Water, according to the recent review of the Northern Australia Land and Water Taskforce.
Much to the chagrin of Senator Bill Heffernan (and the relief of more than one conservationist), the report indicates that only 40,000 to 60,000 hectares can be supported by irrigation with groundwater. Although only 20,000 ha are currently being irrigated and therefore the potential for growth is between 100% and 200%, this is still modest.
Notwithstanding the findings of this report, I did like the statements of Northern Territory Country Liberal Senator Nigel Scullion, who still believes agriculture can be developed in the NT. Quote:
“{..] from a Territorian’s perspective, just because it’s too hard, we certainly shouldn’t give up.”
I think that is just the attitude we need in any enterprise, particularly in the critical mission of ensuring that Australia’s food production is up to the challenge of feeding the projected population of 25.7 million by 2020.
So, what are the options?
One option proposed in the aforementioned report is the use of small-scale, widely distributed agriculture (termed “mosaic agriculture’).
But what about glasshouse production?
HAL estimates that Australia has 1,600 ha of protected cropping systems for vegetables, although AUSVEG data indicates that in 2006-07 there were 870 ha of protected crops. In any case, the protected cropping industry is growing fast, at a rate of 6% per annum. Given that the quality of products and prices meet the expectations of large retailers there is an interest in developing further this industry. It is expected that the planted area will treble by 2017 with respect to 2007 levels, particularly in SA and NSW.
Moving to glasshouse horticulture can really boost the production of some fruit and vegetable varieties, as demonstrated in South Australia. If the glasshouse locations are selected carefully, transportations distances to major markets could also be optimised, thus decreasing fuel costs (both financial and environmental).
Yes, Northern Australia does not have the Mediterranean climate of SA and there is still the issue of water. But there is a concept that is currently being tested called the SeaWater Greenhouse. The concept uses seawater to cool and humidify the air of a greenhouse and sunlight to distil fresh water from seawater.
The Seawater Greenhouse has been proposed as an alternative for sustainable provision of water for agriculture in arid, coastal regions. Operating glasshouses can be found in Oman, Abu Dhabi, and Tenerife and Gran Canaria (Spain). The Seawater Greenhouse presents interesting possibilities for Western Australia, which has the longest coastline of any state. However, some inland regions below the sea level are also potentially viable. Inland areas present lower relative humidity, which leads to greater potential for water extraction.
The overall process is extremely energy efficient. For example, 1 kW of electricity expended on pumping can remove 500 kW of heat, which offsets the costs of cooling to reach the temperatures required to grow the selected crops. Water can be produced at low energy costs (<3 kWh/m3).
Further, while viable glasshouse production units in Australia need a minimum of 1,500 sq m, the lower operating costs for the seawater greenhouse (i.e. energy and water) make smaller production areas economically feasible.
Seawater Greenhouse (Australia) Pty Ltd now has a site under contract in Port Augusta (South Australia) and is in the process of obtaining planning approval to construct the first Australian Seawater Greenhouse, which should be operational by March/April 2010.
If the results of these initial trials are positive, Government and entrepreneurs would be encouraged to look into the feasibility of this technology to increase the horticultural production in Northern Australia .
But there are other technologies that can benefit the industry and that also have potential, such as precision agriculture, robotics and others. I detail some of these technologies in the report:Technology Platform 2: Adaptation and Mitigation Technologiesâ€,Opportunities and challenges faced with emerging technologies in the Australian vegetable industry. Horticulture Australia Ltd pp. 1-109. This report is available through Horticulture Australia.
