UWA soil scientists scoop $4.34m grant to ‘push the frontier’ in biological and chemical fertiliser research

The University of WA has been awarded $4.34 million to “push the frontier” on soil science with a new project investigating how best to combine biological and chemical fertilisers, just days after being named the best university in the world for plant science and agronomy. Federal Agriculture Minister David Littleproud visited the university on Thursday to announce UWA would run one of 11 research projects sharing in $21m as part of the Coalition’s $214m National Soil Package. The bonafide funding — not a Federal election pledge — would enable UWA to work in collaboration with the University of Adelaide and the University of Western Sydney to run a project focused on a new fertiliser project. UWA plans to use the funding to gain an “in-depth understanding of soil physical and chemical processes” in response to biological inputs that complement chemical fertilisers to maximise productivity. UWA will partner with Western Sydney University and The University of Adelaide for project, which will investigate the mechanisms that underpin the effects of biological amendments on soil health, productivity and resilience. Emerita professor Lynette Abbott, who is the senior honorary research fellow at the UWA School of Agriculture and Environment and The UWA Institute of Agriculture, said the research would identify the most efficient and cost-effective ways of combining biological and chemical fertilisers and “determine the underlying mechanisms involved”. “Our changing climate, pressure to produce more food and fibre and growing population pose major challenges for the successful management of our fragile soil,” Professor Abbott said. “This explains the growing interest in the use of biological soil amendments — that is any material added to a soil to improve its physical properties, such as water retention, permeability, water infiltration, drainage and aeration — to increase the productivity of Australian crops. “Our ultimate aim is to improve soil health and crop performance for farmers across Australia.” Mr Littleproud said the 10 national projects would provide an in-depth understanding of soil physical and chemical processes in response to biological inputs that complement chemical fertilisers, to maximise farmers’ productivity. “Project focus areas (nationally) include improving soil carbon sequestration, improved fertiliser strategies, and high-resolution mapping to improve soil management across our vast landscape,” he said. “Farmers right across the country — from graziers and cattle producers in northern Australia to cropping farmers in southern Australia — will ultimately benefit.” The UWA project team includes Prof. Abbott, Dr Sasha Jenkins, Professor Nanthi Bolan, Hackett Professor Kadambot Siddique, Dr Zakaria Solaiman, Dr Bede Mickan, Dr Marit Kragt, Associate Professor Louise Barton and Associate Professor Matthias Leopold. UWA vice-chancellor professor Amit Chakma congratulated the UWA research team for their “passion and dedication in working to secure and protect Australia’s soil for the future”. “The funding announced today will allow for more ground-breaking research to help address fundamental gaps in soil science and improve our understanding of how to better manage soil, ultimately making a difference not only in this country but globally,” Professor Chakma said. The announcement comes after Research.com ranked UWA first for the discipline out of nearly 2600 researcher profiles from nearly 600 institutions and affiliations around the world. UWA Institute of Agriculture director Hackett Professor Kadambot Siddique said the ranking fortified UWA’s international reputation as a world leader in plant and agronomy research. Other recipients include: The University of Adelaide (in collaboration with the South Australian Research and Development Institute) $3.12m to research the diversity of Australian soils using DNA technology to measure, understand and reverse soil decline, providing a basis to improve soil biology in farming systems. The University of Sydney $2.96m to better understand the diversity, function, and impact of Australian soils viruses and their links to soil health and productivity. The University of Melbourne $2.17m to develop new standardised approaches and tools for farmers to manage soil fauna across different agricultural industries The University of Melbourne (in collaboration with Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation and Queensland Department of Environment and Science) $1.95m to quality and understand the causes and consequences of soil organic carbon decline in Australian cropping systems, to improve productivity and improve understanding of carbon sequestration. The University of Sydney (in collaboration with Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation) $1.84m to develop an improved spatial understanding of how soils behave in the Australian landscape to enable better advice for farmers and primary producers on land management strategies. The University of Queensland (in collaboration with the QLD Department of Agriculture and Fisheries) $1.75 million to develop new nitrogen fertiliser strategies for the more effective and efficient use of nitrogen to benefit Australia’s cropping producers The University of New South Wales ((in collaboration with the University of Newcastle, and New South Wales Department of Primary Industries) $1.20m to provide insight into the use of nano materials (including waste materials) in soils, as an innovative approach to assist in improving soil carbon sequestration. Queensland University of Technology $880,000 to improve rangeland management in the Northern Australian pastoral zone, including developing strategies for improving carbon storage and productivity on those pastoral lands. The University of Sydney $850,000 to explore the interaction of various components in soils to better understand linkages and benefit to soil carbon sequestration. The University of Queensland $570,000 to better understand the application of phosphorous in soils to increase agricultural productivity. To find out more, visit awe.gov.au/soils