NSW Salinity Strategy Permier's Annual Report 2002/03 · Salinity is the silent destroyer, slowly...

New South Wales

Government

M e e t i n g t h e c h a l l e n g e

NSW Salinity StrategyPremier’s Annual Report2002/03

ForewordSalinity is the silent destroyer, slowly killing trees,

poisoning the water table, destroying rural infrastructure.

The State faces few worse environmental problems.

The NSW response – the Salinity Strategy “Taking on the

Challenge” of August 2000 – is a landmark in practical

environmentalism. It sets a new benchmark for

cooperation between land managers, scientists, local

communities, the private sector and all levels of

government.

Three years later, I am pleased to advise that together

we are making solid progress in freeing our land from

the stranglehold of salinity.

More trees are being planted, farmers are changing

their farming practices, businesses are identifying

salinity-related opportunities, and schools are educating

our children on how to understand and beat this

insidious problem.

Furthermore, the Government’s native vegetation

management reforms announced in October 2003 give

the fight against salinity new strength and substance,

including greater empowerment of local communities

and significant funding - $436 million over 4 years.

In reporting on the solid progress to date, I want to

acknowledge everyone who has been working hard to

make our Strategy a reality, especially those in the field.

Your task is tough and the burden of work to be done

still immense. But your job is never thankless because

you have the gratitude and esteem of everyone in our

community who cares for our precious environment and

its future.

I commend this report and the dedicated men and

women whose achievements it documents.

Bob Carr

Premier

Annual Report 2002-03 1

2 NSW Salinity Strategy

Electro-magnetic Induction reading being taken down a groundwater monitoring bore

to gather information on changes in electrical conductivity

Contents

1. Highlights of achievements 4

2. Planning and managing change 6

3. Incentives for change 7

4. Working with the community 10

5. Improving our knowledge 13

6. Creating business opportunities 17

7. Smarter regulation 19

8. Glossary 20


The economists are assisting farmers by providingcost-benefit analyses to show that the financialbenefits of salt remediation outweigh the cost oflost production on farms as a result of salinity.

Salt Action Teams have delivered trainingprograms to frontline staff in the public and private sectors to ensure farmers get the latestsalinity knowledge. For example, workshops onthe latest techniques in salinity management have been run in the north-west of the State forprivate sector agronomists.

The Salt Teams in the central-west have workedwith NSW Agriculture and the Department ofEducation to develop the Salinity School Education kit. A CD has been produced whichtakes students on a ‘virtual tour’ of high prioritysalinity sites in the region. It is on trial with schools and could be developed for state-wideuse. The kit was submitted for the AustralianMuseum’s 2003 EPA Allan Strom Prize for the best Environmental Education Program.

It is three years since the launch of the NSW Salinity Strategy. Of the fifty-five actionsrecommended at the Dubbo Salinity Summit in2000, and outlined in the NSW Salinity Strategy,twenty-four have been completed. The rest areon-track and delivering good results.

The outcomes, information and tools beingdelivered by the NSW Salinity Strategy are the foundations for managing salinity in New South Wales.

Providing support for land managers

The Government is providing $3.3 million overfour years from NSW Salinity Strategy funding for six Salt Action Teams. The Teams supportfrontline staff by providing them with up-to-dateinformation and the latest research findings. This ensures farmers can apply the latestscientific knowledge to farm businesses.

The Commonwealth has provided an additional$1.2 million over 2 years under the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality for economists to work with the Teams.


Agronomists attending a Salt Action Team training program

discuss salinity management options

1. Highlights of achievements

Conservation, has been working with the Wiradjuripeople near Wellington to assess the impacts that salinity is having on Aboriginal heritage.

Salinity and land degradation generate socialimpacts on Aboriginal communities. For example,loss of wild foods and medicines limits people’scapacity to interact with the land and to pass on cultural knowledge. Strategies are beingdeveloped to address the problem of theseimpacts.

The Wiradjuri people’s views and knowledgeabout the health of the region and the river overthe last sixty years has been documented. The study is informing the development of natural resources management actions thataddress Indigenous values.

Helping councils manage urban salinity

The NSW Salinity Strategy includes the LocalGovernment Salinity Initiative to help councilsmanage salinity.

To date, six booklets have been produced,including: Indicators of Urban Salinity; BroadScale Resources for Urban Salinity; SiteInvestigations for Urban Salinity; Roads andSalinity; Building in a Saline Environment; and An Introduction to Urban Salinity.

Work has commenced on two further booklets,Groundwater Basics and Waterwise Parks and Gardens.

Environmental Education Plan

The NSW Environmental Education Plan wasreleased in December 2002. This will providedirection for education and training providers to incorporate salinity and its management intotheir courses.

Promoting salinity-related businessopportunities

SunSalt Larmon at Mourquong near Buronga, in the south-west corner of the State, has beenassisted by the Department of State andRegional Development. The company isextracting salt from saline water and marketing it to several domestic markets.

