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Soil Quality: 9 Gravel Soil
No full textThe Soil Quality ebook series is a resource for farmers, agricultural professionals and students. Experts from their fields share current knowledge and best practice techniques in interactive layers of information, allowing readers to choose the level of detail they require.
Book 9 Gravel Soil explains characteristics and impact of ironstone gravel particles on soil processes and function important to broadacre agriculture. Providing a detailed understanding of the role and functioning of gravel particles, this publication covers the implications for a range of agricultural management practices supported by current research results and case studies.https://library.dpird.wa.gov.au/sq_ebooks/1008/thumbnail.jp
Control of Barley Grass in the Low Rainfall Zone Farming Systems
No full textBarley grass infestations of cereal crops have increased in southern and western Australia. GRDC partners in these regions tested localised integrated weed management strategies at demonstration sites in key low-rainfall zones.
This publication captures the results of this research and on-farm practices that are working for growers.https://library.dpird.wa.gov.au/books/1026/thumbnail.jp
The role packaging plays in minimising food waste
No full textNerida Kelton has worked in the Packaging industry for over 24 years and is the Vice President Sustainability & Save Food for the World Packaging Organisation and the Executive Director for the Australian Institute of Packaging. Nerida is passionate about Sustainable & Circular Packaging and Save Food Packaging Design and is the lead for the Save Food Packaging Consortium project within the Fight Food Waste Cooperative Research Centre. She was also the packaging representative on the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment’s National Food Waste Strategy Steering committee. At Turning the Dial, Nerida Kelton’s presentation was titled the role packaging plays in minimising food waste
Your customers are demanding that your business be sustainable
No full textAt Turning the Dial, Mark Field discussed your customers are demanding that your business be sustainable. Mark is the founder and CEO of Prof Consulting Group, an award-winning international consulting group specialising across the food and grocery supply chains. Prof supports their clients through growth consulting through innovation, new market access and strategic procurement, in addition to running a dedicated ESG team specialising in human rights, animal welfare, sustainable packaging, and environmental operations. The ability to bring ESG and Growth into the same conversation or strategy helps deliver profitable long-term outcomes. Mark is a former Group Technical Director for UK Based 2 Sisters Food Group and Head of Coles Own Brand, Coles Supermarkets, Australia
Using intervention analysis to evaluate the trends in release rates of recreational fisheries following extensive management changes
No full textChanges to management of a fisheries resource are often required to ensure ongoing sustainability. However, such changes can sometimes lead to unintended effects such as increased release rates and associated post-release mortality. These effects may be highly variable between species and areas. Recreational fishing management changes were introduced on the west coast of Australia in 2009/10 to recover stocks of demersal scalefish. Key changes included reducing mixed species bag limits across management zones and increasing the minimum size limit for one species in some management zones. The restrictive catch limits resulted in increased release rates of key demersal species. However, whether such increases are significant and sustained over time, and thus of management concern, have not been evaluated. We carried out intervention time series analysis to evaluate the impact of management changes on release rates of four key demersal species for the recreational sector in metropolitan and regional management zones covering ∼8° latitude using an 18-year time series of charter recreational fishery data from July 2002 to January 2020. We observed varying responses in release rates by species and zones, the most common of which were a step increase, a ramp and a temporary increase that decayed. These responses may be related to targeted management changes which influenced fisher behaviour, perceived recreational value of some species and recruitment variation. Our study demonstrates that intervention analysis, which has seen limited use in this context, can assist in evaluating the impact of management changes on different species for recreational fisheries
Biosecurity Council of Western Australia annual report 2022/2023
No full textDuring 2022/23, the Council continued to monitor biosecurity related developments at national and state levels and proactively engaged with industry, community, and government on biosecurity matters.
