TIMELINE OF GREAT BARRIER REEF PROJECTS

Wet Tropics Waterways Partnership

2022
September 2022

Mamu Healthy Waterways Project

  • Focus: Expansion of indicators for monitoring
  • Catchment: Johnstone catchment
  • Investment: $0.3 million
  • Funder: Great Barrier Reef Foundation and Australian Government's Reef Trust
  • Delivery partners: Mamu Aboriginal Corporation, Terrain NRM
2021
December 2021

Mossman & Murray Water Quality Project

Mossman & Murray Water Quality Project 2021-2023 

  • Focus: Reduction in runoff of dissolved inorganic nitrogen from cane farms through provision of extension support
  • Catchments: Mossman & Murray catchments
  • Investment: $5 million
  • Funder: Australian Government's Reef Trust Phase VII
  • Delivery Partners: Terrain NRM, Mossman Agricultural Services, Canegrowers Tully
March 2021

Tully & Johnstone Water Quality Project

Tully & Johnstone Water Quality Project 2021-2024 

  • Focus: Reduction in DIN runoff from cane farms
  • Catchments: Tully & Johnstone catchments
  • Investment: $11.6 million
  • Funder: Great Barrier Reef Foundation & Australian Government's Reef Trust
  • Delivery Partners: Terrain NRM
March 2021

Russell-Mulgrave Water Quality Project

Russell-Mulgrave Water Quality Project 2021-2024 

  • Focus: Reduction in DIN runoff from cane farms
  • Catchments: Russell-Mulgrave catchment
  • Investment: $6.2 million
  • Funder: Great Barrier Reef Foundation & Australian Government's Reef Trust
  • Delivery Partners: Reef & Rainforest Research Centre (RRRC) and Canegrowers Cairns
March 2021

Upper Herbert Water Quality Project

Upper Herbert Water Quality Project 2021-2023 

  • Focus: Reduction in fine sediment by remediating gully and streambank erosion hotspots with engineered solutions and revegetation. Program also includes educational workshops in land management and natural grazing.
  • Catchments: Herbert catchment
  • Investment: $3.5 million
  • Funder: Great Barrier Reef Foundation & Australian Government's Reef Trust
  • Delivery Partners: Terrain NRM
2020
December 2020

Fish Homes and Highways

Fish Homes & Highways 2020-2023 

  • Focus: Improvement in coastal ecosystems through wetland restoration and improvement of fish habitat connectivity
  • Catchments: Murray, Lower Herbert
  • Investment: $5 million
  • Funder: Australian Government's Reef Trust Phase VII
  • Delivery Partners: Terrain NRM
November 2020

Reef Assist

Reef Assist 2020-2021 

  • Focus: Boost in jobs and rural economic activity through investment in on-ground projects such as riparian revegetation.
  • Catchments: Mossman, Russell-Mulgrave, Johnstone, Tully
  • Funder: Queensland Government (OGBR)
  • Investment: $4 million
  • Delivery Partners: Wet Tropics Management Authority, Terrain NRM (Johnstone Landcare & JRCMA), Douglas Shire Council, Jarragun
November 2020

End of WTSIP

After the end of Reef Trust III and the GBRF extension in Nov 2020, the WTSIP (Wet Tropics Sugar Industry Partnership) partners agreed to end their arrangement since GBRF's investment strategy is focused on catchment by catchment projects rather than a collaborative regional approach.

January 2020

Lower Herbert Water Quality Project

Lower Herbert Water Quality Project 2020-2023 

  • Focus: Reduction in DIN runoff from cane farms
  • Catchments: Herbert catchment
  • Investment: $16.2 million
  • Funder: Reef Trust Partnership (Great Barrier Reef Foundation & Australian Government's Reef Trust)
  • Delivery Partners: Canegrowers Herbert, HCPSL, Liquaforce, Catchment Solutions, Agro Group
2019
May 2019

Cane to Creek 2.0

Cane to Creek 2.0 2019-2022  

  • Focus: Assisting cane growers to achieve nutrient management best practice
  • Catchments: Russell-Mulgrave, Mossman, Johnstone, Murray, Herbert
  • Funder: Reef Trust Partnership (Great Barrier Reef Foundation and Australian Government)
  • Investment: $2.2 million
  • Delivery Partner: SRA
April 2019

