How the Lachlan CMA has
evolved to use soil databases
Alex Murray and Ian Packer
Lachlan CMA Land Theme
• Incentives for Land Management/Soil health
– Open Incentive process
– Review and Reference Group –Prioritisation and
training
– Prioritisation and ground truth practice change
data
Conservation farming incentives, the area of
land suitable for conservation farming and the
priority areas
2005/6 Lachlan CMA Review and
Reference Group- Prioritisation
• Review of the Land Theme program and
incentive investment:
– Review of targets showed non achievement of
outcomes
• Established a review panel
– Recommendation
• prioritisation of target areas
• training linked to incentives
Databases used for Prioritsation
• Soil Landscape Maps
• Land Capability
• Sodic Surface Maps (Brian Murphy and John Lawrie)
• Catchment Management Support System Model (CMSS)
• SedNet Modelling
• Salinity Risk Assessment (DIPNR, 2004)
Prioritsation Process
• Identified Stressed River Catchments
– 13 in cropping zone
• Ranking through Rubric tool
• Allocation of $$ to highest ranked catchments
• Funding allocated-unengaged landholders
– Lower uptake of incentives and training
Prioritisation Round 4 (2007/8)
Red - Highest prioritisation area
Orange – Second highest priority
Green – no machinery incentives offered- only training
DustWatch-State-wide dust monitoring program
(John Leys,OEH)
• Established in 2005, 8 DustWatch gauges
(Dustrak) installed over catchment
• DustWatch monitoring is linked to a Catchment
Condition (Roadside) Survey, of erosion (wind and
water) and land management practices
• Lachlan CMA supported since 2007, the biannual
Catchment Condition Survey is conducted at 444
geo-located sites over catchment
Route and site location for roadside survey of Autumn ( March 2013)
Benefits of Catchment Condition Surveys
• Potential to direct Land theme design and prioritisation of investment
• Evidence of land management practice change
– impact on wind and water erosion, ground cover type and amount
• Time series of management practices
– crop rotations, cropping and grazing practices, pasture types and fallowing methods and lengths
• Categorisation into groupings
– Social ecological systems
– Land management groupings e.g. grazing, arable and rangeland regions
Challenge ahead- Prioritisation of biophysical aspects are
achievable
- Social issues are the blockage to adoption
• Challenge -
– Engaging unengaged/non willing land managers
– Social acceptance of change and adoption
– How can soil database/catchment database
be used with social science to improve
adoption to improve soil health
