News Archive

Research at The University of Western Australia and the Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia is helping farmers adapt to climate change and improve soil fertility.

By increasing the levels of organic carbon in soil, farmers may be able to benefit from emissions trading schemes to offset greenhouse gas emissions.  Increasing organic carbon levels in soil also has a range of benefits for soil fertility and plant growth.

However, the capacity of Australian soils to store organic carbon varies between soil types, land uses and local climate.  The research will identify which soil types and land uses have potential to increase stores of organic carbon.

The research, led by Associate Professor Dan Murphy, from the School of Earth and Environment and the Institute of Agriculture, is funded by the Australian Government's Climate Change Research Program and the Grains Research and Development Corporation.

"It will help farmers know whether the soil types on their properties can hold more organic carbon and what management practices will achieve that increase," Associate Professor Murphy said.  "We'll be assessing different soil types and land uses from across the agricultural region of WA."

Although the project has only just begun soils have already been collected from Esperance.  Dr David Hall, from DAFWA said: "These soil samples will help to determine what existing levels of soil carbon are in south coastal sandplain soils and whether perennial pastures, such as Kikuyu, affect carbon sequestration when compared to annual species." The project will compare the effect of other land uses on organic carbon storage in soil including cropping vs. pasture and tillage vs. no till.

The project is part of $46 million being invested by the Australian Government to take research from the laboratory to the paddock and help farmers in a changing climate.  The program is initially focusing on better soil management, reducing greenhouse pollution and adapting to climate change.

Media references

Jennifer Carson (+61 8)  6488 3593  /  (+61 4) 23 004 975
Janine MacDonald (UWA Public Affairs)  (+61 8)  6488 5563  /  (+61 4) 32 637 716