Pratica di Shadowing: PODCAST Reshaping the landscape: Landforming for water flow management - Impara a parlare inglese con i video

Intro: This is a GRDC podcast.

Debra: Waterlogging is a complex process, but there is a solution.

And land shaping is one of those that we're looking at today.

Hello, I'm Debra Bishop, and welcome to our podcast.

We're also looking at new technology, heavy machinery, legalities and the latest know how, both locally and nationally, and also internationally, that they tell us could revolutionise excess water management in your farming system.

Now here to talk to us about that today, we're joined by Quenten Knight, who is a GRDC Western panel member.

Thanks a lot for coming along today.

Quenten. And also, we're joined by Jeremy Whyte, who is a grower here in Esperance.

Jeremy, thank you for joining us too.

Can you kick us off by just telling us what this region is about and what your water logging problems have been over the last few years?

Jeremy: Yeah.

So, today we're here at Warakirri Cropping's Lobethal property east of Esperance.

We're located pretty closely to the coastline, so, a high rainfall zone in and around that 600 millimetres annual average rainfall, which you know, subsequently incurs waterlogging issues and ponding events, that leads to standing water and, yeah, which requires surface drainage to, to alleviate that issue.

Debra: In this region, what are the traditional soil constraints that you would be up against?

Jeremy: Yeah, I guess compaction.

And that's heavily enhanced by the, the large rainfall events that can occur through a growing season.

And then, you know, lack of aeration through the soil.

Debra: Okay.

Now you're part of a project with GRDC in waterlogging.

How did you get into it?

And where is it taking you?

Jeremy: Oh, I think just from the fact that, you know, like, it's a, it's a newly explored area around landforming or shaping, and, you know, and probably a bit more of a detailed approach to, to subsurface drainage, I guess.

So, yeah, as early adopters as other people are in other techniques of drainage.

It's been a good opportunity to, to communicate that outwards.

Debra: So, can you talk us through the landforming practices that you're undertaking here as, as being guided through this GRDC project?

Jeremy: Yeah.

So, currently we've implemented, you know, through the data that's been captured over time from historical yield data to, to LiDAR elevation data capture.

And then that's been transferred into landforming, through the use of carry grader, cutting out high areas, filling into low areas and releasing these ponding areas that, that lead to waterlogging.

And then subsequently as behind us, we have, you know, a clay spreader that's utilising some of the clay that we've managed to stockpile through the implementation of the larger surface drains that we've put into place.

It's, it's been a great opportunity to probably utilise some of that valuable resource that we've extracted.

And, and, you know, then in turn fix up some non-wetting issues that we have as well in this, in this paddock in particular.

Debra: Now Quenten it's a five-year project.

Just, can you take us through what the project is about, what you're trying to get to the bottom of and, and the outcomes that you're going to hopefully aim to achieve.

Quenten: Yeah.

So, it's a, it's a five-year project.

This is year one.

So, year one we're sort of, more about collecting data and pulling together lots of different information and probably case studies.

But, essentially, it's about surface water management across Australia.

Because in the high rainfall zones, there's probably more cropping starting to happen in those zones, and particularly in WA with, you know, the live sheep export thing, and people moving away from sheep, there's probably more high- rainfall country that's going to come into cropping.

And as that comes into cropping, waterlogging is going to be a major risk for some of those guys.

So, if we can provide, good information about how to plan and implement surface drainage, that will ensure that those growers are probably de-risking their cropping enterprise with regard to waterlogging risk.

Debra: Now, that opening statement, that land shaping has the potential to revolutionize some of the approaches we have to managing excess water on a, on property.

How close might we be to actually seeing that occur?

Quenten: Oh, I think we'd be very close to seeing that occur.

You know, we've seen some examples on this, this farm east of Esperance last year where landforming was sort of, undertaken on a, on a small scale.

And whilst it wasn't a particularly wet year last year, there are some really good signs that, that the process is, is working.

But, but landforming is not the complete solution.

Like landforming is part of a broader suite of tools that you could use to address the waterlogging problem.

So, that's what we're sort of, seeing on this particular farm that, you know, landforming is one of the options.

But then farming direction is a, is a, another option.

So, we're working with nature, to get the water to flow in the direction that it was naturally flowing anyway.

And then we're also using things like deep ripping as well to put some aeration back into the soil and remove some historical soil compaction.

So, it's a whole range of different tools that we'll be using.

And equally, there'll be some other things that come in like, tile drainage, for example.

There's growers in this region and across Australia that, that are adopting that.

And I think one of the big drivers for, for landforming and probably attention around waterlogging in the high- rainfall zone is that the land has become very expensive as well.

So, people need to do what they can to make it as productive as what they possibly can, to get the, the returns necessary to justify such high-cost land.

Debra: But some of this approach can also be costly itself, can't it?

So, that investment for growers up front is that part of the, the project's focus too?

