Talstar (bifenthrin) was registered at the beginning of the 1993/94 season for control of Helicoverpa spp. and two-spotted mite in Australian cotton. Resistance to this compound in two-spotted mite was monitored following registration. Incipient Talstar resistance was detected in one strain of two-spotted mite during the 1996/97 cotton season. Resistance increased progressively both in level and abundance over the following two seasons. Resistance in two-spotted mite has now reduced the reliability of Talstar for two-spotted mite control in Australian cotton.

Sustainability in any farming system is dependent upon a number of interacting factors which include climate, soil quality, plant nutrition, management, weed and disease incidence, and economic factors. In cotton-based fanning systems it has been assumed that a "sustainable" system is represented by a cotton-rotation crop sequence, whereas a "degradative" system is exemplified by continuous cotton (Cooper 1999). As a consequence many cotton growers sow rotation crops after irrigated cotton assuming that they will improve soil quality, minimize disease incidence and maintain profitability of cotton (Cooper 1999). The crop most commonly sown in rotation with cotton is wheat, although legumes such as dolichos, faba bean and chickpea have become more popular in recent years (Cooper 1999). Although past research has addressed issues such as soil structure, nitrogen and water use (MCGarity et al 1984; Constable et al. 1992), information on the comparative advantages and disadvantages of a range of rotation crops, and the sustainability of such crop sequences over extended periods has been limited. Several long-term on-farm experiments were, therefore, established during 1993 in New South Wales and Queensland to evaluate the sustainability of selected rotation crop-cotton sequences with issues such as soil quality (physical, chemical and biological), weeds and disease incidence, cotton agronomy and economic benefits receiving a high priority (CRC for Sustainable Cotton Production 1994). The objective of the study reported in this paper was to quantify the changes in soil quality, cotton lint yield and profitability from 1993 to 1999 of six irrigated cotton-rotation crop sequences sown in a sodic grey clay in Merah North, NW NSW. Crop sequences were selected following discussions with local cotton growers. The indices used to evaluate sustainability included soil quality, soil microbiology and disease incidence, yield and profitability. This paper presents data on soil properties (soil organic C, structure as air-filled porosity of oven-dried soil, eXchangeable Ca, Mg, K and Na, pH, electrical conductivity (EC) and EC /exchangeable Na in the 0-0.6 in depth), lint yield and profitability (as gross margins/ha and gross margins/ML of irrigation water).

A pump efficiency trial at Goondiwindi has highlighted the importance of testing individual pumping set-ups to identify the optimum operating point to achieve maximum efficiency.

Over recent decades the extractive use of water in Australia has dramatically increased, leading to greater agricultural production and, in many instances, to the degradation of riverine ecosystems, loss of productive land and impacts on water quality and biodiversity. In response, Australian governments' are progressing a range of water policy reforms, with recent inter-governmental agreements committing in excess of $1b to enhancing flows and environmental outcomes along the Snowy and Murray Rivers.

Evaluation Form for Integrated catchment Management

The project examined the suitability of Canada's Ecotrust 'conservation economy' model for enhancing sustainable development in rural and remote Indigenous communities in Australia. Three community case studies and a broad regional case study were undertaken to ensure the research was grounded in remote Indigenous peoples' experiences.

The term 'Environmental Flows' has come into common usage. To some this term apples to releases from dams which are specificallly for environmental benefit. To others it can be any flow which achieves an environmental benefit.

A description of the National Land and Water resources Audit

Decision making on mixed farms is a complex process. Many factors are taken into account simultaneously, with finance, family, environment and risk all part of the mix. This social research project will investigate the decision making processes from a people perspective and identify ways to help farmers make difficult decisions around managing mixed farming systems with more confidence.

This fact sheet gives a brief overview of the projects run by the Defeating The Weed Menace Research and Development Program. Fourteen projects were selected during an initial funding round and they address four different themes.