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In this section you will find detailed information, including national overviews and state and regional level assessments, from the 2000-2002 National Land and Water Resources Audit theme assessments.
Agriculture - Horticulture - North Wet/Dry Tropics
North Wet/Dry Tropics
Benchmarking Rural Industries' Practices and Productivity Performance and Review of Industries' Capacity to Change
Where is horticulture produced in the North Wet/Dry Tropics?
The horticulture industry's North wet/dry tropics production region includes the following growing areas: Darwin rural area, NT.
In this region, horticulture is produced on 1,292 hectares of land.
How much horticulture does the North Wet/Dry Tropics produce?
Horticulture production in this region in 1998 included:
- 5,638 tonnes of horticultural product comprising 516 tonnes of annual crops and 5,122 tonnes of perennial crops;
- an average of 4.4 tonnes of horticulture product/hectare; and
- $13 million dollars worth of horticultural product, 23% from annual crops and 77% from perennial crops.
Production from the major crop types grown in the region is presented in the table below. These figures do not account for the entire horticulture industry in this region.
| Crop | Area (ha) | Production (tonnes)(ha) | Value ($M) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tropical Fruit | - | 1,390 | 5.0 |
- signifies no information available
What land and water resources are invested in horticulture production in the North Wet/Dry Tropics?
This region is comprised of predominantly (approximately 60?tropical savanna, with areas of equatorial savanna along the north coast and grasslands in the southern interior. Average annual rainfall in this region varies from 400 mm in the southern inland, to more than 1 800 mm along the north coast. Average annual temperatures in this region range from a minimum of 18°C and a maximum of 30°C in the southern, inland areas, to a minimum of 21°C and a maximum of 33°C in the northern, coastal areas.
In this region, horticulture product is grown on 1,292 hectares of land. This production is comprised of 71 hectares of annual and 1,221 hectares of perennial. There are approximately 15 hectares of irrigated vegetable crops (annual) and 711 hectares of irrigated fruit crops (perennial) in this region.
What environmental challenges face the horticulture industry in the North Wet/Dry Tropics?The HRDC Report surveyed state agencies and selected key stakeholder/ industry representatives. This survey was intended to provide an indication of regional and industry environmental issues. The HRDC Report did not receive responses on the allocation of environmental challenges in this region. However, on the basis of the configuration of horticultural land use within the region, it is expected that the priority environmental challenges will relate to:
- soil condition;
- water quality;
- waste management;
- pest management; and
- vegetation protection.
The relative weighting of these will be determined by local landscape features.
How is the horticulture industry meeting these environmental challenges in the North Wet/Dry Tropics and across Australia?
The horticultural industry is responding to environmental challenges through a number of mechanisms, including:
- Industry strategic planning;
- Adoption of management practice;
- Development and implementation of Codes of Practice;
- Research and development; and
- Interaction with State government groups.
For more information on these programs, see the national horticulture industry page or the links to the web pages of these bodies in the further information section included below.
How do these environmental factors and responses affect the future prospects of the industry in the North Wet/Dry Tropics region?
Each of the horticultural AER regions need to respond to identified environmental issues in a coordinated manner. This approach involves the following steps:
- Establish a database that is consistent with industry and national production/ environmental reporting procedures
- Participate in the development of catchment level plans within the region
- Develop a set of regionally relevant management practices that are consistent with industry Codes and guidelines
- Initiate a regional action planning process to ensure acceptance and adoption of proposed practices
- Establish a set of environmental indicators to monitor environmental performance
Further information
Link to Map maker to make a map using this information.
Link to data available for download on "A spatially consistent sub-set of agricultural statistics (AgStats) data 1982/93 to 1996/97"
"Benchmarking environmental challenges and agricultural practice - an overview" report. Summary
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