The purpose of the ‘Managing the Carbon Cycle’ KATANNING Workshop is to explore improved on-farm carbon management, particularly carbon sequestration in soils.

Increasing the level of organic carbon in soil represents our greatest opportunity to reverse environmental degradation and regenerate the natural resource base, with multiple benefits including improvements in biodiversity, groundcover, productivity, water quality, river health, erosion, nutrient, weed and salinity control and community and catchment health.

This information packed two-day ‘Managing the Carbon Cycle’ Workshop will showcase emerging initiatives and innovative management practices in the rapidly changing arena of soil carbon management. It will be of enormous benefit to policy makers, research, agency and consultancy staff, landholders, landcarers, conservation farming groups, catchment management authorities, educators, students and environmentalists.

Workshop topics

Workshop presenters include Ray O’Grady (highly regarded SoilFoodWeb accredited soil biology educator), Hamish Mackay (outstanding agribusiness background spanning three decades of ‘change’, CEO Biodynamics Australia), Andre Leu (35 years experience in building soil carbon, Chair Organic Federation of Australia) and Dr Christine Jones (well-known author on the science of soil carbon) Christine will be launching the Australian Soil Carbon Accreditation Scheme

Valuable insights into managing groundcover in the Western Australian context will be provided by Bob Wilson (Evergreen Farming Group), Megan Christie ('Kalga' Mundijong) and Rob Harper ('Velyere' Dandaragan).

Individually and as a team, the presenters will deliver a strong message for fundamental redesign. Their shared vision is to restore life and vitality to soils. Emphasis will be on initiating and promoting discussion and encouraging creative solutions in addition to introducing a diversity of new concepts, inspirational ideas, experience and knowledge.

Workshop themes will include “What does soil carbon mean for the productivity and profitability of your farm? How do you get it? How do you keep it? How do you measure it? – and ultimately – how will you be rewarded for building soil carbon through carbon credits?” The complex relationships between soil carbon and landscape health, farm productivity, perenniality, river health, water quality, salinity, soil acidity, nutrient availability and food quality will also be explored, as will the significance of Organic and Biodynamic agriculture, grazing management, pasture cropping, composting, brewing and the Terra Preta phenomenon.

Registration

The $195 Registration Fee for the 2-day event includes morning and afternoon teas, lunches and a printed copy of the Workshop Proceedings. Please register early! Places are limited to 50. Registration deadline 19 March 2007