Information
Nature and magnitude of soil erosion in sugarcane land on the wet tropic coast of north-eastern Queensland - Liverpool Creek
Level 1 General Description
Purpose
This study measured the rate of soil erosion in sloping sugarcane land under conventional cultivation and various no-tillage surface management techniques.
Methods (Brief)
The study was conducted on a commercial farm in the wet tropics within 50 km of Innisfail. For each plot, measurements were taken in 2 adjacent interrows at 10 m intervals down the slope (15%) to a length slope of 60 m. The study also recorded data on compaction, bulk density, soil moisture, particle size analysis, water-dispersible clay percentage and cation exchange capacity.
Key Findings (Brief)
The soil erosion rate ranged from 5-15 t/ha for no tillage with varied cover, compared to 47-505 t/ha for the conventional cultivation (included burning before harvest, tillage, fertiliser and weed control) over the entire study (multiple sites). For the Liverpool Creek site, the soil erosion rate ranged from 50-42 t/ha for the no tillage methods, and 72-161 t/ha for the conventional cultivation. No significant difference was measured between no tillage crops with groundcover of 0, 50 and 100%. Most of the annual soil erosion occurred during the monsoon wet season.
Location
L Nucifora’s Liverpool Creek is located at Lat 17º 40’ S, Long 146º 03’ E.
Related Studies
A and R Cecchi’s East Coorumba is located at Lat 17º 59’ S, Long 145º59’ E.
L Nucifora’s Liverpool Creek is located at Lat 17º 40’ S, Long 146º 03’ E.
C Phillips’ Cowley is located at Lat 17º 40’ S, Long 146º 02’ E.
R Carne’s Babinda is located at Lat 17º 18’ S, Long 145º 55’ E.
Mundoo is located at Lat 17º 34’ S, Long 144º 59’ E.
V and R Caltabiano’s Nerada is located at Lat 17º 33’ S, Long 145º 53’ E.