Field Trips
After the conference concludes, we’ll wrap up with field trips on Thursday. More information is provided here, and timing details will be shared soon.
FT1 - Jarrah Forests to Wheatbelt Farms: Soil constraints, Salinity and Soil Innovation in Western Australia
Join us for a full-day field tour through the landscapes of Western Australia’s Avon Valley and Wheatbelt, exploring the transition from the forested slopes of the Darling Range to the broadacre farming systems of the Avon River catchment. This tour will take participants on a journey across diverse landscapes, from heavily timbered forests to mixed cropping and livestock systems, and the ancient valley floor of the salt river system. Along the way, participants will explore the region’s dominant soil types and the management challenges they present. Each stop will highlight innovative soil amelioration practices adopted by local growers, alongside current research projects aimed at improving soil productivity, resilience, and sustainability in Western Australian farming systems.
The tour will also follow sections of the historic Goldfields Water Supply Scheme, famously completed in 1903 to transport water over 560 km from Mundaring to Kalgoorlie-Boulder. Today, this engineering marvel continues to supply water to towns, farms, and communities throughout the Wheatbelt, offering a fascinating glimpse into the region’s history and the ingenuity that shaped Western Australia’s development.
Tour highlights
- Soil management in deep sand, gravelly duplex and saline soils
- Grower-scale Soil re-engineering trial of SWAN WA Program
- Landscapes of the Avon Valley and Central Wheatbelt
- Golden Pipeline Heritage Trail at Cunderdin
FT2 - Swan Coastal Plain
This field tour traces the interplay between land use, soil type and environmental health across a dynamic landscape. Participants will explore the transition from the gravel soils of the Darling Scarp slopes to the foothills and deep sandy system of the Swan Coastal Plain culminating
at the critical estuarine interface. Along the way, participants will gain insight into how these transitions shape land management challenges and impacts on the estuary. The tour will examine how inherent soil constraints have shaped land use in the region-including forestry, grazing, and emerging agricultural applications—and how nutrient management strategies have been adapted to suit these conditions. Particular emphasis will be placed on practical on-ground approaches that growers and land managers are using to improve productivity while managing soil limitations, alongside research aimed at engineering soils for improved
nutrient retention.
Over the past 20+ years, fertiliser strategies and soil management practices have evolved significantly, driven by both field experience and targeted research investment. This tour will showcase key findings from research in the Peel Estuary catchment focusing on reducing nutrient movement from agriculture and other land uses. The session will also reflect on the reason for and the impact of the Dawesville
Cut, how water quality in the estuary and surrounding waterways has changed over the past 50+ years, and how science, sustained monitoring combined with improved land management practices are contributing to better
environmental outcomes.
Tour highlights
- Soil pits at Whitby Falls Farm, Murdoch University
- Visit to a farm near Pinjarra to discuss whole farm mapping
- Explore on-farm research engineering soils to improve nutrient retention. Dawesville Cut –
- nutrient management and algal blooms
FT3 - Land Restoration, waste recovery and soil amendments
This tour visits Alcoa’s rehabilitation sites, the Richgro Bionergy plant and soil profiles from the 2026 Soil Judging Competition. Join us for an in‑depth look at Alcoa’s environmental rehabilitation work as we tour their bauxite mining operations and surrounding rehabilitated jarrah forest (Eucalyptus
marginata). This field tour offers a behind‑the‑scenes
opportunity to see how Alcoa mines, manages, and rehabilitates the Northern Jarrah Forest. The tour will visit Alcoa’s Huntly Bauxite Mine, located approximately 95 kilometres south of Perth. Participants will observe active mining areas and a range of rehabilitation stages from four to sixteen years old. Members of the Forest Research Centre team will share insights into research and operational practice related to landscape reconstruction, topsoil management, seed germination and early plant growth, and the development of sustainable forest ecosystems.
The Richgro Bioenergy Plant was the first food waste biogas plant of its kind in Australia and provides a practical example of circular resource recovery at commercial scale. Richgro is a Western Australian, family-owned business with a long history in organics recycling, soil improvement, and garden product development. The facility diverts commercial and industrial organic waste from landfill and converts it into renewable energy and digestate, which can be further recovered as a raw
material for Richgro’s soil and garden products. Beyond its commercial operations, Richgro actively contributes to national and state research projects focused on sustainable soil management, organic waste recovery, nutrient cycling, and waste-derived fertiliser and soil amendment products.
This industry research activity connects applied soil science with real-world product development and organics recycling outcomes.
Tour highlights
- Visit to ALCOA land restoration sites
- Visit Richgro composting, biofertiliser and anaerobic digestion facilities
- See soil profiles for Soil Pits from the 2026 Soil Judging Competition