Case Study: Carbon Toolkits for Agriculture Network
Better Services to Farmers
Climate change and greenhouse gas emissions affect the agricultural sector by impacting on production systems and through changes to policies and market signals. Farmers need access to relevant, accurate and timely information and resources to understand these affects, their current emissions and their options to take practical action.
Given the scientific complexity and the uncertainty regarding policy and market impacts, services to farmers in this area are still in their infancy. To address this, the Carbon Toolkits in Agriculture Network project aims to establish and maintain a network of carbon toolkit developers and practitioners, within and outside of DPI, and to keep them updated on latest developments, so they are able to support farmers in making informed decisions.
An email network and monthly newsletter provide service providers and interested farmers with access to relevant, up-to-date information; while targeted training courses and workshops introduce them to the latest tools, techniques and research, and provide a forum for networking and sharing on-farm carbon accounting experiences. Through the use of the web, these services are made easily accessible to a time-poor and geographically dispersed network.
In addition, case studies demonstrate options for reducing on-farm emissions, for example increased feed and water use efficiency often have a positive impact on farm productivity as well as reducing carbon emissions. By focusing on these current win-wins (rather than future what-ifs), the Network is encouraging farmers to adopt practices now that reduce emissions.
These services help to provide a route to market for DPI knowledge and research by 'wholesaling' this information and actively building the capability of private service providers.
An important insight to date has been the benefits that stem from the successful integration of carbon accounting tools within existing services, which helps to minimise the administrative burden for service providers and encourages a whole farm approach.
Partnerships
Agricultural service providers (e.g. farm consultants, farm accountants, agribusinesses, Landcare coordinators) with an interest in carbon emission service provision.
