Through funding made available by the Queensland Government Reef Water Quality Program, RCS assisted 25 grazing businesses within the Fitzroy and Mackay-Whitsunday regions to reduce sediment runoff into the Great Barrier Reef catchments.
Graziers who participated in the Grassroots Project received professional education and business coaching, enabling them to develop multi-faceted farm management capacity, grow property production and improve land condition and water cycles.

Aims of the Grassroots Project

Project specific outcomes are:

  • 25 grazing businesses, with a targeted land area of 145,000 hectares within the Fitzroy Basin and Mackay Whitsunday catchments;
  • A transition to A-class land condition through increasing ground cover;
  • Improved farm management capacity and profitability;
  • Measurably improved herd performance and production efficiency;
  • Professional and happy management teams.
Grassroots Project

How will these outcomes be achieved?

Taking a whole-of-business approach, RCS worked with producers to achieve ecological and economic outcomes. Each participating business received training, business development advice, benchmarking and on-farm support. Through Grassroots Project partners, graziers accessed additional support, including the Grazing Best Management Practice (BMP) and a $10,000 grant for property remediation works.

Grassroots-3-768x576

Project Partners

Resource Consulting Services (RCS) – RCS was responsible for overall project delivery, community engagement, recruitment of project participants, providing foundational skills development, supporting participants through practice change with on-farm professional advice, monitoring key indicators, and project reporting.

Fitzroy Basin Association (FBA) and Reef Catchments FBA and Reef Catchments were responsible for BMP assessments and capturing land improvements through property mapping and ground cover assessments. They also assisted graziers with their land remediation plans. Throughout Grassroots, both organisations compiled case studies and captured the grazier’s journey throughout the project.

Queensland Government – The Queensland Government is supporting the Grassroots Project through the Queensland Reef Water Quality Program. This five-year program accelerates on-ground practice change and improve progress towards GBR catchment water quality targets under the Reef 2050 Water Quality Improvement Plan.

What participants are saying about the Grassroots Project…

The Grassroots Project is the “icing” on the cake, providing professional advice, information and support, at just the right time to develop and improve our cattle enterprise. It will most certainly help us achieve our goals of increased production and improved land condition.

Andrew and Melissa Deguara, Pinevale, Qld

Project Pioneer

In 2016, the Australian Government’s Reef Trust tasked RCS with educating and supporting graziers in the Great Barrier Reef catchment to adopt regenerative management practices. The outcomes of Project Pioneer focused on improving land conditions and reducing sediment runoff into waterways.

Read More »
RCS Logo

Join our mailing list

You look like someone who appreciates quality with a discount!

$500

Yup. That’s right. You can score up to $500 off many of our upcoming courses as an Early Bird. Be quick. There are limited numbers. Conditions Apply.