Landcare farming makes sense and money - the Woady Yaloak Story

The next National Landcare Webinar will be with Cam Nicholson from the Woady Yaloak Catchment Group in Victoria on the 12th February 2014 at 12.30 pm (eastern daylight saving time).

The webinar is FREE.    » Register

National Landcare Facilitator NEWSLETTER – November/December 2013

Landcare farming has been around in Australian agriculture for some time, in fact 2014 will mark the 25th anniversary of the declaration of the Decade of Landcare and the landmark partnership between the National Farmers Federation, Australian Conservation Foundation and the Federal Government. While much remains to be done, and it is clear that as a nation we are still at the beginning of understanding how to farm in our environment, it is also equally clear that profound changes have been achieved not only in our landscapes and farming techniques, but also in our community.

Landcare farming has always been a vital component of the Landcare movement and the achievements over the last 25 years are impressive. You can look at this through national data which shows the uptake of practices such as minimum tillage, hectares of revegetation, km of creeks fenced off or the nearly $2.4 billion annually that farmers spend on controlling pests and weeds. The 2012 National Landcare survey showed that 93% of Australian farmers said that they practiced Landcare on their farms and 73% said that they considered themselves part of the broader Landcare movement – this illustrates a significant cultural change which will have a long term positive legacy for the country.

However national results are all well and good, but it is not until you begin to look at the changes at the local level that some of this information really begins to make sense and become tangible. So it is timely to look at an example at the local level of the changes that Landcare farming has meant to a farm based Landcare group and its members – both in terms of improvements to their environment and farm viability.

The Woady Yaloak Catchment Group in rural Victoria was formed in 1992 when a number of Landcare groups came together over an area of 120 000 ha. The environmental challenges at the time were significant and extensive. Little remnant vegetation remained, weeds and rabbits were widespread, many waterways were unprotected and areas of salinity and erosion were having an impact on farm production. Gross farm income in the Woady Yaloak Catchment was 10% below monitor farms in western Victoria. Pastures were dominated by annual species, leaving the ground prone to erosion in summer. Most soils were deficient in nutrients and highly acidic.

The resources needed to address the issues were huge and would require a long term commitment by the majority of landholders in partnership with Government and the private sector. With most of the catchment used for agriculture, farms would need to be financially viable to generate the money required to address the environmental needs.

The Woady Yaloak Group has conducted surveys of its members that have allowed it to track the environmental and economic impact of their activities and those of its members since its inception and has most recently concluded a major assessment of the last 10 years. The results at both the environmental and farm viability level are impressive with farms now larger, more profitable and with greater equity. So join us on the 12th February for informative insights into the benefits of Landcare farming and the work of yet another great Landcare group.