The company processed 6,000 tonnes in 2002-03, and in the current fiscal year is on track to process 13,000 tonnes. The salt fromMourquong is of outstanding quality withexcellent potential for domestic and exportgourmet food markets.

Qantas is now using SunSalt’s gourmet saltproducts in their food preparation. After a littlemore work, Qantas’ first class passengers will begiven small sachets of SunSalt with their meals.The company and its business were recentlyfeatured on the ABC TV program Catalyst.

Salinity audits

$250,000 was earmarked to undertake an audit of the Hunter, and North and South Coastcatchments. The Hunter Salinity Audit iscomplete and published. A final draft of theCoastal Salinity Audit is currently being editedand will be published soon.

Salinity targets have been set

Salinity targets have been included in all inlandCatchment Blueprints and the Hunter CatchmentBlueprint. Targets provide a goal for action andwill enable the new Catchment ManagementAuthorities to monitor the effectiveness of theirstrategies and investments to combat salinity.

Benchmarking biodiversity

The Government has spent $300,000 to quantifyand establish baseline data in major ecologicalcommunities in central New South Wales.Benchmarks have been completed for six major vegetation types and provide a simple,accountable and repeatable measure ofbiodiversity on farms and enable actionsundertaken by farmers to improve biodiversity to be measured.

Salinity and cultural heritage

The National Parks and Wildlife Service, now partof the new Department of Environment and


The local government

Salinity Kit includes

booklets to help

councils manage

urban salinity

Salinity targets and salinity monitoring

Salinity targets provide a key tool for monitoringthe outcomes of strategies and enable anassessment to be made as to whether thestrategies being employed to combat salinity are working.

The Government has budgeted $4.8 million over four years to ensure that robust methodsare used to assess progress against salinitytargets. Gauging stations for the monitoring ofsalinity at the end-reaches of major rivers andwithin catchments are fully operational. The stations have been externally audited by the Murray-Darling Basin Commission to ensurethat all stations meet hydrographic monitoringstandards.

The salinity monitoring information that iscollected is being made available to thecommunity on-line atwww.waterinfo.dlwc.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/sites_riis.epl. This web site will continueto be developed and includes other valuabledata such as river heights and flows.

Integrated, community-driven naturalresource management planning

The Government responded to the community’sdemand to play a primary role in sustainablymanaging the environment by establishingCatchment Management Boards. The Boardsdeveloped Catchment Blueprints, which setcatchment targets and identify strategies to meet these targets. The NSW Government hasendorsed the Catchment Blueprints.

The new Catchment Management Authoritieshave responsibility for regional natural resourcesmanagement and services, and build on thework undertaken to develop the Blueprints. The new bodies are locally-driven with fundingdirected to on-ground actions that the Authorities have identified. This will maximise the environmental, economic and socialoutcomes for their catchments.

Over $436 million has been allocated to thereforms including money from the NationalAction Plan for Salinity and Water Quality and the Natural Heritage Trust.


2. Planning and managing change

Monitoring water

quality can help

assess whether

management

strategies are

working

targeted environmental services programs andenable an assessment to be made of thepotential for greater involvement of the privatesector in the provision of environmental services.

Properties that have received EnvironmentalServices Scheme funding cover a variety offarming types including:

• Narrandera – a mixed livestock and cropping enterprise of 1,900 hectares where135 hectares of environmental planting,saltbush and native vegetation regenerationwill be established.

• Bingara – a group project comprisingsubstantial areas of pasture establishmentand improvement with strategicenvironmental plantings over approximately596 hectares.

• Narromine – a mixed livestock and cropping enterprise of 1,500 hectares whereextensive areas of saltbush andenvironmental/commercial plantings will becombined with native pasture managementand native vegetation regeneration overapproximately 1,000 hectares.

• Merriwa – a sheep and beef grazing propertyundertaking improved riparian managementover approximately 768 hectares of riverfrontland through establishment of native grasses,vegetation regeneration and environmentalplantings.

The experiences learned from the EnvironmentalServices Scheme is informing the developmentof the incentive programs announced as part ofthe Government’s new native vegetation reforms.Financial incentives, distributed throughCatchment Management Authorities, will assistland owners to actively manage and restorevegetation. The Government has committed$120 million over four years for targeted on-farm action.

Landowners, enterprises, community andindustry groups can all undertake actions toimprove water, soil and air quality, and restorebiodiversity. The challenge is to find moreeffective ways of protecting and enhancing ournatural resources while continuing productiveand sustainable land-use.

The NSW Government has budgeted $21 millionover four years to develop and implementmarket-based solutions to salinity. Theseinnovative schemes provide incentives for landusers to change their land managementpractices to ensure sustainable land-use.

Environmental Services Scheme

The Environmental Services Scheme isunderway. Over the past year 18 contracts withfarmers were signed, amounting to a total valueof $1.493 million and involving 8 516 hectares of land.

