The Water for a Healthy Country Flagship is developing new land use and management practices in the grazing lands of the Great Barrier Reef catchments.
Grazing affects the Great Barrier Reef
Semi-arid lands account for more than 90 per cent of the Great Barrier Reef catchments. The beef industry is the major land user in the region and has the most direct influence on the water quality of the streams and rivers of any land user.
Improving grazing management practices should lead to increased productivity for industry and protection of the environment.
Over 80 per cent of sediments and nutrients discharged to the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area originate from the extensive grazing lands of the Queensland interior. High concentrations of these sediments, and the pollutants they carry, cause damage to the near shore areas of the Reef.
The quantity of sediments and nutrients lost from grazing lands depends heavily on grazing management practices. The Great Barrier Reef Water Quality Protection Plan calls on graziers to change their management practices and decrease the impact of their industry on areas off their own properties.
New grazing practices
The Water for a Healthy Country Flagship is working with grazing communities to develop new grazing methods that reduce erosion and protect the Reef. Improving grazing management practices should lead to increased productivity for industry and protection of the environment.
Specific research that is underway to help achieve this includes:
- studying grazing practices in the Fitzroy Basin
- using remote sensing to analyse landscape health
- examining soil health and factors that influence it
- working with graziers in the Burdekin Catchment
- determining historical rates of erosion
- developing models to predict the impact of different farming systems.
Find out about other Water For A Healthy Country Flagship research projects.
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