increase font size
Are you keen to know whether our farming practices are sustainable and environmentally friendly? Just ask LUCI.
A computer modelling programme designed by a Victoria University of Wellington academic is helping ensure that farming practices here and overseas are as sustainable and environmentally friendly as possible.
Dr Bethanna Jackson from Victoria's school of geography, environment and earth sciences has developed a land management decision support framework and software package called LUCI. It analyses impacts of changes in the way land is used across a range of ecosystems, and identifies where trade-offs or co-benefits might exist.
"LUCI looks at the way land management can affect a variety of things such as water quality, flood risk, agricultural productivity, greenhouse gas emissions, erosion, or sediment," says Jackson.
"It looks at everything in a holistic manner—the impact of all those cumulative changes in the way land is managed on a whole variety of different environmental, social and economic functions.
"It helps you plan the way you manage the landscape and can isolate areas where you might, for example, be able to plant trees to improve your environmental function while maintaining a reasonable level of production."
In New Zealand a number of regional councils are using LUCI, and it is also being used by the Welsh government to monitor the success of its agricultural subsidy programme. "They're paying farmers to make various interventions, so they're using LUCI to see whether the scheme is helping with things like reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improving water quality, or reducing flooding."
"We've got a bit of money from Victoria's University Research Fund to extend our work to Samoa and Australia, and we've previously worked in Greece and Ghana too," says Jackson.
The potential scope of LUCI is vast, according to Jackson.
"Land management is a huge issue—we rely on it for food production and water quality. But to keep that sustainable and to keep waterways clean it needs to be managed properly, and that's what LUCI is about."
To find out more about LUCI, visit www.lucitools.org
Winegrowers are constantly being pushed to reduce farming costs, cut carbon emissions and improve vineyard sustainability. Recent work conducted by Thoughtful Viticulture, in collaboration with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI), shows promise to achieve all three.
Efficiency is the big one because it tracks back into what is done on farm.
A new company set up to cultivate and supply seaweed for animal methane mitigation studies believes it could be a game changer for the dairy industry.
With entries now open for the Ballance Farm Environment Awards, organisers have launched a campaign to bust some of the biggest myths they think might be preventing farmers and growers from putting themselves forward.
Retiring MP and dairy farmer Mark Cameron is blasting the Green Party for proposing to ban the use of synthetic fertiliser and cutting cow numbers.
OPINION: The time has come for the Government to back the organic sector.
Plan ahead and be patient. That’s the message to farmers and horticulturalists from the chairman of the NZ Agricultural Aviation Association, Kent Weir.
The industry is crying out for graduates with agricultural related degrees.
While GPS and guidance have become the norm and yield mapping and variable application continues to gain traction, most agricultural machinery manufacturers continue to expand their technology offerings, amalgamating the vast amounts of data being collected to streamline real-time and ongoing management decisions.
Supply chain problems, growing protectionism and a move to greater food security are some of the key challenges facing New Zealand exporters, according to our top trade negotiator, Vangelis Vitalis.
A spat within the ranks of the New Zealand Deer Farmers Association has resulted in the suspension of outspoken North Canterbury farmer Barry Cuttance.