NSW Government agencies are working with the farmers, through the Environmental ServicesScheme, to implement land-use changes which will result in improvements in salinitycontrol and remediation of coastal acid sulphatesoils as well as lead to carbon sequestration,biodiversity enhancement, soil retention, andwater quality outcomes.

The Environmental Services Scheme encouragesfarmers to undertake activities such as changingpasture and grazing management, planting newforests, managing regeneration of nativevegetation, replanting riverbank vegetation, orre-establishing wetlands. All have the potential togenerate environmental services. These land-usechanges also enhance the long-termsustainability of the property.

Work has commenced and the first incomestream payments totalling over $360,000 havebeen provided to farmers.

The information gained from the EnvironmentalServices Scheme will help in the development of


3. Incentives for change

Environmental Services SchemeThe Maynard family has been managing their mixed cropping

and beef cattle property for four generations.

Located at Narromine in central-west New South Wales,

the farm was traditionally used to run first-cross ewes, trade and

breeder cattle and for cereal cropping. But in the last 15 years,

the Maynards have changed farming practices on ‘Willydah’ and

taken a much more holistic approach to managing the property

with the aim of improving the environment as well as their

economic situation.

The Maynards adopted a cell grazing technique and planted some

saltbush pastures. They developed an innovative method of ‘advance

sowing’ that allows native pastures to be incorporated into their

cropping practices and set aside areas for vegetation conservation

and wildlife corridors. These changes have dramatically increased

productivity and improved the health of the land. The long-term

benefits include lowering the watertable and decreasing the

salinity risk.

In the next couple of years, the Maynards will concentrate on

improving their saltbush pastures. They will try planting the

saltbush in different patterns to work out the best way to use water

productively and improve the quality of their pastures. Some of the

other benefits will include improving the soil health and increasing

biodiversity on the farm. This work will be closely monitored to see

what changes occur before and after planting. The work will be

assisted with funding from the Environmental Services Scheme.

Benchmarking biodiversity

Scientists working for the NSW National Parksand Wildlife Service, now part of the newDepartment of Environment and Conservation,have quantified and established baseline datafor major vegetation types in central New SouthWales in consultation with other NSW andVictorian Government experts.

These biodiversity benchmarks establish aclear baseline for the status of biodiversity onfarms and facilitate the measurement of actionsby farmers to improve biodiversity outcomes.Such actions could involve managingvegetation for conservation, revegetation formanaging salinity or to meet biodiversitytargets, managing riparian vegetation for water quality and conservation, and control ofsoil erosion.

The benchmarks are designed to underpininnovative schemes for delivering incentive orstewardship payments to farmers such as theincentives programs to be developed under theGovernment’s recently announced reforms tonative vegetation management. Thebenchmarks provide a basis for monitoringvegetation condition, and can also be used forenvironmental assessment of clearingapplications.

The system is being refined, but is now beingtrialled for delivering stewardship payments inthe Mid-Talbragar catchment in central-westNew South Wales, and further trials areplanned for the Murray and south-easterncatchments.

Benchmarking salinity control and carbonsequestration to establish a base fortrading in environmental services

The Government budgeted $1 million over fouryears for a project to conduct research tobenchmark the salinity control and carbonsequestration benefits of planted forests indryland salinity-prone regions of New SouthWales. It is intended that, over time, thesebenchmarks will assist with establishingmarkets for these environmental services.

The project will provide farmers with anestimate of planted forest biomass production,carbon sequestration and salinity-controlbenefits so that the farmer can assess theirpotential contribution to farm income.


Casestudy

Bruce Maynard checks seedlings planted to help improve

environmental health on farm

Liverpool Plains ProjectTrevor and Sharon Squires’ property ‘Monivae’ is on the northern

edge of Goran Lake, an area known for break-of-slope salinity

problems. Long-term cropping, combined with porous, red, gravely

soils, has resulted in excessive drainage beyond crop root zones.

This water has caused the water table to rise to the surface at the

base of the slope, bringing salt with it.

Controlling the outbreak and eventually reversing it will take time

and a combination of measures. These include a corridor of trees

across the slope, converting cropping land to perennial pastures

(in this case lucerne) and fencing off and revegetating the

outbreak with saline-tolerant pastures. The Liverpool Plains Land

Management Committee is assisting with these works through its

Land Management Tender program which effectively allows the

Squires to sell the salinity benefits to the Committee.

Measuring the difference that the control measures make is also

part of the project. Help from the northern Salt Action Team has

enabled the installation of piezometers on the outbreak and on the

hill above it. Trevor will use the piezometers to monitor the

groundwater level and its salinity on a regular basis. It is expected

that the trend over time will indicate that the threat is reducing.

While Trevor and Sharon are only one year into their project,

they feel confident that their problem is being turned around.

“We know what we are doing and why” Trevor explained. “This

process has been excellent and we would highly recommend land

management tenders to anyone with problems on their property”.

A ‘tool kit’ has been developed for farmers toassess the carbon sequestration potential of anumber of land-use options ranging fromenvironmental and commercial tree plantingsthrough to saltbush plantings.

