Australian companies have approximately $500 million invested in Ginning Infrastructure in Qld and NSW.

We are now in uncharted waters as to our best way forward; are we just experiencing a dry cycle or is this, the permanent weather pattern for the foreseeable future - "Climate Change"; nobody really knows.

Data from last season was used to test the critical period for weed control approach for irrigated and dryland Roundup Ready Flex cotton crops.

High temperature stress adversely affects the growth, development and ultimately yield of cotton.

Our people resource in Australia's Agricultural industries is continuing to decline. We need to recognise that we are going to have to do more with less.

A ZIp file of CD contents :The Natural Resources Information Management Toolkit (the Toolkit) has been prepared by the National Land & Water Resources Audit (the Audit) and ANZLIC – the Spatial Information Council

, While the cotton industry and irrigated agriculture as a whole has been battered by the continuing drought, industry leaders are looking to the future.

The purpose of this paper is twofold.

When I first received the brief from Brendon, "Young Leaders on New Beginnings for the Cotton Industry" my first thoughts were, why did I say yes.

Many cotton growers are concerned that relying too heavily on Roundup (glyphosate) will lead to future problems with weeds becoming resistant to this herbicide.

During the recent drought that affected much of Australia, particularly in Queensland and New South Wales, the volume of containerised imports through the Port of Brisbane increased significantly.

It is increasingly recognised that the future of the Australian Cotton Industry is inextricably linked to parameters of 'permissible practice' as defined by the broader community.

The results of annual disease surveys in both NSW and Queensland continue to provide useful data on the distribution, incidence and importance of diseases of cotton in Australia.

What do consumers want from Textiles & how does this relate to cotton?

Maize or corn (Zea mays) is becoming increasingly popular as a summer crop in irrigated cotton rotations.

When comparing BollgardII with conventional cotton, the lower water requirement and higher lint yield of Bollgard II was explained by greater insect damage in conventional cotton.

The rise of ground water and salinity persist as potential challenging issues across irrigated agricultural landscapes.

Summary * Pest managers were surveyed to benchmark mirid management practices * Many mirid sprays were applied when mirids were below threshold and fruit retention was high (>85%).

Stopping seed-set on weeds that have survived a treatment of glyphosate is an important part of an IWM approach to preventing the development of glyphosate resistance.

Knowing how you are performing compared to your region or industry, facilitates continuous improvement in management and water use. Unfortunately irrigation benchmarking data has in the past not been well recorded.