The Western Australian Government encourages community groups that protect and restore WA’s unique natural resources to apply for a share of $7 million in community stewardship grant funding.
Regenerative agriculture is a holistic approach to farming that seeks to use natural techniques to regenerate soil health and increase biodiversity. Regenerative agriculture aims to restore landscape scale function and deliver sustainable production through functional nutrient cycling and enhanced ecosystem resilience. These outcomes benefit not only primary producers, but also the community - environmentally, economically and socially.
In a practical sense, actions might include the reduced use of biocides and artificial fertilisers, increased vegetation cover and strategic use of vegetation and water.
Types of activities that may be considered for funding include:
· farm planning that supports regenerative farm management
· implementation of regenerative farm plans
· demonstrating innovative techniques that support a regenerative approach
· planning, observing and measuring change
· sharing and learning opportunities that support regenerative approaches.
Things to consider in your application:
· priority will be given to activities that span more than one property
· replicating, trialling or demonstrating activities considered standard practice or that are well researched in an area will not be considered
· building the capacity of Aboriginal people to participate in regenerative land management practices will be highly regarded
Remnant vegetation protection Protecting remnant vegetation is a highly desirable activity
Priority will be given to projects that:
· have a high protected-area to boundary ratio (large patches are a higher priority than long thin areas)
· deliver connectivity between remnant patches or revegetated corridors
· demonstrate high-quality representative plant communities
· incorporate buffer zones
· incorporate cross-boundary remnant protection.
Fencing can help protect remnant vegetation, waterways, revegetation or fragile areas of biodiversity and can be used to establish connectivity between these areas.
Things to consider in your application:
· funding for materials is limited to $4 000 per kilometre unless higher rates are justified. Please provide quotes as part of your justification
· fencing that serves to protect new or remnant vegetation must be stock proof.
The landholder must also agree to exclude stock from this protected area.
Revegetation
Things to consider in your application:
· funds can be used to employ a contractor for site preparation and planting if the group or landholder is unable to undertake these tasks but this request must be fully justified
· funds can be used for the purchase or collection of local provenance seeds
· a maximum of $5 000 per ha can be requested for revegetation unless fully justified.
Application deadline Monday 10th June.
Contact Claudia at the Landcare Office with your suggestions and ideas.
landcare@dumbleyung.wa.gov.au or 9863 4225
The WA Government has opened Round 4 of the Agriculture and Aquaculture Entrepreneurship Program. The scholarships are up to $20,000 for people working in eligible roles in agriculture or aquaculture in WA. The funding can be used for travel, courses, conferences and other ways to research international and Australian innovation. There is also the option to use the funding for development, testing and trials of the innovation in WA. It’s a competitive funding program and if you are interested in applying you should:
- Check out the program documentation at http://www.jtsi.wa.gov.au/agriculture-and-aquaculture
- Register for an information session by emailing science@jtsi.wa.gov.au
- Complete an application online and lodge by 5pm 28 April 2019.