AgEcon partners Janine Powell, Adam Briggs, Jon Welsh, and George Revell. Photo: AgEcon

PRIVATE research company AgEcon Australia has received $6 million from the Federal Government’s Future Drought Fund to investigate a suite of issues around securing irrigation water, renewable energy, and climate science.

Partners in the five-year project which kicked off this month include Macquarie University and the University of Southern Queensland, with a major investment from the Cotton Research and Development Corporation.

Other stakeholders include Sugar Research Australia, Horticulture Innovation Australia, and the Ricegrowers’ Association of Australia, and the $6M in FDF funding adds to around $7M in total in in-kind support from all partners.

AgEcon is based in the north-west New South Wales town of Burren Junction, and its project was one of only eight from a field of 120 gain FDF funds in the current round.

“We have teamed up with some of the best and brightest minds in the nation to find solutions to saving water, understanding climate processes, ensuring efficient land use, and exploring new business opportunities for energy generation,” AgEcon partner Janine Powell said.

“These topics will build on related early-stage research, funded mostly in Narrabri by the CRDC.

“Irrigators need innovative solutions to adapt to a warming climate and these issues are right in our firm’s area of expertise.”

The project includes:

• Investigation led by UniSQ researcher Michael Scobie into evaporative loss from water;
• Exploration by Macquarie University’s Dr Madeline Taylor of regulatory pathways to seize Australia’s Floating Solar Voltaic opportunity by establishing a robust legal framework and policy incentives to support, scale up, and expedite FPV deployment; and,
• Investigation by AgEcon climatologist and atmospheric scientist Dr Alison Theobald into synoptic influences across key catchments to help irrigators better understand key drivers of run-off and water-storage levels.

AgEcon’s bid for FDF support has won through in the crowded and highly competitive area of commercial research typically dominated by government research agencies and universities.

“This is unheard of for a rural-based firm like ours to lead a venture of this scale,” AgEcon partner Jon Welsh said.

“I think the advantage of our submission is our grassroots postcode, the strength of researchers, and the fact that we have the pulse of rural communities and businesses.

“We live, eat, and breathe farming, which helps our case for greater impact and relevance.

“We certainly hope to make headway in some of the most challenging, complex, and intrinsically linked areas of our daily lives: water, food, and affordable energy.

“We feel extremely fortunate with this announcement and that the Department of Agriculture has faith in us to lead this project with so many esteemed partners.”

AgEcon was founded in 2017 by Mr Welsh, a former Narrabri resident and employee of CRDC, and Ms Powell, who is also part of a family farming operation at Burren Junction, and was formerly a NSW Government economist.

The AgEcon team has grown to five regionally based agricultural economists, including Wee Waa product George Revell, and three climate research scientists working explicitly in agriculture-related topics.

The focus on topics that can potentially save irrigation water and lead to a better understanding of climate processes for catchment runoff and on-farm water budgeting struck a chord with Bellata’s Zara Lowien, National Irrigators’ Council chief executive officer and a member of the project’s steering committee.

“Any advances in technology that help manage risk, alleviate cost and policy pressures on irrigators to perform more with less are welcome and the scale of benefits of this research could make a real difference,” Ms Lowein said.

Source: AgEcon