Invertebrate pests already cost Australian farmers up to A$500 million a year in lost production but the affect climate change could have on their ability to survive and thrive is still largely unknown.
This important issue for Australian agriculture will be considered by researchers from universities, state departments and CSIRO at a workshop in Orange, NSW, from 12-13 November.
Discussion will focus on the implications of climate change for integrated pest management (IPM) systems that are now widely used in the grains, cotton and horticultural industries and how the complex interactions between crops, pests, beneficial insects and management strategies might play out in the future.
“Other topics to be covered include: the impacts of future climate scenarios on insect populations, the role of modelling tools in researching pest/plant interactions and the potential impact on various rural industries including grains, cotton and horticulture.”
Overviews of the potential impacts of climate change will be provided by Dr Steve Crimp from CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems and Professor Ary Hoffman from the University of Melbourne.
Other topics to be covered include: the impacts of future climate scenarios on insect populations, the role of modelling tools in researching pest/plant interactions and the potential impact on various rural industries including grains, cotton and horticulture.
Organised as part of the Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC) National Invertebrate Pest Initiative (NIPI), the workshop is supported by the NSW Department of Primary Industries, the Cotton Research and Development Corporation (CRDC), the Cotton Catchment Communities CRC, the CRC for National Plant Biosecurity and the Climate Adaptation Flagship.
NIPI was established to develop and coordinate skills across research organisations to encourage collaboration on pest management issues in the grains industries.
Other industries with a similar commitment to IPM will be interested in the outcomes from the workshop, which aims to both raise awareness of potential consequences and help develop a research agenda to address climate change challenges.
Download images at: Managing pests under climate change.
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