Lewis, Stephen E., James, Cassandra S., Bainbridge, Zoe T., Davis, Aaron M., Northey, Adam, Lawrence, Emma, and Bartley, Rebecca (2026) Trends in fertiliser use and efficiency in the Great Barrier Reef catchment area. Journal of Environmental Management, 416. 130679.

Preview

PDF (Published Version) - Published Version Available under License Creative Commons Attribution. Download (28MB) | Preview

Abstract

Time series data of annual fertiliser application in river basins provide a foundational record of crop management practices and environmental change. Here we produce an annual time series of synthetic nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) fertiliser application for the river basins of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) catchment area of north-eastern Australia spanning from 1910 to 2024. We draw on statistical data of basin-scale land use for various crop types coupled with known application rates to develop the time series, accounting for the uncertainties in both crop area and application rates. The compilation shows that N and P application has declined across four of the six natural resource management regions over the past one to two decades, however, there is considerable variability at the basin-scale, particularly in the timing of peak fertiliser application. This variability reflects changes in land use including shifts in crop types and/or cropped areas, as well as reductions in fertiliser application rates. We also show that mill mud/ash application to sugarcane crops provides extra plant-available N and P that should be incorporated into farm-scale nutrient budgets. Finally, we evaluate the long-term trends in N use efficiency in sugarcane, the dominant crop in the GBR catchment area, and reveal that the industry has improved markedly over the past one to two decades while maintaining consistent yields. These data contribute an important line of evidence for evaluating long-term trends in water quality and provide insights into the changing environmental footprint of croplands within the GBR catchment area.

Item ID:	93858
Item Type:	Article (Research - C1)
ISSN:	1095-8630
Keywords:	Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Sugarcane, NUE, Mill mud, River basins, Water quality
Copyright Information:	Crown Copyright © 2026. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Funders:	National Environmental Science Program (Marine and Coastal Hub Project 5.11), CSIRO, Queensland Department of the Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation's Reef Water Quality Science Program, James Cook University (JCU)
Date Deposited:	31 Aug 2026 00:44
FoR Codes:	30 AGRICULTURAL, VETERINARY AND FOOD SCIENCES > 3002 Agriculture, land and farm management > 300299 Agriculture, land and farm management not elsewhere classified @ 30% 41 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES > 4105 Pollution and contamination > 410504 Surface water quality processes and contaminated sediment assessment @ 20% 30 AGRICULTURAL, VETERINARY AND FOOD SCIENCES > 3004 Crop and pasture production > 300411 Fertilisers (incl. application) @ 50%
SEO Codes:	24 MANUFACTURING > 2401 Agricultural chemicals > 240102 Chemical fertilisers @ 40% 18 ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT > 1803 Fresh, ground and surface water systems and management > 180306 Measurement and assessment of freshwater quality (incl. physical and chemical conditions of water) @ 40% 26 PLANT PRODUCTION AND PLANT PRIMARY PRODUCTS > 2604 Harvesting and packaging of plant products > 260403 Sugar cane (cut for crushing) @ 20%
Downloads:	Total: 2 Last 12 Months: 2
	More Statistics