evokeAG 2021 heads west
Western Australia will be on the international stage in February 2021, set to host the AgriFutures Australia evokeAG conference.
Focused on the future of the agrifood tech space, evokeAG attracts more than 1000 delegates from around the world and across Australia to connect, collaborate and look to the future possibilities of agrifood tech.
The opportunity to hold evokeAG in WA was led by the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) and Business Events Perth, and supported by the Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation (JTSI).
WA is focused on value-add, agtech and foodtech to diversify the economy and take advantage of our environment, climate, proximity and quality aspects of food, farm and future.
DPIRD’s Agribusiness, Food and Trade Executive Director Liam O’Connell is a key supporter of the event which will provide an ideal platform to showcase the State’s capabilities and attract potential investors and customers from around Australia and strategic markets across the Asia Pacific region.
With an already burgeoning agtech scene, hosting a vibrant Agtech meet-up group and a series of Perth and regional accelerator and innovation hub opportunities, evokeAG will further highlight WA as an investment destination to international and domestic investors and agtech businesses.
As the gateway to key international markets, WA is in a prime position to meet the growing demand for innovative opportunities, fresh produce and high quality agrifood production.
DPIRD is looking forward to welcoming delegates from Eastern Australia and around the world to take a fresh look at the possibilities on offer in WA.
evokeAG will be held in Perth on 16 and 17 February 2021. Stay tuned for more details!
For more information contact Susan Hall, general manager investment, South Perth, +61 (0)8 9368 3851
Responding to COVID-19
As the impact of COVID-19 increases, the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development continues to work closely with industry, government and regional stakeholders to assess and prepare for the economic implications on our primary industries and regions and plan for their recovery.
The department is liaising with and gathering intelligence from key stakeholders involved in WA’s primary production and food supply chain, including Regional Development Commissions, State Government Agencies, peak industry bodies and the food processing sector, to prepare businesses, support business continuity measures and reduce potential impacts of COVID-19.
The department is adopting State Government recommendations to protect the health and wellbeing of our staff and putting plans in place to ensure business continuity.
We will continue to communicate with stakeholders in what is a fast-changing environment.
In these challenging times, it is important that we all continue to work together to ensure our State’s primary industries and regions are supported and remain resilient.
For current WA information to assist businesses, please visit the links below:
Business continuity, protecting and communicating with employees, managing travel
Preparing your business, employer obligations, support and advisory services, State Government support packages
Federal government support for businesses
Human health
Watching brief continues for Season 2020
Widespread, yet variable rainfall across the State has brought relief to some and frustration to others in both the pastoral and the agricultural regions.
In January and February, tropical cyclones Blake and Damien delivered significant and welcome rainfall to large parts of the rangelands, alleviating pressure on stock water in many areas. Western parts of the Pilbara, Gascoyne and Murchison and parts of the southern rangelands were not so fortunate.
Sustained isolated thunderstorms during late February brought rain across some parts of the agricultural region, with falls of 50 mm or more reported in many locations over the Great Southern and South Coast. In many locations, this was not enough to boost pre-seeding soil moisture levels or fill dams for livestock water.
DPIRD continues to maintain a watching brief in the north and the south and remains ready to respond to emerging issues.
The department’s Season 2020 webpage provides a one-stop-shop of updated, essential information to assist farmers and pastoralists address seasonal challenges, including a Support Services Directory of financial, water and counselling contacts.
Water
Access to water for livestock purposes remains a priority for many areas of the south east and Great Southern, with a record 10 Water Deficiency Declarations in place across the south east and Great Southern.
DPIRD is working closely with the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation (DWER), the Water Corporation and local governments to monitor on-farm water storage and requirements.
DWER is liaising with farmers in areas declared water deficient to determine any changes to livestock numbers and water carting needs following recent rainfall.
Water being carted from Water Deficiency Declared areas is strictly for emergency livestock and local firefighting, if required. This water should not be accessed for any other purposes.
In the light of continuing water shortages and the need to conserve water, farmers who are carting livestock water are encouraged to cart to closed storages or tanks, rather than dams where water losses are high through evaporation.
Season 2020
The department’s Statistical Seasonal Forecast outlook for March to May indicates a less than 40 per cent probability of above median rainfall in the northern agricultural region and greater than 70 per cent chance for southern parts of the agricultural region, based on a poor to good predictive skill level.
The most probable rainfall decile map indicates decile 2-3 for parts of the Central West and Central grainbelt and decile 8-10 for parts of the Great Southern, South Coastal and South East Coastal areas.
