Working with farmers to improve their farm dams
Farm dams are among the most abundant waterbodies in agricultural landscapes. Yet fertiliser and manure run-off can reduce water quality, leading to higher levels of harmful bacteria (such as E. coli) and lower productivity. Simple management interventions – such as fencing and revegetation – are cost-effective solutions for improving water quality in farm dams while providing additional environmental benefits (e.g., higher biodiversity, agricultural productivity, and aesthetic value).
Well-managed farm dams can act as “oases” against droughts for many species. Hence, using farm dams to increase suitable habitats for wildlife is a promising way to help tackle the rapid decline in freshwater biodiversity.
We explore innovative solutions to improve sustainable practices. One of our signature programs is managing farm dams to improve biodiversity, water quality, productivity, and community well-being. We develop and run citizen science and educational programs to discuss ecological and environmental topics with farmers and the community. Our main goal is to increase awareness of sustainable practices for farm dams.
Citizen Science
Monitoring your Farm Dam Emissions – Become a citizen scientist and work with us to measure emissions from your farm dams.
At the Blue Carbon Lab, we’ve kicked off a hands-on science program inviting farmers to help the environment by keeping an eye on their farm dam health.
By joining forces with us, you can play a key role in:
- Boosting your farm’s health: Understand and improve your dam’s water quality, which can lead to a thriving farm ecosystem.
- Making a difference: Contribute to a nationwide effort to reduce the carbon footprint of Australia’s agriculture, starting with your farm dams.
- Carbon credits: We are working toward a methodology to earn Australian carbon credit units (ACCUs) for restoring farm dams. However, we need the help of farmers to collect data from farm dams across Australia and improve our models.
How It Works:
- Simple technology: We give you a “Pondi”, an easy-to-use sensor that floats on your dam and collects data on the main greenhouse gases like CO₂, methane, and nitrous oxide.
- Hassle-free setup: Pondi works straight out of the box and beams data instantly to our scientists.
- Minimal upkeep: It stays on your water for about a month before it needs a quick clean and tune-up.
- Water quality analysis: We will organise a free water quality test of your farm dam water
For details, read the Project Manual.
Project Contacts:
- Martino Malerba (Research Director) martino.malerba@rmit.edu.au
- Israel Odebiri (Research Fellow) omosalewa.odebiri@deakin.edu.au
Social Sciences
Our team is partnering with the Australian National University Sustainable Farms team to create Australia’s first farm dam survey. This survey will provide critical information on:
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- Landholder decision making
- Cultural ecosystem services (CES) of farm dams
- Perceptions of climate change
- Landholder willingness to accept payment for enhancing farm dams (carbon credits)
Our team collects data through in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, workshops, and citizen science projects. Farmers, scientists, and managers participate in these events to share their views and hear new ideas for sustainable management of farm dams.
We organise these events to understand the values landholders attach to farm dams and the drivers and barriers to farm dam restoration programs. We need this information to design large-scale programs that align with landholders’ priorities and deliver public benefits.
We aim to quantify the willingness of the general population to pay for farm dam restoration and work with the government and investors to develop financial systems to subsidise the costs of farm dam management.