Results from some of the 48 dryland salinityspecies demonstration sites have beenpresented at various field days including theLiverpool Plains Land Management CommitteeSalinity Forums in 2001 and 2003, the MudgeeSmall Farm Field Day 2003, and the NorthParkes Mine Environmental ManagementMeeting 2003.

The project will also provide catchmentmanagers and farmers with the information thatthey need to target salinity hot-spots for planting,select suitable species to plant, and developways to best manage planted forests for salinityamelioration and carbon sequestration.

Liverpool Plains Project

The Liverpool Plains Project has built greatercommunity understanding of the processescausing salinity and the actions required for its amelioration.

Farmers can submit business cases, or landmanagement tenders, to the Liverpool PlainsCommittee for incentive funding based on theenvironmental services they can provide. Two rounds of tenders have been completed.

The land management tenders have boughtsalinity, water quality and biodiversity benefitsthrough land-use and land management changeon 8,000 hectares of country. Landholders arecontributing their labour and over $3 in cash forevery public dollar invested.


Casestudy

Perennial and salt tolerant

pastures are used to help control

salinity outbreaks

• Roads and Salinity;

• Building in a Saline Environment; and

• An Introduction to Urban Salinity.

Work has commenced on two further booklets:

• Groundwater Basics; and

• Waterwise Parks and Gardens.

Another section of the kit will include the UrbanSalinity Planning Guide. The Guide will explainthe role of land-use planning in urban salinitymanagement and will incorporate modelplanning provisions as well as other planningtools for councils. It will include sample policies,checklists and case studies.

Work is underway with Forbes and CamdenCouncils to assist them in preparing planningresponses based on the proposed modelprovisions. The material developed will form thebasis of the samples and tools to be included in the Planning Guide. This approach shouldensure that the material being developed isbased on actual council experiences and willeffectively address council needs.

Salinity affects both urban and rural communities.Increased awareness of the problem is vital to help change everyday actions such as over-watering suburban gardens and land-usepractices on farms. The Government hasbudgeted $1.2 million over four years to raiseawareness of salinity issues within the community.

Local Government Salinity Initiative

Salinity is causing substantial damage to homesand urban infrastructure in many areas of NewSouth Wales. The cost of this damage is high.Councils and the NSW Government are in thefrontline in the fight against urban salinity.

The Department of Infrastructure, Planning andNatural Resources is working with councils, theLocal Government Association and the ShiresAssociation to develop a Local GovernmentSalinity Kit. This will help councils build theexpertise to manage salinity impacts. Six booklets have already been produced andsent to councils in New South Wales. These are:

• Indicators of Urban Salinity;

• Broad Scale Resources for Urban Salinity;

• Site Investigations for Urban Salinity;


4. Working with the community

Local Government Salinity Initiative

Casestudy

As part of the delivery of the NSW Salinity Strategy, Forbes Council is

participating in a pilot project that will help develop appropriate tools

for urban salinity.

Much of the New South Wales central-west town of Forbes is affected

by, or has the potential to be affected by, urban salinity. Indicators of

urban salinity, including salt scalding, high saline water-tables and

damage to buildings, have already been observed in some parts of

the town.

In response to this problem Forbes Council has adopted a salinity

action plan and has been working with the Salt Action Teams to

increase understanding of the town’s salinity problem.

Council staff have been working with the Urban Salinity Planning

Guide team in the Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural

Resources to prepare draft planning tools, which the Council can use.

Work has included reviewing Local Environment Plans and

Development Control Plan provisions in relation

to urban salinity, as well as looking at existing

local government policies. This collaboration

with the Council is important as it helps ensure

that the materials being developed for the

Planning Guide have appropriate technical and

planning input, are practical and effective, and

are relevant to the needs of local councils.

When released, the Urban Salinity Planning

Guide will assist councils to consider salinity

issues when making planning decisions and

preparing development guidelines. Forbes, and

other towns in New South Wales, will be able to

use the guide to better manage urban salinity.

Integrated Water Cycle Management

Integrated Water Cycle Management strategieshave been completed in the Eurobodalla Shireand are proceeding for a further nine localgovernment areas. An additional two strategiesare likely to commence before the end of theyear. In addition, Broken Hill and Bega Councilshave independently commenced integratedwater cycle management studies.Documentation on the integrated water cyclemanagement process and outcomes is currently being finalised for release as a web-based resource.

Best practice in building codes for salinity

As mentioned above, a booklet titled Building ina Saline Environment has been published as partof the Local Government Salinity Kit. The urbanSalt Action Team developed this resource andhas conducted a series of workshops forrelevant councils and building industry groups.Further opportunities for industry use of thebooklet are being pursued.


Environmental Education Plan

The Minister for the Environment launched the‘Learning for Sustainability - the NSWEnvironmental Education Plan 2002-2005’ inDecember 2002. The Plan provides direction foreducation and training providers to incorporate arange of environmental issues, including salinityand its management, into their courses.