The Bureau of Meteorology’s current seasonal outlook indicates 45-75 per cent chance of exceeding median rainfall for autumn, with a poor to good predictive skill.
Livestock
Livestock management and feed budgeting remains a challenge, with low feed and dam levels – despite recent rainfall.
The Season 2020 webpage has recently been updated with a detailed article on ‘Making good sheep management decisions – summer and autumn’ with timely advice on feed budgeting, nutrition, water quality, pregnancy scanning and flock and herd management.
There is also a link to a report by respected consultant John Young titled ‘Breeding ewes are worth feeding’, which shows supplementary feeding is profitable and improving ewe survival improves overall flock profitability.
The loss of a Merino ewe pregnant with twin Merino lambs is worth up to $280, while the loss for a Merino ewe pregnant with twins to a terminal sire is $320.
DPIRD’s new online Sheep Flock Composition Calculator is a useful tool to predict changes in flock structure over time so producers can determine the impact of selling off breeding ewes on future financial returns over a six year period.
Cropping and land management
Summer weed control is a current priority for those that received adequate rainfall, as landholders weigh up the benefits of weed control versus the need to maintain ground cover to prevent erosion.
The Water Corporation reminds farm businesses that require access to large volumes of water for crop spraying to do so through designated high capacity local government standpipes to prevent potential impact on other drinking water supply scheme users and supplies designated for animal welfare purposes.
The Season 2020 webpage also includes links to natural resource management advice about managing the risk of erosion, with widespread reports of wind events during late summer and autumn.
The department also has several online tools and decision making aids to assist agribusinesses including:
- Weather stations and radar - real time data from more than 181 weather stations around the State, including weather summaries, charts and Doppler radar rainfall and wind images
- Seasonal climate information - which includes rainfall forecasts, plant available soil moisture maps, potential yield calculator and frost risk maps
- Rainfall to date tool - with graphs that can be tailored to location
- Soil water tool – with graphs that show soil water accumulation
- Potential yield tool - calculates potential wheat yields by location
- Extreme weather tool – maps real time information about frost and heat events.
DPIRD officers across the regions will continue to liaise with landholders and industry stakeholders as the growing season unfolds and update the Season 2020 webpage with pertinent information.
For more information contact Brendan Nicholas, Esperance manager, Esperance on +61 (0)8 9083 1110.
Esperance weather station upgrade completes Doppler radar investment
Western Australia’s agricultural region now has almost complete Doppler radar coverage, making the weather service the best in the country.
The State Government has invested $28 million over the past four years to install three Doppler radars across the grainbelt and upgrade two coastal radars.
The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) has worked closely with the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) on the project to improve the facilities, which provide real time rainfall and wind data essential for modern agribusiness operations and emergency services.
The Bureau’s recent upgrade of its Esperance radar to Doppler capability is the last piece in the puzzle, with coverage now spreading from Kalbarri in the north to Southern Cross in the east, through to Israelite Bay in the south east.
The State funded the installation of Doppler radars at Newdegate (2016), South Doodlakine (2017) and Watheroo (2017), as well as the upgrade of the Geraldton (2019) and Albany (2019) radars to Doppler capability.
Benefits
The Doppler radar investment is a boost to WA agribusinesses, providing more accurate and detailed real time weather data over a greater distance.
This enables landholders to make more informed, data-driven decisions based on more accurate, reliable data – especially as the size of farms increases, making it easier to monitor weather conditions across larger properties.
The information is provided online by both the DPIRD and the BoM weather services, providing real-time radar images of rainfall and intensity as it moves across the landscape.
When used in unison with DPIRD’s network of 181 automated weather stations and the BoM’s network of 91, landholders now have a superior weather service to make more informed, data-driven decisions.
This information will aid business management, like sowing decisions, applying fertiliser and chemicals, moving livestock and maintenance work.
Fine tuning such decisions will enable agribusinesses to optimise yields and profitability, reduce losses and costs and become more efficient.
The technology will also help aviation safety and emergency services to respond more effectively in the event of storms, bushfires and land and sea rescues.
Doppler radar explained
The coverage from each Doppler radar has also been extended from 120 to 150 kilometres for each unit, with the installation of new dual-polarimetry technology to provide high quality observations.
Doppler radar works by sending pulses of electromagnetic waves, which are reflected back to the radar by objects in their path, such as rainfall or dust.
Wind is measured by calibrating the change in the phase of each energy pulse, as it returns to the radar, which produces a similar effect to the change in frequency, hence the name Doppler radar.