The statutory review of the BAM Act also provided opportunities for Council’s previous reports and recommendations to be used as a solid information source for the responsible reviewing agency and its consultants
Extending the capsicum growing season under semi-arid climate by using a suitable protected cropping structure
No full textCarnarvon is a key horticultural district in Western Australia which is located approximately 900 km north of Perth and is characterised by a semi-arid climate. In Carnarvon, capsicum (Capsicum annuum L.) is the second most important vegetable crop after tomato, with approximately 3700 tonnes of capsicum fruit produced annually with a farm gate value of AUD 13.5 million. High temperatures, excessive sunlight, low air humidity, and strong wind in spring and summer are major impediments to the achievement of high yield and quality of capsicum in this region. Capsicums are usually planted between March (early autumn) and May (late autumn), and the harvest is usually finished by October (spring) of the same year when grown under shade net houses. However, the internal microenvironment in the shade net houses is sub-optimal for the crop in the early and late growing season due to excessive temperatures and low humidity, resulting in a shorter harvest window and lower production. This study was conducted to examine the possibilities to extend the cropping season for capsicum varieties (i.e., Chevello and Chevi) grown under the retractable roof production system (RRPS) and explore an alternative protected cropping structure that is more affordable and suitable to grow vegetable crops under Carnarvon weather conditions. Overall, the results showed that capsicums planted in February (planting 1) performed better than specimens planted later on in the season: planting 1 performed better and yielded the highest marketable fruit yield (102.6 t ha−1) compared to those planted in early April (planting 2, 72.5 t ha−1) and late May (planting 3, 36.1 t ha−1). The RRPS effectively mitigated the adverse weather conditions and provided a more optimised internal microenvironment for vigorous crop establishment in late summer and an extended harvest in late spring, leading to a higher marketable fruit yield per crop. The total soluble solids were cultivar-specific, with the Brix level of Chevello changing with planting time while those of Chevi remained constant. The study identifies the potential for an alternative protected cropping structure, i.e., the modified multi-span polytunnels. The technical feasibility and affordability of the alternative protected cropping structure is also discussed
Consumption of shark products: The interface of sustainability, trade (mis)labelling, human health and human rights
No full textSharks and rays evolved 450 million years ago, during the Late Ordovician Period. However, during the modern Anthropocene, shark populations have declined at considerable rates, and recent global assessments indicate about one in three species is threatened with extinction. A notable reason for this elevated extinction risk is overfishing linked to increased demand for shark fins and other products. Here, we review multiple dimensions of consuming shark products, ranging from stock sustainability, product (mis)labelling and trade, the human health implications of consuming shark products, and illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and slavery and labour abuses in the fishing industry. We conclude that traceability and increased transparency in seafood supply chains is essential to overcome obstacles to consumption of sustainable, ethical and healthy shark products. We also provide a decision tree outlining steps in consumer choice that would foster such consumption. Our aim is to provide a holistic view on issues concerning the consumption of shark products that will help policymakers, the public, management and law enforcement agencies to advocate for ecologically- and ethically sustainable consumption of shark products and thereby empower the general public to make informed decisions on which shark products they consume
Population genomic and size distribution data suggest high genetic connectivity in the sandbar shark (Carcharhinus plumbeus) along a 2700 km coastline
No full textUnderstanding patterns of connectivity in exploited elasmobranchs is vital to their successful management and ongoing sustainability. In this study we use 1480 nuclear SNP loci to investigate fine-scale genetic connectivity in sandbar sharks (Carcharhinus plumbeus) along the Western Australian coastline into the Timor Sea with high statistical power. The genetic dataset was combined with latitudinal and depth size distribution data to increase our understanding of population structuring of this species along the continuous Western Australian coastline. Genetic analyses based on traditional and Bayesian approaches found no evidence of restrictions to nuclear gene flow in sandbar sharks between Albany on the south coast and the Timor Sea to the north. The size distributions reveal a size-segregated population, with juveniles predominantly found in deeper water in the south of the state, and adults predominantly in shallower northern waters. The combination of these genomic and size datasets indicates that sandbar sharks form a single population within Western Australia. Levels of genetic diversity, e.g. observed and expected heterozygosity and allelic richness, in this population were high, implying that the size of the population is relatively large. The results have important management implications; despite forming a single biological stock, the species’ size segregation highlights the importance of ongoing management to minimize the likelihood of growth overfishing in the south of the state. Also, the stock extends into the Timor Sea where unmanaged Indonesian fishing may impact sustainability in Western Australian waters
Fine-scale variability in catch and growth rates of western rock lobsters (Panulirus cygnus) show heterogeneous life-history parameters
No full textContext: The western rock lobster fishery is recognised to be conservatively managed, with breeding stock levels estimated to be at record levels over the past decade. Despite this, anecdotal reports from commercial fishers identified an area of unexpectedly low catches in the centre of the fishery and lobsters’ biogeographic distribution.
Aim: To confirm the presence of this suspected ‘low-catch’ zone and examine the variability in catch and growth rates of lobsters if identified.
Methods: This study conducted an intensive mark–recapture survey over 8 months to explore catch rate, density, movement and growth rates across this ‘low-catch’ zone and three comparable locations.
Key results: In total, 9318 lobsters were caught and 7565 individuals were tagged during the study. Consistently low catch rates of under-sized lobsters were observed in the ‘low-catch’ zone, with catch rates increasing with distance from the zone. By contrast, similar catch rates of legal-sized lobsters were observed across all locations.
Conclusions: The study confirmed low catch rates, for under-sized lobsters, within an area of perceived low catch rates within the centre of the fishery. The lack of difference found in legal-sized catch rates among locations is likely to be due to the low fishing pressure in the ‘low-catch’ zone, resulting from hyperstability of fishers adapting to the historical perceived low catch rate. Modelled data demonstrated the ‘low-catch’ zone to be associated with faster growth rates and high fine-scale migration, indicating a potential release from density-dependent processes.
Implications: We anticipate that these results will be a useful starting point for future research into the mechanisms responsible for the unexpectedly low catch of sublegal lobsters within the ‘low-catch’ zone and the implications it may have on the wider population, both regionally and across the species distribution