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Soils - Northern Territory

Specify a region: -- select region -- Adelaide River Adelaide River Barkly Barkly Bathurst and Melville Islands Bathurst and Melville Islands Blyth River Blyth River Buckingham River Buckingham River Burt Burt Calvert River Calvert River Daly River Daly River East Alligator River East Alligator River Finke River Finke River Finniss River Finniss River Fitzmaurice River Fitzmaurice River Georgina River Georgina River Goomadeer River Goomadeer River Goyder River Goyder River Groote Eylandt Groote Eylandt Hay River Hay River Keep River Keep River Koolatong River Koolatong River Limmen Bight River Limmen Bight River Liverpool River Liverpool River Mackay Mackay Mary River (WA) Mary River (WA) McArthur River McArthur River Moyle River Moyle River Nicholson River Nicholson River Ord River Ord River Robinson River Robinson River Roper River Roper River Rosie River Rosie River Settlement Creek Settlement Creek South Alligator River South Alligator River Todd River Todd River Towns River Towns River Victoria River Victoria River Walker River Walker River Warburton Warburton Wildman River Wildman River Wiso Wiso

Northern Territory

Landscape material balances

The availability of light, water and nutrients determines the capacity of land to produce natural vegetation and agricultural yield. In Australia, long-term availability of resources and the consequent potential for generating yield, can be assessed by examining the mass balances of the key resources: water and nutrients (in this case nitrogen and phosphorus). Mass balance gives a quantitative picture of:

• resource inflows or sources;
• resource outflows (including both production outputs and unproductive losses or leakages);
• the resource stock (the amount available for use); and
• the way that the stock changes with time in response to the various inflows and outflows.The mass balances of water and nutrients are linked by carbon (or biomass) since plant biomass is approximately 50% carbon. Balances and cycles of water, nitrogen, phosphorus and carbon interact and constrain each other.
• The rate of plant biomass production determines how much resource is available for harvest and for maintaining natural and farmed animal populations.
• Production of plant biomass is closely linked to plant water use, and is usually a dominant outflow in the landscape water balance.
• Production of plant biomass is linked with uptake of nutrients from soil into plants, after which the nutrients are locally recycled through litter or removed in plant or animal harvest.

The net rate that plants build up carbon from the atmosphere by photosynthesis is known as 'net primary productivity' and is most important carbon flow.

Landscape budget assessment

Two models were developed for determining landscape balances of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus and estimate of change in net primary productivity:

• an evolving or time-dependent model (BiosEvolve); and
• an equilibrium or statistically steady state model (BiosEquil).

Predictions of these models are designed to determine large-scale patterns rather than the behaviour of individual farms or paddocks, and should never be interpreted at single-cell (5 km) scale. Uncertainties even at a large region scale (100 km by 100 km or greater) for the models are:

• Net primary productivity: 30%
• Organic stores of C, N and P: 50%
• Mineral stores of C, N and P 100%
• Current/pre-agricultural ratios: 50%
• Leaching and drainage fluxes: large uncertainty

Landscape budgets in Northern Territory

River basin name	Net Primary Productivity (t Carbon/ha/y)	Total Carbon(plant+ soil+ litter ) tC/ha)	Total Phosphorus(kg P/ha)	Total Nitrogen (kg N/ha)
Adelaide River	2	74	476	3,232
Barkly	0	18	164	940
Bathurst and Melville Islands	3	93	738	4,043
Blyth River	2	53	385	2,108
Buckingham River	2	62	492	2,535
Burt	1	26	208	1,225
Calvert River	1	35	243	1,378
Daly River	2	53	353	2,267
East Alligator River	2	59	422	2,413
Finke River	0	18	147	895
Finniss River	2	76	515	3,234
Fitzmaurice River	2	50	336	1,988
Georgina River	0	13	125	695
Goomadeer River	2	54	370	2,048
Goyder River	2	53	372	2,100
Groote Eylandt	2	53	361	1,898
Hay River	0	11	90	497
Keep River	1	33	245	1,431
Koolatong River	2	64	484	2,482
Limmen Bight River	1	25	191	1,011
Liverpool River	2	47	328	1,791
Mackay	0	15	143	706
Mary River (WA)	2	68	430	2,787
McArthur River	1	26	196	1,040
Moyle River	2	69	450	2,959
Nicholson River	1	23	194	1,114
Ord River	1	25	201	1,158
Robinson River	1	31	223	1,206
Roper River	1	36	260	1,513
Rosie River	1	30	221	1,133
Settlement Creek	1	39	276	1,685
South Alligator River	2	57	357	2,183
Todd River	0	18	141	831
Towns River	1	27	218	1,107
Victoria River	1	32	245	1,516
Walker River	1	45	321	1,662
Warburton	0	18	160	856
Wildman River	2	73	515	3,132
Wiso	1	19	164	868

Click on the river basin name or map below to view a report on the nutrient - sediment - landscape budget terms.

Further information

View the Australian Agriculture Assessment 2001 report.

View the Landscape balances chapter of the Australian Agriculture Assessment 2001 (theme) report.

View the project report prepared by CSIRO Land and Water in the development of this work on the coupled balances of water, nutrients and carbon in Australian landscapes. (3.5mb.pdf)

View the technical report prepared by CSIRO Land and Water in the development of this work on the coupled balances of water, nutrients and carbon in Australian landscapes. (1.3mb.pdf)

Link to the Map Maker to make a map using this information.

Link to the Australian Natural Resources Data Library

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