Research

John O'Donnell analyses recent positive US policy developments and land management commitments aimed at confronting the US wildfire/ bushfire crisis and finds that there is much Australia might learn from the US strategy.

An important project is currently being undertaken in the Torres and Cape to develop a Suicide Prevention Community Action Plan for the region ... This year, the team are turning their attention to community members in the Torres and Cape to lend their voice for the development of a region-specific, Suicide Prevention Community Action Plan.

Consumers are increasingly demanding proof of their seafood’s sustainability and they are turning to a range of seafood certifications, rating programs and indexes to inform their purchases. Globally, there is a growing number of initiatives to guide consumers. But they are not all created equal, nor do they measure and report on the same parameters.

Australia’s $900 million citrus industry could face serious production and market access risks if the industry is not adequately prepared to manage future biosecurity threats. A new five-year national biosecurity program, CitrusWatch, is a collaborative effort that is designed to protect the citrus industry from harmful exotic pests and diseases.

Four senior citizens and Charles Sturt academics have chronicled how their time in multiple COVID-19 lockdowns and isolations have restored their faiths.

There was a global shortage of nurses … and then the pandemic hit. Researchers, including a Charles Sturt academic, investigate how COVID-19 has affected an already struggling nursing industry and what can be done to save it.

Australian and European researchers have discovered a genetic element in a common wheat pathogen with potential to help streamline breeding for disease-resistant wheat varieties that are better suited to Australian conditions.

Aware of the interest of many of our readers in knowing when the Novavax protein based Covid-19 vaccine might be available in Australia, Australian Rural & Regional News has obtained some positive feedback from the company.

Strong retail demand and the reopening of foodservice set the aquaculture industry up for another strong year in 2022, especially for salmon and shrimp. Sustainability-related investments are expected to ramp up this year, as major producers and retailers have set ambitious targets to reduce carbon footprints. Rabobank just published a report summarizing the main takeaways from the Global Seafood Alliance (GSA) GOAL Conference, one of the seafood industry’s most anticipated events.

John O'Donnell provides a number of points in response to CSIRO findings on fuel loads, prescribed burning, climate change and forest fire activity in Australia over the last three decades.

The 2021 Population Statement looks at population change over the past year and includes projections of the population over the next decade. It describes and analyses the role of the different drivers of population change – overseas migration, natural increase and internal migration. The analysis spans states and territories, capital cities and rest of state areas, age and gender.

Scientists are checking birds’ regurgitated ‘pellets’ for bee wings in the latest efforts to protect Australian bee populations from threats. The work – which takes place in the Northern Territory, Brisbane and Townsville – involves teams locating Rainbow Bee-eaters, who typically roost in large numbers at the same sites each night, between March and November each year.

The National Farmers Federation is celebrating the environmental credentials of Queensland beef producers ... The 2019 National Greenhouse Gas Inventory Report shows growth of forest area of about 160,000 hectares since 2008. Australia’s latest State of the Forests Report also confirms steady forest growth during the previous five-year period.

Planned burning is one of the most utilised fuel management activities, but the safe and effective application of this method is likely to be hindered by climate change (e.g. shrinking and shifting windows of opportunity) and potential adverse societal outcomes (e.g. smoke impact, risk of fire escape). For this reason, fire managers need access to detailed information to help them make informed decisions and select a fuel management strategy that is compatible with a range of factors.

Australian farmland returns continued to outperform, coming in at 12.72% in the 12 months to the end of September, boosted by very strong annual crop farmland numbers. According to the latest quarterly Australian Farmland Index compiled by the Asian Association for Investors in Non-Listed Real Estate Vehicles, income contributed 6.06% and appreciation return 6.38% to the result.

Bushfire risk is likely to increase in the future due to the combined impacts of climate change and urban sprawl. This report presents the results of an analysis combining the outputs from stakeholder consultation with those from the Unified Natural Hazard Risk Mitigation Exploratory Decision Support System (UNHaRMED) to quantify increases in bushfire risk due to different population growth and climate change scenarios in four areas of emerging bushfire risk in Western Australia.

Community Landcare representative organisation, National Landcare Network, is pleased to announce it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with leading agricultural research, education and advocacy organisation, the Mulloon Institute. The MoU will deliver ‘Catchment Scale Restoration and Rehydration Pilots’ across the country.

Australian farmers are predicting the “magic combination” of high commodity prices, low interest rates and good seasonal conditions will continue in the year ahead – sustaining a continued high level of confidence across the sector.

Australia’s national science agency CSIRO and the NSW Rural Fire Service have released Australia’s most advanced model for predicting the speed and behaviour of eucalypt forest fires, helping to save lives and property during bushfires.

Allowing people to “safely” experience a raging bushfire from a 3D headset has exposed some harsh truths about Australians living in high-risk fire zones: most are woefully unprepared. By replicating a computer-generated bushfire using virtual reality, University of South Australia researchers studied the responses of 400 people in an Australian-first experiment, with some interesting results.

Gabrielle Duykers. A team of researchers descended upon the Naracoorte Regional Livestock Exchange last week, as part of a national investigation into the social value of saleyards to rural communities. The research project was commissioned by the Australian Livestock Markets Association (ALMA) after noticing the need for such a study, with almost all existing research into livestock exchange facilities focusing solely on their economic value.