Federal government invests $38 million into drought resilience

The federal government has provided a total of $38 million research grants to help Australian farmers and regional communities become more resilient to drought.

The six-year Long-Term Trials of Drought Resilient Farming Practices Grants aim to help Australian farmers prepare for drought by providing them with the data and confidence to invest in technologies and practices that have been proven to assist in becoming more resilient to drought across different landscapes and production conditions.

Research grants

Through the Future Drought Fund, the federal government will invest in six research projects focusing on new and emerging agricultural practices related to cropping, grazing, and mixed farming.

The projects that received funding are:

• Charles Sturt University, which received $6.23 million in funding, will investigate the interdependence and whole-system effects of cropping and livestock components and managing environmental and social impacts in response to seasonal variation. It will undertake trials across New South Wales
• Cooperative Research Centre for High Performance Soils, which received $3.94 million in funding, will evaluate drought reliance in farming systems and soils through an established network of long-term trials across multiple sites in Western Australia, NSW, and Victoria
• NQ Dry Tropic Limited, which received $4.32 million, will analyse the effectiveness of virtual fencing to enable rangeland graziers to implement fine scale, drought-resilient grazing systems over large areas. It will undertake trials Charters Towers, Queensland
• University of Melbourne, which received $7.2 million, will research farming-system adaptations to improve drought resilience of broadacre grains, grazing, and mixed-farming systems. It will undertake trials across Victoria and Tasmania
• Flinders University, which received $8 million, will focus on the climate resilience of cropping, livestock, and mixed farms, assessed through long-term trials across the pastoral, low, medium, and high-rainfall zones of South Australia
• Deakin University, which received $7.99 million, will investigate the diversity in pastures to build resilience and support 365 days of feed production in southern temperate grazing enterprises. It will undertake trials across Victoria, Western Australia, South Australia, and Tasmania

“This program is about advancing projects that we hope will make a real difference in a future droughts,” said Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Murray Watt. “These projects – like crop rotations, soil management, grazing techniques, and infrastructure – will arm farmers with robust information to invest in technologies and practices that have been proven across different landscapes and conditions.”

Aside from floods, drought is a weather event that Australians face, especially farmers. Last month, the Actuaries Institute's Australian Actuaries Climate Index warned Australians to brace for the dry season, which could even lead to destructive bushfires.