The Bureau has developed sophisticated software to convert these signals into an estimate of rainfall intensity and wind speeds.
The new technology also allows for better detection of the type of precipitation, determining the size of hail stones much more accurately than was previously possible.
The new radars also work around the clock, no longer requiring two hours per day offline to track weather balloons.
On the ground
The department has received great feedback from agribusinesses and grower groups throughout the grainbelt, which are integrating Doppler radar information into every day on-farm operations.
The department’s online weather pages recently underwent another improvement, to make them easier to navigate.
In a complementary project, eight grower groups and five secondary education institutions are integrating digital devices, like remote weather station devices into their on-farm operations, as part of DPIRD’s Internet of Things DecisionAg grant program.
Visitors to the Wagin Woolorama and the Grains Research and Development Corporation’s Grains Research Updates were able to see how remote weather stations and rain gauges, along with a range of sensors were adding value to business management.
For more information contact Darren Gibbon, project manager, South Perth, +61 (0)8 9368 3406
Carbon Accounting workshops on the cards
Broadacre cattle producers interested in learning more about how to calculate carbon emissions from their stock and property are encouraged to register to attend a pilot Carbon Accounting workshop being planned for later this year.
DPIRD held a successful pilot in Perth recently with six mixed sheep and grain farming agribusinesses, hosted by DPIRD with support from Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA).
Leading carbon adviser Dr Stephen Wiedemann facilitated the workshop, which is now being refined to better suit Western Australia’s broadacre farming system.
The workshops are being developed in response to increasing interest from producers in gaining a better understanding of the carbon emissions from their livestock and operations.
Livestock is regarded as the biggest agricultural contributor to carbon emissions, accounting for 70-80 per cent of total Australian agricultural emissions.
The pilot workshop used the University of Melbourne’s calculator to determine the emissions from their livestock enterprise.
There was much discussion about how to improve the model to incorporate WA’s mixed farming systems, while providing a robust, credible tool that effectively captures livestock emissions.
The gathering was presented with various case studies that showed sheepmeat emissions average seven to nine kg CO2 e/kg lamb and about 22kg CO2 e /kg wool, compared with grain, which typically produces about 0.22kg CO2 e /kg of grain.
The autumn workshop for cattle producers will be part of a series of pilot focus groups being conducted around the country to inform the design of MLA’s carbon accounting training manual for industry.
DPIRD also intends to host additional workshops for mixed farmers later in the year.
The workshops are part of DPIRD’s broader activities and commitment to assist WA’s primary industries and regions to address the challenge of a changing climate and create a strong and dynamic future.
The department will continue to work closely with MLA, as well as industry, academia and supply chain stakeholders and invest in research and development to ensure WA is abreast of advances in this rapidly changing global operating environment.
The department has already undertaken a wealth of research and development on a range of fronts over several years to assist industry to adapt to climate variability.
A good example is how DPIRD has supported the grains industry’s ability to continue to produce strong yields in the face of reduced rainfall (see graph).
DPIRD is in a good position to harness and build on this and other transformational work and contribute to the development of the State Climate Policy, to be released in coming months, and its objective of zero net emissions by 2050.
For more information and to register your interest in attending a Carbon Accounting for Sheep or Beef Producers workshop contact Mandy Curnow, senior development officer, on +61 (0)8 9892 8422
IoT Grants Program projects live across regional WA
Eleven Internet of Things (IoT) Program projects are now live across the state.
The 11 projects are a part of a group of 15 awarded funding under the WA DecisionAg IoT Grants Program, run by DPIRD’s eConnected Grainbelt Project.
The State Government invested $582,800 towards the program with funding shared between the recipients.
The program is designed to demonstrate on-farm connectivity solutions that support remote digital farm monitoring with IoT sensors and devices used for farm monitoring – even in areas without farm-wide access to network coverage.
The grant recipients, which include eight grower groups and five agricultural colleges, have integrated a range of connectivity, IoT and dashboard equipment into their operations.
The projects are run by the Corrigin Farm Improvement Group, Edmund Rice College, Esperance Farm Training Centre – Esperance Senior High School, Kiara College, Lakes Information & Farming Technology, Merredin and Districts Farm Improvement Group, Mingenew Irwin Group, Moora Miling Pasture Improvement Group, Stirlings to Coast Farmers, South East Premium Wheat Growers Association, WA Colleges of Agriculture – Cunderdin and Morawa, and the Yuna Farm Improvement Group.
The on-farm connectivity network solutions on host-farms include both low and high bandwidth technologies with Low Power Wide Area Networks (LPWAN), using the LoRaWAN and SigFox communication protocols, mesh networks, 3G/4G mobile network and on-farm Wi-Fi networks.
They are being demonstrated across small and large farms, across neighbouring properties, on flat and undulating land and on properties located at significant distances from the home farm.
A number of IoT devices are operating on these connectivity networks and the data is analysed and displayed on supplier or aggregated dashboards, which can be read from a laptop, tablet, in the home office or out in the paddock.
The groups are investigating the use of various IoT sensors and devices, such as soil moisture, tank level sensors for water, spray and diesel tanks, weather stations, rain gauges, water flow meters, frost sensors, electric fence monitors, and security cameras.
The eConnected team has received valuable feedback from participants in the program:
“There are many different methods/systems for whole farm connectivity. Be clear about what you want to achieve on your farm. This will ensure you get the correct system to match your farm and needs.”
“No two locations are the same, even if all your sensors are on tanks, as no two tanks are the same. It may be more difficult than you think to come up with a transferrable system and you need to be adaptable to each location and farm.”
“You need to carefully choose a service provider who you can form a working relationship with and help with the learning journey.”
Visitors at the recent Perth GRDC Grains Research Updates and Wagin Woolorama events saw live feeds of several of the groups’ individual display dashboards, which were hooked up to a big screen at both exhibits.
The eConnected team discussed aspects of the IoT dashboards on display from Kiara College and WA College of Agriculture – Cunderdin. Representatives from both agricultural schools dropped by the Woolorama exhibit to chat with visitors, who were supportive of the project.
There are positive stories coming out of the demonstrations, specifically in the areas of animal welfare, cost saving and weather tracking, with many finding the applications have made a difference to their businesses’ efficiency and productivity.
The eConnected Grainbelt team has asked the groups to capture the learnings for future applications, installations and progressions.
For specific details of each of the live grants and more information about the technology they are using visit the IoT Update webpage.
For more information about the department’s digital and ag-tech investments and programs visit the eConnected Web Portal.
IoT grants at work
The Moora Miling Pasture Improvement Group (MMPIG) project, a joint initiative with the Moore Catchment Council, reported an unanticipated benefit from installing a water tank level and soil moisture IoT sensors.
During harvest last year, a group member was notified via his smart phone that one of the sensors showed a stock water tank had run dry less than 12 hours after it had been physically checked. MMPIG is running a LoRaWAN on-farm connectivity network and MoteNet data platform.
Animal Welfare can also be improved with IoT remote monitoring, as in the case of the WA College of Agriculture – Cunderdin project.
The College has installed IoT heat sensors in the piggery that indicate when the temperatures are getting too hot for the welfare of the pigs.
In mid-November college staff were alerted to a temperature spike from their data platform and on investigation found the airconditioning in the shed had failed, which was promptly repaired.
The college is running a LoRaWAN on-farm connectivity network and Stratus Imaging Aghub data platform.
The benefits of installing more weather stations across properties is being evaluated in a collaborative South East Premium Wheat Growers Association (SEPWA) project.
The IoT weather stations have already shown there can be a wide variation in rainfall during the season, recording a 60 millimetre difference within 15 kilometres.
The collection of rainfall data enables better management of cropping inputs, as input rates are varied to the conditions to produce more profitable outcomes.
SEPWA is using Wi-Fi mesh to deliver on-farm connectivity for the IoT devices and an Origo FarmHub data platform.
DPIRD weather website
The department’s online weather pages recently underwent further improvements to make them easier to navigate.
They also now include live radar imagery from the three radars, upgraded to Doppler capability, at Albany, Geraldton and Esperance.
For more information contact Kari-Lee Falconer, manager eConnected Grainbelt WA, Moora and Wongan Hills, +61 (0)8 9651 0537.
Tenders called for new finfish nursery in Geraldton
Tenders have been called for the fit out of a marine finfish nursery in Geraldton which, when operational, will produce around 200,000 juvenile yellowtail kingfish every two months.
The nursery will be located at the Batavia Coast Maritime Institute and will supply both new and existing commercial aquaculture operations in Western Australia. The team at DPIRD will supply tiny, one gram sized yellowtail kingfish to the new nursery, which will then be nurtured until they reach 50 g and then transferred to other commercial aquaculture operations.
The finfish nursery will be an important step in expanding WA’s aquaculture industry, with $7 million invested in the project over three years to build and operate the nursery. It is planned that this first module will allow the addition of extra modules to further expand the facility.
