency as part of a project funded through the Future Drought Fund. To download these, click on the buttons below.
Improving Dams Case Studies
Figure 1. Water loss through evaporation for covered versus uncovered dams in the Katanning study measured in mm/day. Percentage coverage of the surface water changed over the summer as water levels dropped, ranges of coverage for the study period are indicated as a percentage under the x axis.
Albany Node Updates
SW WA Drought Hub Newsletters
Useful Links
SW WA Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub
Head to the main Hub website for further information on the SW Drought Hub and it’s activities.
Climate Great Southern
Developed by Stirlings to Coast Farmers under funding support from the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund, Climate Great Southern acts as your one-stop location for current weather conditions, soil moisture levels, pasture forecasting and climate resources in the Great Southern region of Western Australia.
My Climate View
My Climate View enables you to explore climate information relevant to your location and commodity, wherever you are across Australia. Climate information includes:
- past data from 1965 to now
- seasonal forecasts for the upcoming 1–3 months
- climate projections for the 2030s, 2050s and 2070s.
This project received funding from the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund