Future Broadacre Agricultural Landscapes Proceedings of the Conference and Workshop, 15th-17th June 2004 Joondalup Resort, Perth Western Australia A report for the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation Compiled by Pauline Gazey Report Prepared January 2007 RIRDC Publication No 06/028 RIRDC Project No DAW-109A © 2007 Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation. All rights reserved. ISBN 1 74151 291 3 ISSN 1440-6845 Future Broadacre Agricultural Landscapes: Proceedings of the Conference and Workshop, 15th-17th June 2004 Publication No. 06/028 Project No. DAW-109A The information contained in this publication is intended for general use to assist public knowledge and discussion and to help improve the development of sustainable industries. The information should not be relied upon for the purpose of a particular matter. Specialist and/or appropriate legal advice should be obtained before any action or decision is taken on the basis of any material in this document. The Commonwealth of Australia, Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation, the authors or contributors do not assume liability of any kind whatsoever resulting from any person's use or reliance upon the content of this document. This publication is copyright. However, RIRDC encourages wide dissemination of its research, providing the Corporation is clearly acknowledged. For any other enquiries concerning reproduction, contact the Publications Manager on phone 02 6272 3186. Organiser Contact Details Dr David Bowran Director Grain Industries Development Industry and Rural Services Department of Agriculture Western Australia PO Box 483 Northam WA 6401 Phone: (08) 9690 2000 Fax: (08) 9622 1902 Email: [email protected] In submitting this report, the researcher has agreed to RIRDC publishing this material in its edited form. RIRDC Contact Details Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation Level 2, 15 National Circuit BARTON ACT 2600 PO Box 4776 KINGSTON ACT 2604 Phone: 02 6272 4819 Fax: 02 6272 5877 Email: [email protected]. Web : http://www.rirdc.gov.au Published in January 2007 ii Foreword Agriculture in the grainbelt of Western Australia will be increasingly under pressure from forces such as increasing energy costs, declining rural populations, increasing community expectations over food quality and production processes, new technologies to improve production and efficiency, resource degradation and climate change. A lot of existing research has short time horizons, with poor continuity and connectivity with other research, and little consideration of its place in the ‘system’ and the user need. It also often fails to balance its contribution to a healthy economy with the needs for a healthy society and environment. In response to these common concerns, the major research institutions in WA jointly convened this conference and workshop with the aim of developing a shared vision for research and development to underpin a prosperous and sustainable future for the grainbelt. A range of significant global and national trends plus the perspectives of a diverse selection of social, economic and environmental interests from the grainbelt region were considered during the two-day conference. These inputs were used to inform the workshop discussion on day three. The workshop addressed four core questions in relation to research and development in the grainbelt: Where are we now? Where do we want to be? How do we get there? What do we do next? Outcomes from this conference have the potential to change the direction of research and development for the WA grainbelt. Lessons and insights gained from FBAL should be incorporated into current and future strategic processes. This project was partially funded from RIRDC Core Funds, which are provided by the Australian Government. This report is an addition to RIRDC’s diverse range of over 1500 research publications It forms part of our Resilient Agricultural Systems R&D sub-program, which aims to foster the development of agri-industry systems that have sufficient diversity, integration, flexibility and robustness to be resilient enough to respond opportunistically to continued change. Most of our publications are available for viewing, downloading or purchasing online through our website: • downloads at www.rirdc.gov.au/fullreports/index.html • purchases at www.rirdc.gov.au/eshop Peter O’Brien Managing Director Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation iii Acknowledgements I am very grateful for the strong executive support provided by Pauline Gazey and the conference organisers, Keynote Conferences. Craig Salt brought great energy and a paradigm shift to the thinking of the Steering Group for which we are especially grateful. My thanks also go to the Steering Group for their enduring support and involvement throughout the long planning phase, and for strategic oversight from the Reference Group. Miles Dracup Chair, Steering Group The FBAL Conference and Workshop was convened and financially supported by the following partners: Department of Agriculture Western Australia Centre for Legumes in Mediterranean Agriculture Western Australian Herbicide Resistance Initiative CRC for Plant Based Management of Dryland Salinity The University of Western Australia Murdoch University CSIRO Curtin University of Technology Department of Conservation and Land Management The following provided financial support: Gold sponsors The Grains Research and Development Corporation The Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation Silver sponsors Land and Water Australia General sponsors The Wheatbelt Development Commission The Council of Australian Weed Societies CSBP Syngenta Sustainable Consulting The FBAL Conference and Workshop was organised by a Steering Group with guidance from a Reference Group. Steering Group Mr John Bartle, Department of Conservation and Land Management Assoc Prof Richard Bell, Murdoch University Dr David Bowran, Department of Agriculture Western Australia Dr Miles Dracup, Department of Agriculture Western Australia (Convenor) Assoc Prof Mike Ewing, CRC for Plant Based Management of Dryland Salinity iv Dr Ross Kingwell, Department of Agriculture Western Australia Dr Ted Lefroy, CSIRO Dr Roy Murray-Prior, Curtin University of Technology Prof Dave Pethick, Murdoch University Prof Steve Powles, Western Australian Herbicide Resistance Initiative Mr Craig Salt, Sustainable Consulting Prof Kadambot Siddique, Centre for Legumes in Mediterranean Agriculture Mrs Pauline Gazey (Executive officer) Reference Group Prof Val Alder, Murdoch University Mr Rob Delane/Mr Ian Longson, Department of Agriculture Western Australia Mr Ken Wallace/Mr Keiran McNamara, Department of Conservation and Land Management Mr Mick Poole, CSIRO Prof Alistar Robertson, The University of Western Australia Prof Graeme Robertson, Curtin University of Technology v Contents Executive summary viii 1. National and international trends 1 1.1 Economic trends and drivers affecting the grainbelt of Western Australia to 2035 1 1.2 Futures for the wheatbelt—is 2030 already here? 16 1.3 The city and the bush—partnerships to reverse the decline in Australia’s grainbelt 42 1.4 Environmental change in the Western Australian grainbelt with special reference to biodiversity and climate 51 1.5 Science and technological innovation: a key to the future of the WA grainbelt 76 2. Local voices 94 2.1 Influencing the direction of research 94 2.2 Grainbelt or brainbelt? — beyond outdated stereotypes 98 2.3 The future is now 104 2.4 The WA grainbelt landscape in 2030? 110 2.5 Pushing the Research and Development frontier: an environmentalist perspective on innovation for landscape resilience 114 2.6 The WA grainbelt—an indigenous perspective 119 2.7 Families in the grain country—neutered or nurtured? 123 2.8 Managing rising energy costs 126 3. Realistic futures? 128 3.1 The Avon River Basin in 2050: scenario planning in the Western Australian wheatbelt 128 3.2 Scenario planning for the Australian grains industry 149 3.3 The power of the group 163 3.4 Closing address 168 4.1 TalkBook 171 4.2 BlueSheet 191 5. List of participants 193 vi List of Tables Table 1.2.1. Wheatbelt population change 1961–2003 ...............................................................................18 Table 1.3.1. Economic change associated with the globalisation process in grainbelt, WA and Perth. .....43 Table 2.3.1. Past and projected terms of trade for primary producers ......................................................105 Table 2.6.1. Inventory of plants ................................................................................................................120 Table 3.1.1. ARB2050 Workshop series details........................................................................................134 Table 3.1.2. Key strategies considered by stakeholders during the final project phase. ...........................144 List of Figures Figure 1.1.1. Farm businesses’ average rate of return to capital in the central agricultural region: 1989 to 2002...................................................................................................................................................2 Figure 1.1.2. Land values in key shires in the broadacre region of Western Australia: 1985 to 2001 ($/ha). ....................................................................................................................................................3 Figure 1.1.3. Number of farm businesses in the broadacre region of Western Australia: 1989/90