Developing a world class aquaculture industry has enormous potential for increasing economic development and boosting jobs in regional WA, as well as attracting new operators to invest in WA.
WA Rural Women’s Award finalists for 2020
The Western Australian finalists have been announced for the 2020 WA AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award.
The prestigious award has been acknowledging and supporting the essential role that women play in rural businesses, industries and local communities over the past two decades
The accolade also provides a platform to inspire and support women in the regions to use and develop their skills to benefit their industries and communities.
This year’s finalists have diverse expertise and interests – although all are innovators, collaborators, leaders in their fields and excellent ambassadors for WA’s regional communities.
Lucy Anderton, Albany - farms in partnership with her husband in a broadacre, mixed farming enterprise. As an agriculture economist she recognised the need for an easy-to-use whole-of-farm business analysis tool to assist with building resilience in the industry. Lucy designed the FARMSMART® tool, in collaboration with agricultural stakeholders,which enables farmers to compare alternative scenarios, enterprise mix and seasonal conditions using their own data. Lucy’s project will deliver business development workshops using FARMSMART® with a focus on understanding risk and financial outcomes in a complex environment.
Jo Ashworth, Kalannie – co-manages the Kalannie Community Resource Centre and farms in the Goodlands area with her family. A trained mechanical engineer, Jo has led the Growing Kalannie Project which offers and promotes inclusive, wide scope opportunities to community members to complete traineeships and apprenticeships. This recognised training helps youth and potential new community members to consider remaining in or returning to Kalannie. Jo’s project is to formulate a successful program that has wider application across regional WA.
Lauren Bell, Broome - founded a start-up that seeks to use insect farming as a way of sustainably managing organic waste, primarily food waste. Insect farming is an innovative emerging industry and Lauren is passionate about regional areas actively partaking in and developing the industry. Her aspiration is to develop a model of insect farming for organic waste management that is suitable for regional and remote towns across the North West. Lauren believes this initative has the capacity to foster economic growth in those regions through job creation and support local agriculture through the provision of feed and fertiliser products.
Cara Peek, Broome – is a Yawuru/Bunuba woman, lawyer, entrepreneur and social innovator who is committed to fostering access and opportunity for rural and remote communities. She worked in government, non-profit and corporate sectors before co-founding The Cultural Intelligence Project and founding the not-for-profit enterprise Saltwater Country. The initatives have a focus on empowering First Nations people to improve their social, emotional and economic well-being. Cara’s project is to create the Saltwater Academy - a rite of passage through a collective of place-based, people centred programs that celebrates the heritage of the Kimberley Aboriginal pastoral industry.
Kendall Whyte, Perth – is a 27-year-old woman who grew up in Mukinbudin. After losing her brother to suicide in November 2018, Kendall helped create the Blue Tree Project. The grass roots project has flourished into a not-for-profit initative, creating an impact across Australia, helping spark difficult conversations and encouraging people to speak up when battling mental health concerns. Kendall’s project will increase mental health awareness through a regional tour of WA, holding community painting days to bring people together to share their experiences and provide support.
The 2020 WA AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award winner will receive a $10,000 business development award to help develop their project and go on to compete in the national AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award.
The recipient will follow in the footsteps of the 2019 WA Award winner, Esperance sheep and grain farmer Belinda Lay, who was recognised for her innovative project that used specially designed collars to monitor sheep health.
The 2020 WA AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award is supported by DPIRD, Westpac, CBH Group and the Rural, Regional and Remote Women’s Network of WA.
The WA Award winner will be announced by the Minister for Regional Development, Alannah MacTiernan, at a virtual ceremony in Perth on Wednesday, 8 April.
For more information contact Amanda Mouritz, communications adviser, South Perth, 9368 3145
Help look for the world's worst ants!
The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) has been on the hunt for invasive ants, with surveillance ramping up following the detection of red imported fire ant (RIFA) on two adjoining properties at Fremantle Port last November.
This was a first time RIFA had been detected in Western Australia.
Invasive ants that are exotic to Australia, such as RIFA, browsing ant, yellow crazy ant, electric ant and tropical fire ant, are amongst the most serious global pests.
If introduced, they can spread quickly to dominate new environments, with catastrophic impacts on native plants and animals, agriculture and human health and lifestyle, as well as causing structural damage.
We need your help to look for these serious pests.
While the department’s ant surveillance efforts have been concentrated, input from the broader community is critical to enhancing and extending our surveillance activities.
