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Is your farm climate ready?
January was a warm month for Western Australia, in fact, the warmest on record.  But the climate pain doesn’t end there.  Overall, rainfall in summer 2018-19 was the fifth-lowest on record, lowest since summer 2004-05 for WA (BOM 2019).

The Bureau of Meteorology’s rainfall outlook suggest the chance of April to June rainfall being above median is close to 50% across the country, meaning there is no indication that the coming three months will be significantly wetter or drier than average.

The implications for agriculture are significant with implications for management, types of production, processing and products. On-farm consequences include wind and water erosion, salinisation, frost and fire risk, spread of weeds, livestock heat stress etc.

What are you doing to ensure your farm is climate ready?

Visit the Climate Action Farming website for more information or check out Climate-ready agriculture: a situation statement for Western Australia (PDF 470kB).
 
If you have any questions about this event please contact the South Coast NRM team on 08 9845 8537.

South coast WA projects successful in latest round of Smart Farms

Successful projects for the Smart Farm Small Grants Round 2 have just been announced with a number of projects in the South Coast region funded.

Stirlings to Coast Farmers Inc and Fitzgerald Biosphere Group both received funding for a range of projects including one around building resilient farming systems in the face of increasing climate variability.
South Coast NRM Land and Water Program Manager David Broadhurst said, “It is fantastic news for agriculture in region to receive such a much needed investment. Congratulations to all of the successful applicants.”

More details on the funded projects can be found at:  http://www.agriculture.gov.au/ag-farm-food/natural-resources/landcare/national-landcare-program/australian-government-investment-in-landcare

Applications for the larger scale Smart Farming Partnership Grants are now open and close on the 17th of May. For more information on these grants visit:  https://www.communitygrants.gov.au/grants/national-landcare-program-smart-farming-partnerships-round-2
 

FHA second lump sum payment


The second lump sum payment is now available for farmers who qualify for the Farm Household Allowance (FHA).

This instalment will provide couples in a household with up to an additional $6,000 (if both people are receiving FHA) and single households will receive $3,600.
FHA recipients between 2 December 2018 and 1 June 2019 will automatically receive the additional payment.

The FHA net farm asset threshold will remain at the increased limit of $5 million through to 30 June 2019.

These measures will help farmers manage through the current drought, and other hardship.

Don’t self-assess – call the Farmer Assistance Hotline 132 316 or see a rural financial counsellor to assess your eligibility today. This is a free service. Call 1800 686 175 or visit agriculture.gov.au/rfcs.
 

Game-changing landscape management workshops held across Australia

NRM Regions Australia and Geoscience Australia have completed five collaborative workshops with natural resource managers from across the nation to make use of geoscience data to help manage our natural resources.

The workshops provided a better understanding of how geoscience data can inform the management of Australia’s groundwater resources, soil health, and our agricultural regions.

Geoscience Australia’s Chief Scientist, Dr Steve Hill, said the workshops held in Darwin, Melbourne, Sydney, Perth and Brisbane, aimed to improve how regional NRM organisations and Geoscience Australia work together.

“It’s great to see the different applications that can benefit from information that Geoscience Australia has made freely available,” Dr Hill said.

Chair of NRM Regions Australia, Emma Jackson, said natural resource managers need this information to plan activities across the landscape, monitor outcomes and adapt strategies based on changing conditions.

“These workshops were the first phase of an ongoing collaboration that will tackle some of the biggest challenges facing natural resource management in a changing climate."

“This collaboration is just what we need to be able to show the results of the great work we’ve been doing on the ground over many years – and will help us plan and improve what we do, where we do it and how.”

The collaboration between Geoscience Australia and NRM Regions Australia launched in May 2018 at the National NRM Chairs’ Forum, with the aim to utilise the power of data for the good of the environment.

For more information head to the GeoScience Australia Inc. website.

Hopetoun success provides inspiration

A recent direct seeding revegetation workshop held in Hopetoun provided inspiration for the nearly 30 people who attended.  A highlight was the 2014/15 South Coast NRM revegetation site on the Water Corporation property east of Hopetoun, which has been an incredible success.  This site has created great excitement, with native revegetation expert Dr Geoff Woodall saying this site would be in the top percent of successful sites in Australia.  Established on deep gutless sands, the Water Corp site is proving a game changer in how to use seed and seedlings in re-establishing Kwongkan Threatened Ecological Community habitat.

The workshop continued onto 3 other direct seeded revegetation sites between Hopetoun and Ravensthorpe, looking at different soil types and methods.  Participants were treated with Dr Geoff Woodall sharing his knowledge combined with local expertise and experiences from land managers/ owners.  A sincere thanks to the Water Corporation, Tony Turner and Keith & Christine Rowe for including their properties as part of the workshop.  Many healthy discussions, a fantastic spread of knowledge being shared and much inspiration for people to take home on how to successfully undertake revegetation programs.  

This workshop was made possible as part of South Coast NRM’s Coastal Threatened Ecological Communities Project, through funding from the Australian Government’s Regional Land Partnership’s Program.

For further information contact Robyn Cail, South Coast NRM.
ph: 0428 717685 email: robync@southcoastnrm.com.au                  
https://www.eianz.org/document/item/3792
 
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