The Plan has been distributed to universities,Government agencies, Government and non-Government school associations andindividuals involved in the consultation process.A series of workshops have also beenconducted in Sydney and regional New SouthWales to introduce the Plan.

The Environmental Education Plan can bedownloaded at: http://www.epa.nsw.gov.au/cee/learning+for+sustainability.htm

Learning how to test

salinity levels in soil

and water


Salinity education

The southern Salt Action Team has developedan accredited salinity management trainingprogram. This program includes competenciesand learning outcomes suitable for delivery tolandholders and frontline staff. The programs are to be delivered through both Tocal andYanco Colleges. Opportunities to deliver theprogram through the TAFE system are alsobeing explored.

Salinity awareness campaign

The Department of Infrastructure, Planning andNatural Resources is continuing to upgrade itssalinity website as more information becomesavailable and resources are developed. The site includes practical, easy-to-understandinformation for anyone interested in salinity,whether it’s a farmer needing information onwhich to base business decisions or schoolchildren researching a project for school.

The site will also link to more in-depth research,maps and business development information.

Fact sheets have been developed on salinityprocesses and impacts, the role of governmentand communities in managing salinity, casestudies, and salinity reference and resourcematerials. A set of salinity booklets are beingdeveloped based on the fact sheets.

Ensuring extension officers have the latest knowledge to help farmersThe Salt Actions Teams are ensuring that farmers and councils

get consistent and accurate advice and information on salinity.

The teams are comprised of staff from the Department of

Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources and NSW Agriculture

and have specialist knowledge in the fields of surface and

groundwater hydrology, economics, agronomy and ecology.

They interpret technical information from salinity research so it can

be applied on-the-ground, and then arm front-line staff and service

providers with the information they need so they can pass on the

latest salinity advice to farmers. The knowledge and skills acquired

by front-line staff ensures that farmers get the best information to

help them manage salinity and remain productive. Training has also

been provided to natural resource management community leaders

such as landholder representatives on boards and committees.

Three different courses are offered – ‘Introductory Course’, ‘The Salt

of the Earth’ and ‘Reading the Landscape’. The courses are staged

to provide more detail on salinity issues and management options

as participants progress through the different levels. The aim of

each course is to increase the participants’ understanding of

practical salinity issues facing farmers.

People from a variety of backgrounds participate in the courses.

This enables information and experience to be shared amongst

course participants thereby building a broad understanding of the

salinity issues that farmers are dealing with. It also means that the

people advising landholders understand the issues from a variety

of viewpoints and disciplines.

The outcome is more streamlined information for the farmer from

better-skilled frontline staff. For example, when a vegetation officer

is providing advice on pasture, information on salinity management

can be delivered at the same time.

Casestudy

Farmers and advisors attending courses to improve

their understanding of practical salinity issues

native vegetation for salinity control outcomesand will inform the development of theirCatchment Action Plans.

The project has also provided important data for modelling and decision-support tools thatcontinue to be developed, such as thosedetailed below.

Strategic Landscape Investment Model

A prototype of the Strategic LandscapeInvestment Model has been developed by theCSIRO. The Model will help identify the best mixof strategies and land-use changes to achievesalinity control and biodiversity targets. It willalso enable the evaluation of costs and benefitsof actions, such as revegetation and saltinterception schemes, so that the most cost-effective strategies can be determined.

CATSALT

CATSALT (Catchment Salt Balance Model)simulates the rainfall-runoff process and themobilisation and export of salt from catchments.CATSALT can analyse the impacts of land-usechanges in a catchment on stream flow and salt loads of a watercourse at the outlet from a catchment.

The model has been used by the MurrayCatchment Management Board to predict theeffectiveness of its strategies to combat salinity.

Land-use Options Simulator

The Land-use Options Simulator is a propertyplanning tool that calculates changes in salinitythat are due to land-use changes at one or moresites within a catchment.

The Simulator evaluates the impacts of land-useoptions, helping landholders decide whichoptions will give the best result in terms ofsalinity management and economic return. The Simulator can compute the impacts of land-use changes on farm gross margins.

The community has asked for better informationabout the causes of salinity so that informeddecisions can be made about how to solve theproblems. The Government has allocated $15.4 million over four years to integrate datacollection, modelling, analysis and informationdissemination to support decision-making.

Important projects are being undertaken by the natural resources agencies to developdecision-support tools, models, maps andscientific knowledge to support decision-makingby farmers, councils and community groups.

The information gained to date provides a strongplatform for implementing the next stage of theGovernment’s natural resources reform agenda.The information base will assist CatchmentManagement Authorities to finalise theirintegrated Catchment Action Plans andassociated investment strategies.

Data collection

In the Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources, data quality assuranceand management standards have beendocumented for loading salinity data sets into a central database. This ensures that the dataavailable to Catchment Management Authoritiesis of a consistent quality.