Quenten: Yeah, absolutely.

And I think there's so, many different ways to tackle waterlogging.

So, I think one of the most important things is to do some analysis, to work out how big the problem is and how much that problem is costing an individual farmer.

But then equally, when you've got the data, the data can help guide you into which strategy you might implement.

So, for some guys it might be as simple as changing farming direction.

For others, it might be changing farming direction and implementing some surface drainage, and for others, there will be a whole combination of lots of different things to, to address the problem.

Debra: So, some of the data that you were showing us earlier was from areas of your farm you've lost completely to water.

You're now looking at land forming, and that could return between 500 kilograms to a tonne per hectare uplift in yield across the farm.

That means a revenue increase what, around $300 per hectare, in dollars per hectare in a season when waterlogging occurs ?

Is that the reality you're looking at here?

Jeremy: Yeah.

So, I think ultimately, it's probably the assessed economical sort of, loss that's been incurred from years of waterlogging events, but also too, I think, you know, it's a sustainable approach as well because the inputs are still being applied.

And, you know, we're still going out there and trying to, to produce off this area, but at times late in a season we are losing those areas to waterlogging and so, on.

So, I think, I think the payback is real and at what cost ?

I guess we're seeing anywhere up to two, three times the yield out of these waterlogged areas in the high production zones in our paddocks.

So, that's a real you know, that's the test.

We know what we can produce when it's not waterlogged.

So, the better soil types in those low-lying areas, you know, with the alleviation of the water, should be able to produce as well as the high production zones.

Debra: Do you have a time limit ?

I mean, have you set a sight, your, your sights on a particular time limit as to when that investment is going to start delivering?

Jeremy: I think, I think it's delivered from the first season that we've implemented, you know, some key drains.

You know, they've picked up some low areas.

The landforming process, I think is going to be a process of prioritisation.

I think, you know, it's quite a laboursome process and operationally it's pretty impactful on the team.

So, yeah, I think over the two seasons that we've been implementing this.

I think we've probably learned to, to look at it and assess the higher level of priorities in a paddock.

and, and the quicker we can roll it out across our, our total hectares under operation, the better than that's going to be for us.

And then once we've completed a broad ranging, you know, program that we can come back and refine that back upon what we've already done, so.

Debra: So, landscaping, we're, we're pretty familiar with it.

But there would, I would imagine, be some certain environmental as well as legal regulatory approaches and things that growers and need to be aware of.

Quenten: Yeah, I guess the, the landforming bit not, not so, much, but it's more just about broadly surface water management.

And its fresh water that we've got to status, not saline water, but I think it's yeah.

Having an understanding of, you know, the natural flow of that water, where it's entering your property and where it's exiting your property.

And, you know, with most of these sorts of things, you should go through the appropriate channels to make sure that you've got all the legal requirements taken care of.

And, you know, should be in pretty close communication with all of your immediate neighbours and perhaps even the broader catchment.

Debra: So, we've had a bit of activity here behind us with, with some clay spreading now.

Is that one of the unexpected bonuses that has actually been a, a surprise advantage to this process of landscaping.

Can you take us through that Quenten?

Quenten: Yeah, sure.

So, part of this land shaping, forming, process is, it's a little bit of cut and fill.

100

So, you know, when we're digging these drains, we're obviously cutting material.

101

And as it turned out, some of that material as we went deeper was high-quality clay.

102

So, that seemed a real waste to use that as fill material to fill the bottom of quite deep holes.

103

So, as these drains were starting to get cut, it, Jeremy and the team had a, had a pretty good idea to stockpile that material.

104

Because in this environment, we also have quite extensive non-wetting soil.

105

And part of the process of fixing up non-wetting is to clay spread.

106

So, through cutting these drains last summer there was probably between 150,000 to 200,000 tonnes of high-quality clay that was stockpiled, and now that's getting used, post the landforming as one of the final passes, to put clay over the, over the top of that soil.

107

And the idea is to raise once that's incorporated in the, in the soil profile, to get the soil's clay content up to around 5 per cent clay.

108

And that should have a very long-term effect of addressing the non-wetting problem with these soils.

109

Debra: And there's liming and testing.

110

Quenten: Yeah.

111

So, we're, we're pretty fortunate in the Esperance region where a lot of our clay is alkaline.

112

And as a result of that as we're spreading so, this spreader that's operating behind us is putting out that clay at around 300 tonnes to the hectare.

113

So, at that rate, and given that it's alkaline material, it's having a, a liming effect.

114

And the other thing that we're quite fortunate about in this area is our clay is generally quite rich in potassium, so, we're getting a liming and a potassium effect, as well as fixing the non-wetting.

115

So, we're getting some really nice, added bonuses.

116

Debra: So, how, for a grower, I mean, was that, you know, a pretty, pretty great discovery.

