Taking advantage of a GRDC funded trip to attend the Annual meetings of Soil Science SOC of America held in Indianapolis, I requested CRDC funds to visit laboratories involved in research related to Bt-crops and soil biota ie. laboratories of Dr. G. Stotzky at New York

University and Dr. DC. Coleman at the University of Georgia. Both for the CRDC and Dr.

Gupta this would these visits would provide access to the knowledge of the work related to

GM crops (including Bt and herbicide tolerant crops), in particular to latest techniques.

Prior to the Annual meetings Dr. Gupta visited laboratories at the Centre for Microbial

Ecology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, in particular the group headed by Dr. I.

Tiedje known for the development of molecular techniques to study soil Tmcrobial

communities (GRDC funds). Once again this provided us with an opportunity to be exposed

to latest techniques such as DNA Tmcroarrays for parallel analysis of (even quantify) many

Tmcrobial genes.

Early season pests present a great challenge for pest decisions makers, as any disruption

to beneficials early in the season is likely to result in the flaring of pests and increase the

necessity for further sprays later in the season. Aphids have the potential to reduce yield,

create sticky cotton and are vectors for Cotton Bunchy Top Disease (CBT). The high levels

of resistance to a number of chemical groups in aphids mean that adherence to the Insect

Resistance Management Strategy (IRMS) and an effective whole farm Integrated Pest

Management (IPM) strategy for the management of aphids is critical.

This project continued the major study of waterlogging on heavy clay soils after furrow irrigation or heavy rainfall. The experiments concentrated on cotton, but some detailed work was also done on summer legumes to study detailed reasons for yield reduction daring waterlogging.

I. The optimum field slope for furrow irrigation was 1:1000 to 1:1500

2. The best yields were obtained from running siphons for 4h at each irrigation. Longer times of running siphons reduced yield, especially with slopes of 1:2000.

3. Foliar nitrogen fertilizer, applied prior to an irrigation which caused waterlogging, minimised the yield loss due to waterlogging, particularly with low to moderate soil N status.

4. Waterlogging-induced iron chlorosis has been found to limit crop growth of grain legumes and possibly cotton at some sites. Further research is needed on methods of identifying and reducing this effect.

CSIRO Textile and Fibre Technology were invited to be part of the to China during February. The invitation was extended to give the delegation the technical credentials with which to comment on the spinning ability of Australian cotton. It was also thought that a preliminary report on the Cotton CRC Mill Survey project outcomes (from Japan, Korea and Australia) to be delivered at the seminars sponsored by ACSA on this mission would provide useful information to Chinese spinners contemplating using Australian cotton. For the same reason Mr Peter Cottle, Director of Cotton Australia and General Manager of Cotton Operations at Clyde Agriculture, was invited to provide expertise in sustainable cotton growing. The trip was organized by ACSA with help from the Austrade Offices in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. It was the second trip to China by an ACSA delegation in two years. Bureau of Economic Operations, State Economic & Trade Commission (SETC) SETC is responsible for the guidance and coordination of the key industrial operations. It monitors and analyses the operational situation and regulate the current national economic operations. Textile industry is one of the industries under the supervision and guidance of SETC. General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of China (AQSIQ) AQSIQ monitors quarantine of imports and exports. The organization has 12 cotton inspection centers for inspecting quality and reconciliation of disputes. Defines and polices quality standards for all imports. Chinese International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC) The China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (hereinafter referred to as the Arbitration Commission and also known as the Court of Arbitration of the China Chamber of International Commerce from 1 October 2000) is a permanent international commercial arbitration institution which independently and impartially resolves, by means of arbitration, contractual or non contractual, economic and trade disputes. State Planning & Development Commission (SPDC) SPDC reports directly to the State Council. This agency is responsible for devising the national policy for national economic and social development, balancing total demand and supply, import and export, planning the trade of key farm produce, regulating the market to prevent shortage or surplus, coordinating major developments and monitoring investment projects. It sets rules governing the imports of key agricultural commodities including cotton under the tariff-rate quota (TRQ) system. One division is in charge of the allocation of the annual cotton quota. Bureau of Cotton and Jute All China Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives (SMC) SMC is a government organisation responsible for the procurement, processing, marketing and distribution of cotton in China. China freed up the All-China Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperative’s monopoly over cotton procurement, marketing and distribution system in 1999 and again in 2001. It is likely to be restructured into a new organisation called the China Cotton Association. China National Cotton Exchange Established in 1999, the Exchange’s major function is to manage the National Cotton Exchange Market, China’s version of a cotton trading market, not a real futures market. Twenty-two remote terminals have been established in the main cotton distribution centres. China Cotton Reserve Management Corporation Previously this organization was part of SMC. Its primary role is to manage the national cotton reserve in accordance with national policy. Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation It formulates and implements specific policies and reform plans for foreign trade, economic cooperation and foreign investment. China Cotton Textile Association Previously this organisation was one section of the Ministry. It is now an industry organisation with membership from the industry itself. The Association is funded through membership fees, some government support and revenue generated from events and services. It collects and researches industry information and advises on state industry policies and industrial standards. Additional Note: Recent reports have stated that SDPC, SETC and MOFTEC will be restructured and amalgamated into one government body possibly this year. However, these organisations currently all exist.

Allan and John Williams represented the Australian

cotton industry at a workshop on environmental management

systems in agriculture, in Denver, Colorado, from 8-10th January, 2003.

The workshop was organised as part of a project titled

Partnerships for Livestock Environmental Management Systems

(PLEMS). The PLEMS project is piloting the use of

environmental management systems (EMS) in Livestock

operations in nine states.

Thye Plems project is funded by the US Department of Agriculture and the US Environment Protection Agency. Implementation of the project is being co-ordinated by the University fo Wisconsin. It is a four year project to explore the potential of agricultural environmental management systems to resolve community and regulatory concerns by supporting the development of strategies to reduce impacts of livestock manure on the environment and public health.

soil survey project was carried out in the lower Lachlan Valley around the township ofHillston with the aim of identifying current and potential soil limitations to cotton production inthis region. Within the lower Lachlan cotton-growing area, three main soil classes were identified,each with distinct features which influence cotton production

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a mild, wet winter followed by a mild wet spring as has been experienced in 2010, provides theideal situation for pest survival and early season build up of populations, especially sucking pests. Sucking pest management stategies in this type of season are outlines

CSIRO has had a successful cotton breeding program for over 20 years. In 1996, more than 90% of Australia's cotton was sown to varieties derived from the CSRO breeding program. In the Cotton CRC, the aim is to complement and enhance the previous work in all areas of traditional breeding, genetic engineering and fibre quality.

The Australian cotton industry has, until recently, relied largely upon residual pre-plant and pre-emergent herbicides for weed control in irrigated production systems. These herbicides provide good protection against a broad spectrum of weeds. In some circumstances, however, residual herbicides adversely impact the growth and development of young cotton seedlings. This is particularly the case when cool wet conditions occur early in the cotton season. As well, the majority of these herbicides have a half-life of three to four months and may persist for long periods when bound to clay particles within the soil profile. Movement of these molecules bound to clay particles is common in irrigated systems. While procedures to minimise riverine contamination are in place on irrigated farming systems, herbicides are routinely detected in the river systems of the central and north-west regions (Table I). It should be noted that of these detections atrazine and metolachlor are the only herbicides detected in significant amounts and these are used extensively in dryland sorghum.