RP161C Complete Nutrient Management Planning for Cane Farming

RP161C Complete Nutrient Management Planning for Cane Farming Project 2019-2022

  • Focus: Extension support for cane growers on whole farm nutrient management planning
  • Catchments: Russell-Mulgrave
  • Investment: $7.08 million
  • Funder: Australian and Queensland Governments
  • Delivery Partners: Sugar Research Australia, Farmacist
2018
June 2018

Mossman Integrated Project

Mossman Integrated Catchment Project 2018-2022

  • Focus: Strengthening stream banks to prevent soil loss during floods with a combination of engineered solutions and revegetation
  • Catchments: Mossman
  • Investment: $1 million
  • Funder: Queensland Government
  • Delivery partners: Terrain NRM
June 2018

Upper Johnstone Integrated Project

Upper Johnstone Integrated Project 2018-2022

  • Focus: Reduction of fine sediment by repairing erosion hotspots with engineered solutions and revegetation. The program is also supporting landholders with natural grazing educational workshops
  • Catchments: Upper Johnstone
  • Investment: $2.3 million
  • Funder: Queensland Government
  • Delivery partners: Terrain NRM
May 2018

Reef Credits

Reef Credits was launched in June 2018 by Green Collar, Terrain NRM, Dry Tropics NRM and the Queensland Government. It is Australia's first market-based system for paying landholders to make changes to reduce nutrient, pesticide and sediment runoff to the Reef.

Listen to our Reef & Rivers podcast for more information.

April 2018

Reef Trust Partnership

Reef Trust Partnership

In April 2018 the Australian Government provided $444 million to the Great Barrier Reef Foundation to coordinate reef program investment.

2017
October 2017

Reef Trust 4 Gully & Grazing

Reef Trust 4 Gully & Grazing 2017-2022

  • Focus: Reduction in fine sediment runoff by remediating gully and streambank erosion on grazing properties
  • Catchments: Upper Herbert
  • Investment: $3 million
  • Funder: Australian Government’s Reef Trust IV program
  • Delivery Partner: Terrain NRM
  • Listen to the Reef & Rivers podcast for more information
September 2017

Wet Tropics Major Integrated Project

Wet Tropics Major Integrated Project: 2017-2021

  • Focus: Whole of catchment approach with comprehensive local scale monitoring, farm services and trial of new catchment repair systems inc. bioreactors, high efficiency sediment basins, constructed wetlands and vegetated drains.
  • Catchments: Johnstone and Tully
  • Investment: $15 million
  • Funder: Queensland Government
  • Delivery Partners: Terrain NRM, Canegrowers, Australian Banana Growers Council
  • Listen to the Reef & Rivers podcast for more information
May 2017

Enhanced Extension Coordination Project

Enhanced Extension Coordination Project 2017-2021 

  • Focus: Increased adoption of land management practices by through improved coordination and collaboration across agricultural industry extension networks. Program also included funding for small projects to enhance extension and peer-to-peer learning.
  • Catchments: All catchments
  • Investment:
  • Funder: Queensland Government Reef Water Quality Program
  • Delivery Partners: DAF, Terrain NRM, Cape York NRM
May 2017

Reef Aid Projects

Figtree Lagoon/Palm Creek 2017-2021  

  • Focus: Restore priority wetlands adjacent to the reef to improve coastal ecosystem ecological processes and connectivity
  • Catchments: Russell-Mulgrave, Herbert
  • Funder: Australian Government through Reef Trust Phase 5 and Greening Australia's Reef Aid
  • Investment: $10 million
  • Delivery Partners: Greening Australia and Mulgrave Landcare
April 2017

RP163 Protecting our chemicals

RP163 Protecting our chemicals for the future (2017-2020)

  • Focus: Helping cane growers understand water quality implications of chemicals and how they’re used
  • Catchments: Tully, Johnstone, Russell-Mulgrave, Barron
  • Investment:
  • Funder: Australian and Queensland Governments
  • Delivery Partners: Sugar Research Australia
April 2017

Reef Trust Repeated Tenders

Reef Trust Repeated Tenders (Phase 4) 2017-2022

  • Focus: Reduction in DIN runoff from cane farms using new nutrient management practices. Funds allocated to 39 cane growers through a competitive market-based program.
  • Catchments: Herbert, Murray, Tully, Johnstone, Russell-Mulgrave
  • Investment: $5 million
  • Funder: Australian Government
  • Delivery partners: Terrain NRM, Wet Tropics Sugar Industry Partnership
February 2017