117

I suppose that's a bit of an unexpected discovery for you.

118

Jeremy: I think we always had an understanding.

119

I think, as Quenten said, I think it was one of the things is distance to fill targets as well.

120

We're quite you know, stretched.

121

And that's probably where a lot of the cost is incurred is travel time without actually working.

122

So, stockpiling became a good opportunity there.

123

Probably our expectations of the carry grader to build the drain in total and, and its entirety was probably a bit ambitious.

124

We found that probably the durability of the machine at depths of up to three, three and a half metres in the drain was pretty unsustainable and was causing some significant breakdowns and downtime issues.

125

So, we did engage a contractor with a couple of dozers.

126

So, once they, they started operating as well that, that incurred more stockpiling.

127

But I think, I think it's a great, great thing.

128

It helps finish it off.

129

And it helps also stabilize some of the, the landformed areas where they're vulnerable and quite light on top.

130

It helps to settle that down.

131

Debra: So, Quenten, if growers are showing some interest in, in land shaping, landforming, I understand data collection is really probably the starting point.

132

Is that what you'd suggest?

133

Quenten: Yeah, absolutely.

134

Yeah. Because the data and growers have got some really good ways of collecting data now, like on their own machines, a lot of them that have got RTK, GPS.

135

They'd be collecting highly accurate elevation data.

136

In this particular case here, you know, we started off in 2013 with RTK data, but then we've progressed in 2024 to, to a LiDAR data, which is giving us accuracy to about one centimetre, and also capturing all the arable and non-arable land on the farm.

137

So, we've got a really good understanding of where the water's ponding and where it wants to enter the farm and exit the farm.

138

So, yeah, data's integral and once you've got the elevation data, you can also combine that with yield data over the years.

139

So, you'll have some wet years and some dry years.

140

And it really gives you an understanding of how big the problem is, where the problem is localised.

141

And again, how you might prioritise those areas which you're gonna drain.

142

But I guess fundamentally it gives you an understanding of how much money that, the waterlogging problem is costing you.

143

Debra: So, if growers are keen to hop on to this project, is there still an opportunity for those to do so?

144

And how might they do that?

145

Quenten: Yeah, I think so.

146

I mean, part of this project, I guess, at the moment is identifying leading growers that are probably early adopters of some of this technology and hopefully through, you know, Jeremy here that they're early adopters, particularly with the landforming, because landforming in WA is quite a new concept.

147

It's certainly been used on the East Coast, probably in, in the, you know, the cotton industry and irrigation, but certainly in, in WA broad acre, not so, much.

148

So, I think, you know, it's probably just introducing growers to a new way of doing things.

149

So, I think hopefully through this we can get people, thinking about what the opportunities might be.

150

And some growers might think, well, that's going to be part of my long-term drainage strategy, as well as all the tools that they might have already been using.

151

Debra: So, Jeremy, any final words of advice to growers who might consider going your direction?

152

Jeremy: Oh, I think it's just a, it's not one-size- fits-all approach.

153

And I think, you know, it's a, it's a matter of starting and, you know, things will change as you go.

154

And there's plenty of different practices that have been implemented and I'm sure along the way as well, we will at times possibly deviate and tiling and other things as well.

155

But for now, yeah, it's, it's about staying the course on this.

156

And I'm sure when we get the next high-rainfall season come up that.

157

Yeah, it'll, it'll play through to be worth the while.

158

Debra: We've been listening to Quenten Knight, a GRDC Western panel member, and also Jeremy Whyte, a grower here in Esperance.

159

If you would like more information about waterlogging processes and perhaps the project that GRDC is now engaged in, have a look at the GRDC website for more information.

160

I'm Debra Bishop and thanks again.

Cos'è la tecnica dello Shadowing?

Shadowing è una tecnica di apprendimento delle lingue supportata da studi scientifici, originariamente sviluppata per la formazione dei traduttori professionisti e resa popolare dal poliglotta Dr. Alexander Arguelles. Il metodo è semplice ma potente: ascolti un audio in inglese di madrelingua e lo ripeti immediatamente ad alta voce — come un'ombra che segue il parlante con un ritardo di solo 1–2 secondi. A differenza dell'ascolto passivo o degli esercizi di grammatica, lo shadowing costringe il tuo cervello e i muscoli della bocca a elaborare e riprodurre simultaneamente i modelli di discorso reale. La ricerca dimostra che migliora significativamente la precisione della pronuncia, l'intonazione, il ritmo, il discorso connesso, la comprensione dell'ascolto e la fluidità del parlato — rendendolo uno dei metodi più efficaci per la preparazione alla prova di speaking dell'IELTS e per la comunicazione reale in inglese.

Pratica di Shadowing: PODCAST Reshaping the landscape: Landforming for water flow management - Impara a parlare inglese con i video

Informazioni su questa lezione

Cos'è la tecnica dello Shadowing?