A wrap-up of wetland projects funded by the partnership between the Australian Government’s Reef Trust and the Great Barrier Reef Foundation.

I’m Steve Attard, Irrigation Agronomist and Managing Director of AgriTech Solutions. I’ve spent nearly 30 years working across the Burdekin sugarcane region. I support growers and extension staff in refining irrigation strategies informed by decades of research and practical results. Here is what I have learnt.

New trials on Mackay farms are testing ways to trap pesticide waste at the source – and early results show they can stop contamination at hotspots like chemical mixing and wash-down sites.

This research brings together 40 years of water quality data from across the Great Barrier Reef catchments, compiling information from over 20 organisations into a single, accessible database. It provides a valuable resource for researchers and catchment management organisations, helping to ensure the long-term legacy of monitoring efforts.

Sugar Research Australia’s Matthew Schembri put farming practices to the test, tracking nutrient and pesticide losses from cane paddocks over four years in the Mackay Whitsunday region. The results reveal what works, what doesn’t, and why monitoring matters. Growers now have local data to guide decisions that protect both productivity and the environment.

An extensive flood plume caused by the recent severe weather event in northern Queensland is pushing vast amounts of river discharge to cover about 50,000 km2 of the Great Barrier Reef from Cairns to Mackay – stretching across inshore, mid-shelf, and outer reefs.

Dr Stephen Lewis delves into the history of the Great Barrier Reef, tracing its development over the past 7,000 years and exploring the complexities of establishing a baseline for assessing its health. He examines how scientists use geological and coral records to measure the reef’s health over centuries and millennia, shedding light on how the frequency of disturbances like river runoff and coral bleaching has increased in recent times.

As environmental challenges continue to grow, cane farmers play a big role in improving water quality and building the resilience of ecosystems, like the Great Barrier Reef. But how can we connect science with farming practices in a way that empowers collective action – ensuring both the environment and farming thrive together?