Early detection of invasive ant incursions means the department can act quickly to prevent further spread, eradicate the incursion and prevent these ants from gaining a permanent foothold in WA.
RIFA was discovered by the department during surveillance for browsing ant, as part of our participation in the National Browsing Ant Eradication Program.
RIFA is also the target of a national eradication program – demonstrating the serious threat that invasive ants pose.
There have been no further detections of RIFA in WA, but surveillance and baiting will continue until the end of 2021 to be sure the State is RIFA-free.
A Quarantine Area within a two kilometre radius of the Fremantle detection remains in place.
The first round of RIFA surveillance and baiting has been completed, however, DPIRD warns that continued vigilance in Fremantle is vital.
Reports of new or suspicious ant activity should be made via the department’s MyPestGuide Reporter app, via the website mypestguide.agric.wa.gov.au or by contacting the department’s Pest and Disease Information Service at padis@dpird.wa.gov.au or (08) 9368 3080.
RIFA eradication program in WA
The department’s first round of RIFA surveillance was carried out on 589 randomly selected private premises in the Fremantle Quarantine Area, as well as 200 additional non-residential premises located inside and outside of the designated 2km zone.
This included all premises at the Fremantle Port, premises that had been in receipt of host material from Fremantle Port and other high risk areas.
Baiting was carried out across a 500m radius from the two premises where RIFA was detected.
Surveillance resulted in the collection of more than 2000 ant samples.
Samples are also being collected from additional surveillance activities the department is undertaking as part of the National Browsing Ant Eradication Program.
While no further RIFA have been detected, browsing ant has been detected at three locations in Perth.
Browsing ant has previously been detected in WA, at Kewdale, Belmont and Perth airport, but the incursions were successfully eradicated.
The additional detections have proven the value of ongoing surveillance and the importance of Western Australians being watchful and reporting any new or suspicious ant activity to DPIRD.
DPIRD will be carrying out another five rounds of RIFA surveillance and baiting.
These will take place in April, September and December this year and during April and September 2021.
Surveillance will include the use of detector dogs from Queensland, with assistance from the National Red Imported Fire Ant Eradication Program.
What is the difference between native ants and invasive ants?
Native ants are considered ‘nature’s broom,’ cleaning up our environment, helping pollination, aerating our lawns and providing food for other lifeforms.
However, unwanted ants can threaten the balance of the ecosystem, ruin farmers’ crops, as well inflict a nasty sting or bite on humans, pets and livestock.
RIFA are aggressive and can inflict a painful, fiery sting, which in rare cases can cause an acute allergic reaction.
They form super colonies that can spread quickly, impacting on the environment, the economy and our way of life.
RIFA dominate new environments, preying on both invertebrates and vertebrates with their venomous sting and swarm in large numbers that can overwhelm and kill prey much larger than themselves.
If introduced, they could make outdoor areas unusable, as well as cause structural damage to irrigation and electrical equipment.
Check out more information on RIFA and other invasive ants. Participate in our Ant Blitz!
To continue the focus on invasive ants, the department commenced a six-week intensive surveillance campaign at the start of Autumn to provide Western Australians with the opportunity to help us look for invasive ants.
The goal of the Autumn Ant Blitz is to get the public to collect and send in as many ant reports and samples as possible, to enhance our current surveillance activities, and determine what ants are present within our communities.
The Autumn Ant Blitz also provides a chance for the public to learn about ants, including which ants are our friends, and which ants they should be on the lookout for.
We want everyone to get up close and personal with the ants in their neighbourhoods, as being aware of the ants around you will make it easier to spot an intruder.
The Autumn Ant Blitz ends on 2 April 2020, however, this does not mean you should stop looking.
Having knowledge of invasive pests such as ants, being observant at all times and knowing how to report anything suspicious will play an important role in protecting WA from serious pest and disease incursions.
Sampling instructions
DPIRD’ Pest and Disease Information Service prefers to receive ant specimen samples rather than photos, as images make identification difficult. To collect and send in a sample:
- brush ants into a sealed container or zip lock bag and place in the freezer for 1 hour
- label container with the collection location (eg. backyard, kitchen, bathroom, driveway etc.), your name, contact number, email address and postal address
- deliver or post to Ant Blitz, Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, Pest and Disease Information Service, 3 Baron-Hay Court, South Perth WA 6151.
If a photo is your only option, refer to the department’s instructions on how to take photos with a smartphone.
For more information, contact Jodie Gysen, communications adviser, South Perth, +61 (0)8 9368 3194