Ebook Financial-economic analysis of current best management practices for sugarcane, horticulture, grazing and forestry industries in the Tully-Murray catchment
The development of a water quality improvement plan for the Tully Murray catchment, which is co-ordinated by the Far North Queensland Natural Resource Management board (FNQ NRM Ltd), requires the integration of results from Tasks outlined in the Water Quality Improvement Program (WQIP) for the Tully-Murray catchment.
The overall objective of this particular project is to assess and identify landscape management (i.e. the way in which land is used and managed) and arrangement (i.e. the spatial distribution of land use and management) options and pathways for water quality improvement in the Tully Murray catchment.
To this end, the following tasks described in the Water Quality Improvement Program (WQIP) for the Tully Murray catchment will be developed simultaneously:
- Task 2.8: Identify the specific locations where investment in improved riparian, wetland and instream conditions may deliver cost-effective reductions in pollutants.
- Task 2.12: Estimate WQIP targets for suspended sediments, nitrogen, phosphorus and pesticides to the receiving water body, to be applied during the period of this WQIP for the purpose of achieving the water quality objectives and total maximum load objectives.
- Task 2.15: Describe how the impacts of future growth and climate change will be accounted for in proposed management measures and control actions, and attainment and maintenance of the total maximum pollutant load for key pollutants to the receiving water body.
- Tasks 3.3a,b,c,d: Review of strengths and weaknesses of best management practices in Wet Tropics catchments, in particular as related to water quality improvement.
- Task 3.5: Evaluate incentives for uptake and long-term implementation of BMPs.
This report focuses on Task 3.3b,c,d and Task 2.15, analysing the cost effectiveness of most promising best-management-practices (BMPs) for water quality improvement in sugarcane, horticulture, grazing and forestry production in the Tully Murray catchment (as identified in Task 3.3a see Roebeling and Webster, 2007) and assessing the impact of climate change and population growth on BMP cost effectiveness and attainment of water quality targets. We determine the plot level financial economic consequences of BMP implementation in sugarcane, horticulture, grazing and forestry production, as well as the effectiveness of these BMPs in reducing fine suspended sediment (FSS), dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) and persistent herbicide (HER) delivery which are considered the most important water pollutants in the Tully Murray catchment (Mitchell et al. 2007). We therefore apply and extend the approach developed by Roebeling et al. (2005) that uses production system simulation models (APSIM, LUCTOR and PASTOR) and a hydrological model (SedNet/ANNEX) in combination with sound cost benefit analysis. The impact of climate change on BMP cost effectiveness and attainment of water quality targets is assessed using the above mentioned approach in combination with climate change projections for 2030 and 2070 (see for example Park et al. 2007), while the impact of population growth on attainment of water quality targets is assessed using a classic urban economic model with environmental amenities (see Roebeling et al. 2007).
The structure of this report is as follows. Chapter 2 describes the methodology applied in this study, which links production system simulation models, water quality models and costs benefit analysis to assess the plot level financial economic cost effectiveness of management practices in sugarcane, horticulture, grazing and forestry production. In Chapter 3 results are presented and analysed for the identified management practices, thereby looking at annuity gross margins and average annual water pollutant deliveries. In Chapter 4 the potential impacts of climate change and population growth on the effectiveness of BMPs for water quality improvement are discussed. Finally, Chapter 5 summarises key results and offers concluding remarks and observations.
Contents
Acknowledgements
Executive Summary
1. Introduction
2. Approach to financial-economic analysis of industry current best management practices
- 2.1 Production system simulation models
2.1.1 Sugarcane crop growth model – APSIM
2.1.2 Horticulture crop growth model – LUCTOR
2.1.3 Grazing production model – PASTOR
2.1.4 Forestry crop growth model – LUCTOR
2.2 Water quality model – SedNet / ANNEX
2.2.1 Fine suspended sediment delivery
2.2.2 Dissolved inorganic nitrogen delivery
2.2.3 Herbicide deliveryContents
2.3 Cost benefit analysis
3. Financial-economic analysis of industry current best management practices
- 3.1 Sugarcane
3.2 Horticulture
3.3 Grazing
3.4 Forestry
4. Climate change and population growth
- 4.1 Climate change
4.2 Population growth
5. Discussion and conclusions
6. References
Appendix 1
- Welfare gains from urbanising landscapes in Great Barrier Reef Catchments?
A spatial environmental-economic modelling approach
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