Information products

The outbreak mapping program is on-track for completion in September 2004 - over a yearahead of schedule. Under the NSW SalinityStrategy, 30 new salinity outbreak map sheetshave been completed, bringing the total numberof completed maps for the State to 70.

Eighteen new land-use map sheets have beenadded, bringing to 68 the total number ofcompleted maps for the State.

The data informs community groups, regionalnatural resource management committees andGovernment agencies, and have a range ofsalinity management uses. For example, themaps will help the new Catchment ManagementAuthorities to identify critical areas for protecting


5. Improving our knowledge


Drilling to establish a network of groundwater monitoring bores


Model farms

Six model farms have also been established atlocations at Pine Ridge (near Tamworth), Breeza,Carcoar, Boorowa, Condobolin and Young. This is a collaborative project with input andassistance from research and industry bodies,and Landcare groups. Collaborators includeSydney University, Grains Research andDevelopment Corporation, Meat and LivestockCorporation, Land and Water Australia, theCooperative Research Centre for Plant-BasedManagement of Dryland Salinity and Duri,Boorowa and Cundumbul Landcare groups.

The farms are addressing problems that arespecific to the areas in which they are located:

• Around Tamworth, utilisation of nativegrasses has been identified as a key issue.On a farm near Pine Ridge, close monitoringof a native grass stand is ongoing. This monitoring consists of determiningevapotranspiration and the value of the nativegrass stands for pasture production.

Research into the impact of various farming practices

The Government allocated $1.8 million over four years to research and demonstrate landmanagement practices for farms that will controland prevent dryland salinity. Two research sites,each approximately 700 hectares, have been set up at Duri (south of Tamworth) and Sloane’sCreek (east of Wellington).

The sites have been instrumented to monitorwater table depth, soil moisture, runoff andevapotranspiration of trees, pastures and crops,as well as stream flow, salinity and meteorological conditions of the catchment.

The aim of the project is to get good informationon the biophysical and economic effects of deep-rooted perennial pastures, long-seasonannual crops and multiple cropping systemsactivities on water use, deep drainage and salt movement.

Land-use Options Simulator

Casestudy

The Land-use

Options Simulator

will help land

managers evaluate

the impacts of

changing farm

practices

Property-scale planning using the Land-use

Options Simulator – evaluating the salinity benefits

of land-use changes in the Ulan Mine area.

Ulan Mine is located at the head of the Goulburn

River catchment in the Hunter Valley. The mine

produces excess saline water as a result of its

operations. A proposal was put forward by the

mine operators to dispose of the excess water by

pivot irrigation. It was predicted that the proposal

would increase stream salt loads by about

280 tonnes per annum and stream salinities

by 215 EC (µS/cm) in the affected catchments.

In order to offset these increases, Ulan Mine

proposed to change land-use management at

other locations to reduce overall salts from their

mine holdings.

The Ulan Mine management had heard about the

development of the Land-use Options Simulator

by the Department of Infrastructure, Planning and

Natural Resources. They approached the

Department to see if the tool could be used to

evaluate the impacts on catchment stream flow

and salt load of their proposed land-use and

management changes.

The mine supplied

land-use information,

air photos, and soil

and salinity reports to

inform the modelling

process. Catchment

data was prepared

and an estimate of the

salinity impacts of the

proposed changes

was determined in the

Simulator.

It was found that the proposed changes were not

sufficient to fully offset the increases in salinity

introduced from the irrigation water. Discussions

were held with the mine owners to advise them

where to target improvements that would result in

lower stream salinity values. The Simulator was

used to explore upper limits (i.e. how much salt

can be offset if the entire mine holdings are

planted with trees). With this information the mine

management were able to come up with a

realistic, alternative proposal, which the Simulator

predicted would give better results than the

original proposal.


Once the information is ready, to promote theeffectiveness of each model farm, field days willbe held at each of the model farms.

Coordinating and providing advice onsalinity research and development

A Salinity Research and DevelopmentCoordinating Committee has been established to coordinate and provide advice on salinityresearch and development. The Committee hasidentified a number of management actions thatwill help address the State’s priorities for salinityresearch and development.

The Committee has undertaken an assessmentof the gaps in knowledge, provided a framework for salinity research anddevelopment, and ensured alignment of stateand regional priorities for salinity research anddevelopment.

Cooperative Research Centre for plant-based solutions to dryland salinity

The Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) wasestablished in July 2001. It conducts researchinto plant-based solutions to managing salinity,with a focus on catchments donating highconcentrations of salt to streams in prioritycatchments of the state.

NSW Agriculture staff who contribute to the work of the CRC have been active in the designand presentation of salinity managementworkshops to staff of Wesfarmers Landmark.These workshops have been very well receivedby Wesfarmers staff and management andsignificant demand for additional workshops has been generated.

• A project at the model farm in Breeza willprovide in-depth knowledge of the hydrologyof soils in the Liverpool Plains.

• Hydrologists have been undertakingmeasurements of different pasture types at Carcoar in the Central Tablelands. These measurements will provide importantinformation on how to best manage pasturesto minimise the impact of salinity in highrainfall environments.

