The acceleration of healthy and sustainable soils practices on irrigated grain and cotton farms has been boosted by the appointment of NSW DPI's Ms Helen Squires as Soils Extension Specialist with the Cotton CRC.
Based at the Australian Cotton Research Institute, her role is to achieve enhanced understanding of plant growth, soil physical and biological health and soil productivity, leading to the development of more profitable and sustainable farming systems.
The Cotton Catchment Communities CRC soil management program is funded through the Natural HeritageTrust “Healthy Soils for Sustainable Farms” program administered by Land & Water Australia, with major contributions from the CRDC, GRDC, the Namoi, Border Rivers - Gwydir CMAs, Condamine Alliance and the Queensland Murray Darling Committee.
Helen previously worked on mine rehabilitation in the Hunter, and in property planning involving resource, sustainability and degradation issues in Western Australia.
She comes from a rural background and has a Bachelor of Science majoring in Soil Science, and is currently studying for a Masters of Environmental Management.
Cotton CRC chief executive officer, Guy Roth, said Helen's background will be invaluable in overseeing the accelerated adoption of existing research and in highlighting future ingredients of best practice for soils management in irrigated cotton and grains.
“We cannot overlook the importance of soil management during this drought to improve water management, reduce erosion and maintain its biological health,” Guy Roth said.
Cotton Seed Distributors Ltd