Hundreds hear about impacts of change
From the October 2008 edition of Agriculture Today.
Incentive funding and training to assist with long-term drought preparedness and natural resource management has fine tuned the dryland water management skills of 150 landholders around NSW.
The Farm Water Supply and Climate Risk workshops are one part of a broader drought management and climate change project delivered by NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) and Catchment Management Authorities.
More than 750 people who manage more than three million hectares have attended other strands of training in the project, including Drought Recovery Strategies and Drought Planning; Stockplan; and Managing Land Capability, Soil Erosion and Groundcover.
Farm Water Supply and Climate Risk workshops were held at 12 towns to ensure good coverage in the catchment areas involved in the project - Albury, Balranald, Berrigan, Bourke, Broken Hill, Cobar, Condobolin, Deniliquin, Nyngan, Inverell, Walgett and Young.
"Decreasing water quality as a consequence of more extreme climate conditions was a key factor in conception of the course," DPI advisory officer, Damien Doyle, said.
"Higher temperatures, increased turbidity through stock disturbance and reduced inflows have exacerbated biological contamination of water.
"Runoff, predicted to remain erratic and extreme due to climate change, has also contributed higher levels of nutrients in water and sedimentation, reducing farm and catchment water quality and supply reliability."
The water and climate workshops educate participants on climate change impacts, highlighting the importance of effective land and water management on a dryland mixed farm and on a catchment scale.
Paula Charnock, one of the DPI team who helped deliver the workshops, found most landholders had an idea of their current water supply and future requirements but had not sat down to put the figures on paper.
When working through the farm water budget exercises, some participants expressed their surprise at how much water was needed to run both their business and their household.
By focusing on water auditing, planning and quality, the workshops enabled landholders to assess their water requirements, infrastructure needs and preparedness for dry times.
Almost all respondents indicated they either have, will, or will consider making management changes after attending one of the training courses.
The one-day Farm Water Supply and Climate Risk course is now available through NSW DPI Murrumbidgee Rural Studies Centre at various locations on demand.
Contact Murrumbidgee Rural Studies Centre, 1800 628 422.