• NSW Agriculture is collaborating with SydneyUniversity on a catchment-scale hydrologyproject on a well-managed farm at Boorowa.This will provide important information on theeffectiveness of managing a farm withemphasis on native plant regeneration toreduce salinity.

• A saltbush project at Condobolin isdetermining the effectiveness of saltbush as a perennial shrub in preventinggroundwater recharge.

• The model farm at Young is being used in a national project to explore sustainablegrazing on saline lands. The emphasis of the New South Wales component of theproject is on the quantity and quality of water leaving salt-affected sites.

Information from the research sites and the six model farms is being collated to provideinformation to farmers about the best farmingsystems for minimising and adapting to salinity in the landscape.

Native pastures

can be managed to

reduce the effects

of salinity


Although salinity presents the community andGovernment with many challenges, it also offersopportunities for new and innovative approachesto be developed. The NSW Government issupporting organisations that are ‘thinkingoutside the square’ and working on solutions to the problem. These include new farmingmethods and tools, new forms of agribusiness,and products that ‘use’ the salt in the land.

New salinity-related agribusiness initiatives

The Department of State and RegionalDevelopment is providing business advice to a number of initiatives in southern New SouthWales in which agricultural and horticulturalproducers are using innovative productionmethods on saline land. These include:

• desalination technology to produce ‘clean’water from pumped groundwater;

• computer-controlled sprinkler irrigation;

• drip irrigation; and

• new enterprises, especially fruit and freshvegetable production.

Treating saline effluent

Moree Plains Shire Council has for a number of years searched for a suitable way to disposeof saline water used in the Moree spa baths.After two years of preliminary research involvingseveral NSW Government agencies, the Councilis now entering an alliance with the University ofNew England and a private developer, AustralianAgricultural Parks Pty Ltd, to:

• research optional uses for the saline effluent,especially aquaculture, irrigated crops, saltextraction and energy generation; and

• initiate business ventures based on the most promising options to emerge from theresearch.

Fingerling production in saline water

Government agencies are working with a gravel extraction business near Maitland whichis developing a new business to producefingerlings (Snapper, Mulloway, and Bass) in

6. Creating business opportunities

saline water. The main markets for the fingerlingsare restocking of natural waterways and, to alesser extent, farmers starting aquacultureventures. The owners of the business are alsoexamining the growing-out of the fingerlings insaline water.

Kit to measure salinity in the field

The Department of State and RegionalDevelopment is assisting in the business andmarketing development of an innovative kit thatwill enable salinity, PH and soil sulphate levels tobe measured quickly on site.

The kit, which has been developed by Dr PaulSaffigna of the University of Queensland, saveslandholders laboratory test fees and the resultsare obtained immediately.

The kit is small enough to be easily carried on atractor or motor-bike. It is called ‘The Dr Soil andWater Test Kit’ and was nominated for the bestproduct award at the Irrigation Australia 2002Expo in Sydney.

Desalination of pumped groundwater

The Department of State and RegionalDevelopment is also working with a companyseeking to develop a highly automated responseto the treatment of saline groundwater. Thecompany is called Wakool Water and is a joint-venture between Wakool Shire Council (alongthe Murray) and a United States-basedtechnology provider.

Treatment works at

Wakool


Groundwater is pumped to lower the watertableand thereby reduce the level of salt inagricultural land. The water is then put throughan advanced desalination process, resulting in70 per cent of the water being clean andsuitable for irrigation.

Compost for saline land remediation

The Government has provided financial supportto a project that is examining the feasibility ofconverting waste from regional New South Wales (e.g. household, sewerage, cotton trash,sawmills, supermarkets, food and feedmanufacturers, rice husks, sale yards andlivestock feedlots) into ‘green energy’ andcompost to be used in the remediation of saline land.

Netwaste, a joint venture of 31 regional councils,is carrying out two feasibility studies to defineand quantify the waste available, and to examineaspects of transporting the waste.

Addressing urban salinity

Casestudy

Forestry pilot project

The Government has budgeted $1 million overfour years to trial plantation forestry in salinityareas. NSW State Forests are conducting a pilotproject in Gunnedah which involves the plantingof native eucalypts.

The project is assessing the commercialpotential of certain native species for woodproduction and environmental services. It is helping to raise awareness in the ruralcommunity of alternative land-uses, as well aspromoting networks between Governmentagencies, the community and landcare groups.

The project has allowed operational, legal andadministrative systems to be tested, providingimportant lessons for any future plantings.

The plantations are likely to have significant, but localised effects on rising watertableshelping to address salinity issues at theindividual property level. Ongoing research will help to quantify and value these benefits.

A fresh approach to the urban salinity problem has emerged from

a pilot project initiated by the Department of State and Regional

Development.

The Department worked in partnership with the city councils of

Wagga Wagga and Dubbo in this salinity remediation scheme.

It was jointly funded by the three levels of government.

The total budget, including in-kind contributions, was $560 000.