Cane Changer

Cane Changer 2016-2020

  • Focus: Behaviour science program to accelerate adoption of sugar cane farm practices with lower risk to water quality
  • Catchments: Herbert, Tully, Johnstone, Russell-Mulgrave, Mossman
  • Investment: $2 million
  • Funder: Queensland Government
  • Delivery Partner: Behaviour Innovation, Canegrowers
2016
December 2016

Pilot Report card

Pilot Report card
November 2016

Project Uplift

Project Uplift 2016-2019

  • Focus: Grants to support cane farmers to adopt SRA's Farming Systems (6 Easy Steps)
  • Catchments:
  • Investment: $17.3 million
  • Funder: Australian Government (Reef Trust Phase 5), sugar industry
  • Delivery Partner: MSF Sugar
October 2016

Reef Trust 3: Growing a Great Barrier Reef

Reef Trust 3: Growing a Great Barrier Reef 2016-2019

  • Focus: Reduction in nutrient and pesticides through provision of agricultural extension programs with a focus on nutrient management planning
  • Catchments: All
  • Investment: $10 million sugarcane
  • Funder: Australian Government’s Reef Trust
  • Delivery partners: Terrain NRM, Wet Tropics Sugar Industry Partnership (17 organisations), Australian Banana Growers Council, Barron Catchment Care
  • The sugarcane component of this project was extended to the end of 2020 by the Great Barrier Reef Foundation.
October 2016

Wet Tropics Sugar Industry Partnership

Wet Tropics Sugar Industry Partnership

The Wet Tropics Sugar Industry Partnership was expanded in 2016 to include all 17 organisations in the oversight and delivery of the Reef Trust 3 cane targets. This was in response to the GBR Water Science Taskforce recommendation for greater coordination and collaboration across reef projects. Read more  

August 2016

Project 25

Project 25 2016-2020

  • Focus: Local scale water quality monitoring on cane farms
  • Catchments: Russell-Mulgrave
  • Investment:
  • Funder: National Environmental Science Program
  • Delivery Partner: Canegrowers Cairns, Reef & Rainforest Research Centre
  • Listen to our Reef & Rivers podcast to find out more.
May 2016

Cane to Creek Project

Cane to Creek 2016-2019  

  • Focus: Assisting cane growers to achieve nutrient management best practice
  • Catchments: Russell-Mulgrave
  • Funder: Queensland Government
  • Delivery Partner: SRA
May 2016

GBR Water Science Taskforce

GBR Water Science Taskforce

In May 2015 the Queensland Government established the Great Barrier Reef Water Science Taskforce to advise on how to invest $90 million over 5 years to achieve ambitious water quality targets. The final report was published in May 2016. 

 

2014
April 2014

Project Catalyst

Project Catalyst 2014 – ongoing

  • Focus: Development of a network of cane farmers who are trialling innovative cane farming practices
  • Catchments: All
  • Funder: Australian Government’s Reef Trust, Great Barrier Reef Foundation, Coca Cola
  • Delivery partners: Terrain NRM/Catchment Solutions
  • Go to www.projectcatalyst.net.au to find out more

 

April 2014

Reef Trust Phase 1 Tenders

Reef Trust Phase 1 Tenders 2014-2018

  • Focus: Reduction in dissolved inorganic nitrogen runoff from cane farms. Funding allocated to 14 cane farmers through a market-based competitive tender process who trialled the new nutrient management practices.
  • Catchments: Participants mostly located in Tully, Murray and Herbert
  • Investment: $1.7 million
  • Funder: Australian Government
  • Delivery partners: Terrain NRM
January 2014

SmartCane BMP

SmartCane BMP 2014- to date 

  • Focus: Accreditation program for cane farmers to record and verify practice changes
  • Catchments: Herbert, Tully, Johnstone, Russell-Mulgrave, Mossman
  • Funder: Queensland Government
  • Delivery Partner: Canegrowers
  • More information: www.smartcane.com.au
2008
April 2008

Reef Rescue 2008-2016

Reef Rescue (Reef Programme) 2008-2016

  • Focus: Incentive grants, training and extension services to facilitate change in farming practices in cane, bananas, grazing, dairy, pawpaw and multi-crop.
  • Catchments: All
  • Investment: $65 million
  • Funder: Australian Government
  • Delivery partners: Terrain NRM in partnership with agricultural industries