The technology provider was Geo-Processors Pty Ltd.

The goal was to test an innovative approach to addressing urban

salinity and to then examine business models that may be used to

implement this approach. Conceptually, this method of addressing

urban salinity is relatively simple. It involves:

• pumping saline ground water from under a town or city;

• a reverse osmosis desalination process that extracts ‘clean

water’;

• the application of a second technology to the residual brine,

producing a number of salts; and

• the selling of extracted salts and ‘clean water’ in local markets.

Pilot testing of the two technologies was completed at both

Wagga Wagga and Dubbo. In each case, it was found to be

technically feasible to produce ‘clean water’ and extract a range

of salts through the application of reverse osmosis technology.

One of the stand-out benefits is that there is no

damaging material to be disposed of into the

environment.

For Wagga, a cost-benefit analysis indicated

that the salinity remediation scheme would be

economically feasible and justifiable for that

city. In the case of Dubbo, it was not possible

to complete a sound cost-benefit analysis

because of limited availability of hydrological

data.

The project demonstrates that this type of

technology can be included in the options

reviewed by Councils for a sustainable solution

to urban salinity and to other situations where

salinity damages infrastructure.

A report was completed in December, 2002

and is available on the Department of State and

Regional Development salinity website at

www.salinitybiz.nsw.gov.au.


The NSW Government has also announced fundingof over $436 million, including money from theNational Action Plan for Salinity and Water Qualityand the Natural Heritage Trust, to protect nativevegetation and other natural resources. The fundingsupports the end of broad-scale clearing through on-farm incentives, and the new community-drivenCatchment Management Authorities ensure thatdecision-making is made at the local level.

The new approach is based on advice receivedfrom the Wentworth Group of concerned scientistsand also builds on the recommendations of thefarming and natural resources taskforce chairedby John Kerin. A high-level Implementation Group,chaired by the Rt Hon Ian Sinclair, advised theGovernment on the details of the reforms.

The NSW Parliament has passed legislation to implement these reforms in natural resourcemanagement.The Catchment ManagementAuthorities Act 2003, the Natural ResourcesCommission Act 2003 and the Native VegetationAct 2003 give effect to the reforms.

Careful management of native vegetation isessential for minimising salinity and ensuringthe sustainability of our landscape.

The NSW Government has announcedsignificant reforms to its catchment, land-useplanning and native vegetation policies. The reforms will strengthen the role of regionalbodies and better integrate natural resourcesmanagement at the catchment level.

Associated institutional arrangements tosupport the reforms have been implementedincluding strengthening the Department ofInfrastructure, Planning and NaturalResources, and establishing the newDepartment of Environment and Conservation.An independent Natural ResourcesCommission has been created to setenvironmental standards and targets, and aNatural Resources Advisory Council has beenestablished to ensure stakeholders have anongoing forum in which to provide advice to the Government.

7. Smarter regulation

Protecting and

managing native

vegetation is an

important part of

managing salinity


National Action Plan: The National Action Planfor Salinity and Water Quality.

Natural Heritage Trust: A joint Commonwealthand State Government grants program thatfunds community projects to improve sustainableagriculture and environmental management.

Recharge: The portion of rainfall or river flow that percolates down through the soil and rockformations to reach the groundwater system.

Salinity: The presence of salt in the landsurface, in soil, or rocks, or dissolved in water in our rivers or groundwater. The NSW SalinityStrategy categorises salinity as irrigation,dryland, urban and industrial. Salinity types differ according to how and when the salt hasbeen mobilised and what the impacts are.

Salt interception scheme: Usually workscomprising a system of pumps and drainagethat reduce the level of the groundwater bypumping it into evaporation basins or elsewhere,thereby intercepting salt before it enters a riveror reaches the soil surface.

Salt load: The amount of salt carried in waterflow in rivers, groundwater or off the soil surface,in a given time period.

Watertable: The level below which the ground is saturated with water.

Waterlogging: Where the surface soil issaturated with water from rising groundwater or surface run-off collecting in low areas.

Carbon sequestration: The removal ofgreenhouse gases from the atmosphere byplants, soils or technological measures.

Electrical conductivity (EC): The most widelyused and convenient method of measuring thesalinity of water is by electrical conductivity. One unit of measure of electrical conductivity is‘micro-Siemens per centimetre’. The shorthandexpression for this is the ‘electrical conductivityunit’, ‘EC unit’ or just ‘EC’.

Environmental Services: Benefits to theenvironment, such as:

• reducing the mobilisation of salt;

• reducing the export of products from acid sulphate soils;

• reducing soil loss;

• improving water quality;

• reducing greenhouse gases; and

• enhancing biodiversity.

Hydrology: The branch of geology that studieswater on the earth and in the atmosphere itsdistribution and uses and conservation.

8. Glossary

Measuring the salinity

concentration in a river

NSW Salinity Strategy Permier's Annual Report 2002/03 · Salinity is the silent destroyer, slowly...

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